1. Evidence and Innovation
  2. Teen Pregnancy Prevention Evidence Review
  3. Evidence-Based Program Components

Evidence-Based Program Components

Beginning with the 2024 release of findings, TPPER now examines studies that focus on the impact of well-defined components of programs, or combinations of components, that are intended to reduce rates of unintended teen pregnancy, STIs, or associated sexual risk behaviors. Program components are the elements and activities that make up a program. Component evaluation studies included in the TPPER provide information about which components of existing programs are important for achieving outcomes, and whether there are components that could potentially be added to a program as a supplement. In the future, after the TPPER compiles a strong evidence base for components, TPPER users will be able to select the most effective components for a specific program aim or population so that they can tailor their program implementation to the unique needs of their community.

For TPPER, components are elements common to TPP programs including but not limited to:

  • content (for instance, content about STIs)
  • delivery mechanism (for instance, role play or lecture)
  • format (for instance, computer based)
  • staffing (for instance, single facilitator versus co-facilitation)
  • dosage (for instance, two-week delivery window versus 12-week delivery window)
  • context (for instance, clinic versus at home)
  • intended population characteristics (for instance, age of youth)

Some components may be available to purchase (for instance, the content of text messages designed to boost attendance and retention in voluntary programs), and some may be practices an implementer can use (for instance, co-facilitation rather than a single facilitator).

To learn more about the specific evidence-based components identified through the TPPER, select one of the components listed below.

Booster sexual risk reduction counseling implemented as a supplement to HORIZONS

Booster phone calls are phone-based interactions conducted after the end of a program to provide a dose of the program to participants after a period of not receiving any content. Booster phone calls deliver content to program participants, typically reinforcing content delivered during the main program. Booster phone calls include general follow-up such as reminders to schedule a health care visit, or tailored follow-up such as counseling participants on how to reduce risk behaviors reported since the end of the program. The number, frequency and duration of booster phone calls may vary, as well as the program staff who deliver the phone calls.

In-person delivery of a clinic-based brief intervention by nurse practitioners

An in-person format was used for a brief intervention (BI) designed to address substance use and sexual risk behaviors for adolescents. Its curriculum included motivational and educational content targeting marijuana, alcohol, and risky sexual behaviors. The in-person format involved training licensed nurse practitioners on motivational interviewing techniques and providing them with booster sessions to reinforce training content. Nurse practitioners delivered the intervention to participants in a school-based health center (SBHC). In-person delivery was designed to be completed in a single session, but participants were encouraged to continue engaging with the SBHC about health behaviors covered in the BI. On average, in-person delivery of the intervention took 17 minutes.

Key definitions

Program components are the elements and activities that make up a program. Each evidence-based program’s profile includes a Program Component Table, completed by the developer or distributor of the program, that shows the components that make up the program. These components are presented for descriptive purposes and are not necessarily evidence based.

Evidence-based program components are elements or activities of a program that have been tested and shown to have evidence of effectiveness in improving sexual behavior outcomes, with that effectiveness distinct from the effects of any associated program. Evidence-based program components may have been implemented independently, in conjunction with, or integrated into a TPP program.