FOREWORD<br >In the Mainstream<br > of American Life<br >One of the legacies of the social upheaval of the 1960s is<br >that psychoactive drugs have become part of the mainstream<br >of American life. Schools， homes， and communities cannot<br >be "drug proofed." There is a demand for drugs -- and the<br >supply is plentiful. Social norms have changed and drugs are<br >not only available--they are everywhere.<br > But where efforts to curtail the supply of drugs and out-<br >law their use have had tragically limited effects on demand，<br >it may be that education has begun to stem the rising tide of<br >drug abuse among young people and adults alike.<br > Over the past 25 years， as drugs have become an in-<br >creasingly routine facet of contemporary life， a great many<br >teenagers have adopted the notion that drug taking was some-<br >how a right or a privilege or a necessity. They have done so，<br >however， without understanding the consequences of drug<br > use during the crucial years of adolescence.<br > The teenage years are few in the total life cycle， but<br > critical in the maturation process. During these years ado-<br > lescents face the difficult tasks of discovering their identity，<br > clarifying their sexual roles， asserting their independence，<br > learning to cope with authority， and searching for goals that<br > will give their lives meaning.<br > Drugs rob adolescents of precious time， stamina， and<br > health. They interrupt critical learning processes， sometimes<br > forever. Teenagers who use drugs are likely to withdraw in-<br > creasingly into themselves， to "cop out" at just the time when<br > they most need to reach out and experience the world.<br >f<br ><br >