Be Proud! Be Responsible!
The program is designed to be implemented in a variety of settings, including schools or youth-serving community-based organizations. It was evaluated in a community-based setting.
Program Contact Information
Email: sales@etr.org
Phone: (800) 321-4407
Website: https://www.etr.org/ebi/programs/be-proud-be-responsible/
Training Contact Information
Kelly Gainor, M.Ed.
ebptraining@etr.org
Website: https://www.etr.org/ebi/programs/be-proud-be-responsible/
ETR offers monitoring and evaluation tools, including pre- and post-tests and a curriculum fidelity log. The fidelity logs can be used to document how much of each module was completed and to give educators a place to comment on their delivery of any of the modules.
Last updated in 2023
The data presented on this page reflects responses from the program’s developer or distributor to a program component checklist that asked them to report on the individual components within their TPP program. The same program component checklist was sent to the developer or distributor of every active TPP program with evidence of effectiveness. The program component table provides data on seven types of program components including content, delivery mechanism, dosage, staffing, format, environment, and intended population characteristics; whether the component was present or optional in the program; whether the component is considered to be core to the program; and the lesson number or activity where the component can be found in the program. For more details, refer to the FAQ.
| Category | Component | Core Component | Component present | Notes | Lesson number(s) / activities where present |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Content | School engagement | No | No | ||
| Content | Anatomy/physiology | No | No | ||
| Content | Other | ||||
| Content | Volunteering/civic engagement | No | No | ||
| Content | Spirituality | No | No | ||
| Content | Morals/values | No | Yes (both versions) | Module 1, Activity E (43) | |
| Content | Identity development | No | No | ||
| Content | Social support/capital | No | No | ||
| Content | Social influence/actual vs. perceived social norms | Yes | Yes (both versions) | Module 1, Activity E (43) | |
| Content | Social competence | No | No | ||
| Content | Parenting skills | No | No | ||
| Content | Normative beliefs | Yes | Yes (both versions) | Module 1, Activity A (29), Activity E (43) | |
| Content | Leadership | No | No | ||
| Content | Gender roles | No | No | ||
| Content | Gender identity | No | No | ||
| Content | Cultural values | Yes | Yes (both versions) | Module 1, Activity E (43) | |
| Content | Connections with trusted adults | No | No | ||
| Content | Conflict resolution/social problem solving | Yes | Yes (both versions) | Module 8, All Activities (116) | |
| Content | Communication skills | Yes | Yes (both versions) | Module 8, All Activities (116) | |
| Content | Child development | No | No | ||
| Content | Boundary setting/refusal skills | Yes | Yes (both versions) | Module 8, All Activities (116) | |
| Content | Substance use cessation | No | No | ||
| Content | Substance use - Other drugs | No | No | ||
| Content | Substance use - Alcohol | No | No | ||
| Content | Substance use - Abstinence | No | No | ||
| Content | Brain development and substance use | No | No | ||
| Content | Vocational/skills training | No | No | ||
| Content | Supplemental academic services | No | No | ||
| Content | Graduating from high school | No | No | ||
| Content | College preparation | No | No | ||
| Content | Alternative schooling | No | No | ||
| Content | Self-regulation | No | No | ||
| Content | Self-esteem | No | No | ||
| Content | Self-efficacy/empowerment | Yes | Yes (both versions) | Module 8, All Activities (116) | |
| Content | Resilience | No | No | ||
| Content | Risk of STIs and Pregnancy | Yes | Yes (both versions) | Module 1, Activity D (37), Activity E (43); Module 3, All Activities (61), Module 4, All Activities (77) | |
| Content | STIs - Screening | Yes | Yes (both versions) | Only HIV | Module 1, Activity D (37) |
| Content | STIs - Prevention | Yes | Yes (both versions) | Module 3, Activity C (66); Module 5, All Activities (92) | |
| Content | STIs - Information | No | No | Only HIV | |
| Content | Sexual risk reduction | Yes | Yes (both versions) | Module 1, Activity D (37), Activity E (43); Module 2, Activity C (52); Module 3, All Activities (61); Module 5, All Activities (92) | |
| Content | Sexual risk discontinuation | Yes | Yes (both versions) | Module 1, Activity D (37), Activity E (43); Module 2, Activity C (52); Module 3, All Activities (61) | |
| Content | Sexual risk avoidance | Yes | Yes (current version) | Module 1, Activity D (37), Activity E (43); Module 2, Activity C (52); Module 3, All Activities (61) | |
| Content | Sexual orientation | No | No | ||
| Content | Personal vulnerability | Yes | Yes (both versions) | Module 8, All Activities (116) | |
| Content | Contraception - Pills, patches, rings, and shots | No | Optional | Appendix A (209) | |
| Content | Contraception - Condoms | Yes | Yes (both versions) | Module 5, All Activities (92) | |
| Content | Motivational interviewing | No | No | ||
| Content | Contraception - Long-acting reversible contraceptives | No | Optional | Appendix A (209) | |
| Content | Contraception - Other | No | Optional | Appendix A (209) | |
| Content | Puberty/development | No | Optional | Appendix A (180) |
Be Proud! Be Responsible! aims to help participants change behaviors that place them at risk for HIV and other STDs, delay the initiation of sex among sexually inexperienced youth, reduce unprotected sex among sexually active youth, and help youth make proud and responsible decisions about their sexual behaviors.
The program seeks to achieve these objectives by:
- Increasing participant knowledge about HIV, AIDS and other STDs
- Affecting participant beliefs in value of safer sex and abstinence
- Increasing confidence in ability to negotiate safer sex and to use condoms correctly, improve condom use and negotiation skills
- Improving intentions to practice safer sex
- Module 1: Introduction to HIV and AIDS
- Module 2: Building Knowledge about HIV
- Module 3: Understanding Vulnerability to HIV Infection
- Module 4: Attitudes and Beliefs about HIV, AIDS, and Safer Sex
- Module 5: Building Condom Use Skills
- Module 6: Building Negotiation and Refusal Skills
- HIV, etiology, transmission, and prevention
- Prevention strategies – negotiation, condom use, problem solving
The six session curriculum addresses the following types of core behavioral beliefs and outcome expectancies:
- Goals and Dreams Beliefs: The belief that unprotected sex can interfere with one's goals and dreams for an education and career. In Session 1, participants engage in a goals and dreams activity and discuss obstacles to their goals and dreams. Having unprotected sex is listed and discussed as an obstacle. This belief is also incorporated throughout the curriculum.
- Prevention Beliefs: The belief that condoms can reduce the risk of sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV/AIDS. This belief is incorporated throughout the curriculum.
- Partner Reaction Beliefs: The belief that one's boyfriend/girlfriend will not approve of condom use and will react negatively to it. This belief may prevent a person from negotiating condom use. In Sessions 5 and 6, participants learn and practice how to use negotiation and refusal skills to communicate with their partners about safer sex.
- Hedonistic Beliefs: The belief that condom use interferes with sexual pleasure. For example, many people believe that condoms reduce physical sensations during sexual activity and ruin the mood. Therefore, they are less likely to use condoms during sexual intercourse. In Sessions 5 and 6, youth learn that sex is still fun and pleasurable when a condom is used, and are taught how to incorporate this belief into role-play scenarios.
Be Proud! Be Responsible! is designed to be implemented in six 50-minute modules, but can be implemented in a variety of formats. For example, in community settings, it can be implemented in a 2-day format (2.5 hours each day), a 6-day format (50 minutes each day) or on a single day (Saturday). The program is designed to be delivered to a group of 6 to 8 adolescents.
Facilitators must be trained adults and be well-versed in highly participatory and interactive skills and in working with youth. Facilitators should be able relate to participants and their life circumstances.
It is highly recommended that educators who plan to teach Be Proud, Be Responsible! receive research-based professional development to prepare them to effectively implement and replicate the curriculum with fidelity for the intended target group.
Training on Be Proud, Be Responsible! is available through ETR's Professional Learning Services. Training options include a 2-day Training of Educators with follow-up support. Visit http://www.etr.org/ebi/training-ta/types-of-services/training-of-educators/ for more information or submit a Training & TA Request Form (http://www.etr.org/solutions/professional-development/training-ta-request-form/).
The distributor provides access to a table of contents and sample lesson on their website: http://www.etr.org/ebi/programs/be-proud-be-responsible/
The program requires the use of a TV monitor and DVD player.
Fidelity benchmarks, a logic model, and monitoring and evaluation tools are available for providers to implement the program with fidelity.
Additional adaptation guidance for Be Proud, Be Responsible! can be found on ETR’s Program Success Center website: http://www.etr.org/ebi/programs/be-proud-be-responsible/
Specific characteristics of this program may be altered without changing the effectiveness of the program. Adaptations are allowed in consultation with the developer, if they do not alter the core components of the program.
- Number of days to deliver the modules and order in which modules are delivered (the program should be completed within a 2 week time frame)
- Deletion or replacement of modules or activities
- Age of participants (in classes with diverse age groups, group students into similar age ranges);
- Group size (ideally 6-12 youth per group). Larger groups will require additional facilitators.
- Interactive activities
Evidence by Outcome Domain and Study
| Citation | Details |
|---|---|
Jemmott, J. B., III., Jemmott, L. S., Fong, G. T. (1992). Reductions in HIV risk-associated sexual behaviors among black male adolescents: Effects of an AIDS prevention intervention. American Journal of Public Health, 82(3), 372-77. |
The program's evidence of effectiveness was first established in a randomized controlled trial involving African American male adolescents recruited from school- and community-based locations in Philadelphia, PA. Study participants were randomly assigned to either a treatment group that received the program during a single 5-hour session delivered on a Saturday morning, or to a control group that received a career opportunities development program during the same 5-hour session. Surveys were administered immediately before the program session (baseline), immediately after the session ended, and three months after the session. |
Jemmott, J. B., Jemmott, L. S., Fong, G. T., McCaffree, K. (1999). Reducing HIV risk-associated sexual behavior among African American adolescents: Testing the generality of intervention effects. American Journal of Community Psychology, 27(2), 161-187. |
A subsequent study by the same group of researchers evaluated the program among a younger, co-ed sample of adolescents. The study used a randomized controlled trial involving African American seventh and eighth grade students in Trenton, NJ. Study participants were randomly assigned to either a treatment group that received the program during a single 5-hour session delivered on a Saturday, or to a control group that received a general health promotion program during the same session. Surveys were administered immediately before the 5-hour session (baseline), immediately after the session ended, and three and six months after the session. |
Jemmott III, J. B., Jemmott, L. S., Fong, G. T., Morales, K. H. (2010). Effectiveness of an HIV/STD risk-reduction intervention for adolescents when implemented by community-based organizations: A cluster-randomized controlled trial. American Journal of Public Health, 100(4), 720-726. |
A separate study by the original group of researchers evaluated the program when implemented outside of school on a broad scale by local community-based organizations. The study used a cluster randomized controlled trial involving 86 community-based organizations in New Jersey and Philadelphia, PA. The study randomly assigned half the organizations to a treatment group that implemented the program and half to a control group that implemented a general health promotion curriculum. Surveys were administered immediately before the program started (baseline); immediately after the program ended, and three, six, and twelve months after the program ended. |
Borawski, E. A., Trapl, E. S., Adams-Tufts, K., Hayman, L. L., Goodwin, M. A., Lovegreen, L. D. (2009). Taking be proud! be responsible! to the suburbs: A replication study. Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health, 41(1), 12-22. Borawski, E. A., Tufts, K. A., Trapl, E. S., Hayman, L. L., Yoder, L. D., Lovegreen, L. D. (2015). Effectiveness of health education teachers and school nurses teaching sexually transmitted infections/human immunodeficiency virus prevention knowledge and skills in high school. The Journal of School Health, 85(3), 189-196. doi:10.1111/josh.12234 [doi] |
A more recent study by a separate group of researchers evaluated the program when implemented in suburban high schools during the regular school day. The study used a cluster randomized controlled trial involving ninth and tenth grade students from a Midwestern metropolitan area. Participating schools were randomly assigned in matched pairs to either a treatment group that implemented the program or to a control group that implemented a general health promotion curriculum. Surveys were administered before the program (baseline), immediately after the program, and again four and 12 months after the program ended. |