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About DPRC

Since 1989, the RAND Drug Policy Research Center has conducted research to help community leaders and public officials develop more effective ways of dealing with drug problems. In doing so, the DPRC brings an objective, pragmatic perspective to this often emotional and fractious policy arena. The Center's goal is to provide a firm, empirical foundation on which sound policies can be built.

To this end, the DPRC's research embodies several key qualities:

• A focus on policy. The emphasis is on real-world problems and practical solutions.
• Objectivity. The analyses are rigorous and data-driven.
• A broad perspective. The Center addresses controversial issues with no ideological constraints.
• An interdisciplinary approach. The staff includes members from a broad array of disciplines able to handle the multifaceted problems characterizing drug policy.
• Policy impact. The DPRC's work has helped to shape drug policymaking at all levels of government.

The DPRC is a joint endeavor of RAND Health and RAND Infrastructure, Safety and Environment and is directed by Rosalie Pacula and Peter Reuter. The RAND Corporation is a nonprofit research organization providing objective analysis and effective solutions that address the challenges facing the public and private sectors around the world.

Our Ongoing Commitment to Diversity

At the RAND Corporation, diversity is a core value. We believe a broad spectrum of backgrounds and perspectives provides creativity, imagination, and innovative thinking. DPRC's commitment to diversity includes engaging in research activities that address important social and economic issues impacting health care and the criminal justice system today.

Recent research has addressed the accessibility of treatment and quality of care in underserved populations and communities, including women, the poor, and youths:

• New Inroads in Preventing Adolescent Drug Use: Results from a Large-Scale Trial of Project ALERT in Middle Schools
• From Adolescence to Young Adulthood: Racial/Ethnic Disparities in Smoking
• Interpersonal Violence, Substance Use, and HIV-Related Behavior and Cognitions: A Prospective Study of Impoverished Women in Los Angeles County
• Retention of Court-Referred Youth in Residential Treatment Programs: Client Characteristics and Treatment Process Effects

RAND's commitment to diversity is a valuable asset in our work helping communities and governments around the globe create sound, empirically based drug policies.