Substance use, self-esteem, and depression among Asian American adolescents

The relationship of self-esteem and depression with alcohol, tobacco, and other drug (ATOD) use was tested in a California statewide sample of more than 4,300 Asian American high school students comprising five subgroups: Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Filipino, and Vietnamese. Estimated prevalence rates of alcohol, tobacco, and marijuana use among males and females from these Asian American subgroups are presented. Correlations revealed that cigarette, alcohol, and marijuana use were generally more related to high depression and low self-esteem in females than in males. Logistic regression analysis with only the female subjects investigated whether the relationship between the psychological variables and ATOD use was maintained even after controlling for traditionally important constructs in ATOD use (grade level in school, born in the United States, ethnicity, and ATOD use by friends). These results indicated that for females, depression was significantly related to alcohol and tobacco use, but self-esteem was not. Neither self-esteem nor depression was a significant contributor to marijuana use. Issues related to the application of these results are discussed.     

Religiosity and alcohol behavior: An exploration of reference group theory

This study examines the relationship between religiosity and alcohol use and perceived misuse. Unlike most past research, we focus on adults rather than adolescents and distinguish among specific Protestant denominations. We also use a more appropriate statistical technique and place the findings in a theoretical context. The analysis shows that religiosity is clearly related to alcohol use, mainly because people's religion serves as a reference group influencing their behavior. The analysis also shows that religiosity is not related to perceived misuse of alcohol, mainly because societal norms are congruent with religious norms and, hence, appear to overwhelm any effect of religion.     

Psychosocial moderators of substance use among middle school-aged adolescents.

Recent statistics show a decrease in the overall use of drugs and alcohol in the general population [1]. In sharp contrast to this trend is the indication that adolescents' use of drugs and alcohol is increasing [2]. Because the use of drugs and alcohol can have serious implications for adolescents' physical, emotional, and social development, it is important that human service practitioners working with them understand those factors that influence their substance use, in order to develop effective interventions to deal with this growing problem. This article reports the findings of a study of drug and alcohol use among a sample of 779 adolescents who attended middle schools in a large urban city in the southwest United States. The study examines the relationships between substance use, social support, and a variety of other psychosocial factors. The implications of those relationships for human service practice and research are discussed.     

Alcohol Screening and Brief Intervention as Standard Practice: Working with the American Indian/Native Alaskan Populations

Alcohol use and the resulting problems associated with high-risk drinking in the American Indian/Native Alaskan (AI/NA) population are well-documented, as alcohol misuse has taken an incredible toll on many AI/NA communities. Presently, both overall health issues and alcohol use occur disproportionately within this population. This article provides an updated overview of the impact of alcohol use in the United States and within AI/NA communities specifically. It also provides recommendations for an alcohol-related screening and brief intervention instrument that social workers can begin using in their practice and can be utilized within the AI/NA community.     

Historical interpretations of alcohol use and misuse. implications for nursing curricula

Since the 1950's, nursing schools have been encouraged to include some formal content on alcoholism in their curricula. Yet there remains on immerse disparity between the prevalence of drug and alcohol problems in our society and the required number of hour on these topics in our nursing curricula. The International Nurses Society on Addictions calls on the nursing profession to promote healthy lifestyles for "at-risk" individuals. In a historical context, this article critiques the ambivalence related to alcohol use and misuse in the United States. Within that background, pedagogy to help nursing faculty and students meet current societal and professional demands and standards regarding intervention for alcohol-related problems will be explored. The constructivist educational and caring-educative models are highlighted.     

The applicability of social control theory in understanding adolescent alcohol use

Utilizing panel data on 345 high school students, this study investigates the efficacy of social control theory in accounting for adolescent orientations toward alcohol use. The findings suggest that the differing informal control mechanisms under consideration place varying constraining influences upon adolescent alcohol use, and upon problems which arise in the lives of adolescents as a consequence of their drinking, throughout the three high, school years. Similarly, alcohol use and its attendant problems are generally found to be associated with a decrease in the strength of adolescents’ bonds to conventionality, though these influences differ in degree from year to year as well.     

Examining Two Theoretical Models Predicting American and Dutch Parents’ Mediation of Adolescent Social Media Use

The goal of the present study was to utilize two theoretical models, one based on a mediation approach and the other on the theory of planned behavior (TPB), to understand parents’ mediation of their adolescents’ social media use. Data were collected from parents of adolescents ages 10–18 in two countries, the United States (US) and the Netherlands. Results indicated significant differences between the two samples. Specifically, American parents reported more concern about adolescent social media use, more positive attitudes and perceived subjective norms to control adolescent use, and higher levels of active and restrictive mediation. In general, demographics and parental concern accounted for more explained variance in mediation behaviors among Dutch parents, and the TPB-based variables accounted for more explained variance among American parents. Results suggest important implications for the integration of different theoretical models to explain parent mediation behavior.     

Social Support Among Late Adolescent Users of Alcohol and Other Drugs

This study examined the impact of social support on the use of alcohol and other drugs among late adolescents. Additionally, the study analyzed the interactional effects of social support and the other independent variables: gender, age, and race. The findings of the study suggest that social support does influence the use of alchol and other drugs. However, the direction of influence varies with alcohol, marijuana, and cocaine and with various subgroups.     

Peer,social media,and alcohol marketing influences on college student drinking

Objective: To investigate how alcohol marketing and peers may promote college students' alcohol use through social media. Participants: College students (N = 682) aged 18 to 22 years from a large Southern university completed paper surveys in April 2014. Methods: Structural equation modeling was used to investigate relationships among variables as well as moderation by gender and race. Results: Drinking behavior was directly related to perceived norms and attitudes toward alcohol that develop, in part, from direct and indirect interactions with their online and offline peers, as well as engagement with alcohol-related content on social media. Gender and ethnicity moderated some effects. Conclusions: College student drinking is influenced by friends' alcohol-related content posted on social networking sites and by greater engagement with traditional and online alcohol marketing. College campus alcohol misuse interventions should include components to counter peer influences and alcohol marketing on social media.     

Sense of Belonging in School as a Protective Factor Against Drug Abuse Among Native American Urban Adolescents

This article presents the results of a study conducted with 243 Native American students who were part of a multi-ethnic sample of adolescents attending middle school in a large urban center in the Southwest region of the United States. Native adolescents who felt a stronger sense of belonging in their school were found to report a lower lifetime use of alcohol and cigarettes, lower cigarette and marijuana use in the previous month, lower frequency of current use of these substances, fewer substances ever used, and a later age of initiation into drug use than other Native students. Research implications are discussed in relationship to school environment, culturally-grounded prevention curricula, and school social work practice.     

The moderating effects of culture on peer deviance and alcohol use among high-risk African-American Adolescents

African-American adolescents have lower rates of alcohol consumption than White youth. However, African-American youth suffer disproportionately more adverse social, mental, and physical health outcomes related to alcohol use. Affiliating with negative peers is a risk factor for alcohol initiation and consumption. Cultural variables have shown moderating effects against other risk factors for African-American youth and therefore were the focus of this study. Specifically, we tested whether three culturally-relevant variables, Africentric beliefs, religiosity, and ethnic identity were promotive or protective for alcohol initiation and use within the context of negative peer affiliations. The sample consisted of 114 at-risk African-American adolescents whose ages ranged from 13 to 20. Participants were administered a questionnaire with measures of alcohol initiation and use, peer risk behaviors, ethnic identity, Africentric beliefs, religiosity, and demographic items. Peer risk behaviors accounted for significant percentages of the variance in age of alcohol initiation, lifetime use, and current and heavy alcohol use after adjusting for age and gender. Cultural variables showed both promotive and protective effects. Africentric beliefs were promotive of delayed alcohol initiation, whereas both Africentrism and religiosity moderated peer risk behaviors effect on alcohol initiation. Africentric beliefs were also inversely related to lifetime alcohol use revealing a promotive effect. Moreover, there were significant protective effects of ethnic identity and religiosity on heavy alcohol consumption. One implication of these findings is that prevention programs that infuse cultural values and practices such as Africentrism, ethnic identity, and religiosity may delay alcohol initiation and reduce use especially for youth with high risk peers.     

Alcohol abuse as a rite of passage: the effect of beliefs about alcohol and the college experience on undergraduates' drinking behaviors

Qualitative studies of alcohol's ritual influences indicate that college undergraduates who drink heavily tend to view alcohol use as integral to the student role and feel entitled to drink irresponsibly. Our analyses, based on a standardized measure of these beliefs administered to approximately 300 students, confirmed these findings. Among our sample, beliefs about alcohol and the college experience had an effect on levels of alcohol consumption similar in magnitude to that of other variables commonly associated with a risk for heavy drinking. Moreover, the alcohol beliefs index moderated the effects of three risk factors--gender, high school drinking, and friends' use of alcohol--on respondents' drinking behaviors. These findings are discussed within the context of the anthropological literature on liminality and rites of passage and with regard to strategies for intervention that address the structural roots of the widespread abuse of alcohol on college campuses.     

Social Construction of Cultural Identity: An Ethnographic Study of Korean American Students

Identity is regarded as a cultural and historical product of constant negotiation processes influenced by specific social and cultural contexts. This study examines Korean American students' ethnic identities in terms of peer group, family, and media influences. A "thick analysis" based on 6-month participant observations and interviews in two Korean American communities was undertaken. Although they were born and grew up in the United States, most of the interviewees at both universities expressed that they were Korean (or Korean American) rather than American. Specifically, it was found that their family played an important role in teaching them the Korean language and customs in the early period of identity construction. Following, Korean videos, mobile phones, and the Internet were the main media through which these Korean Americans learned about Korean culture and society, and increased intra-ethnic communication within the diasporic Korean American community context.     

Sense of Belonging in School as a Protective Factor Against Drug Abuse Among Native American Urban Adolescents

ABSTRACT

This article presents the results of a study conducted with 243 Native American students who were part of a multi-ethnic sample of adolescents attending middle school in a large urban center in the Southwest region of the United States. Native adolescents who felt a stronger sense of belonging in their school were found to report a lower lifetime use of alcohol and cigarettes, lower cigarette and marijuana use in the previous month, lower frequency of current use of these substances, fewer substances ever used, and a later age of initiation into drug use than other Native students. Research implications are discussed in relationship to school environment, culturally-grounded prevention curricula, and school social work practice.     

The influence of ethnic identity on drug use among ethnic minority adolescents

Ethnic identity is a significant factor related to self-concept and psychological development and similar to other aspects of identity, is of particular importance during the adolescent years when there is increased vulnerability to drug involvement. However, much of the research relative to adolescent drug use has focused on the annual and current prevalence rates among particular ethnic groups with little attention to ethnic or group identity issues. However, it is important to study and compare ethnic and group identity and its correlates to drug use. This article presents face-to-face interview questionnaire measures of ethnic identity as measured by affirmation and belongingness, ethnic identity achievement, ethnic behavior, and other group orientation [1], and drug use as measured by misuse, abuse, and chemical dependency diagnoses [2]. The questionnaires were administered to 127 (60 Ethnic, 67 White) adolescents from ethnically diverse schools in a large urban school district in the Pacific Northwest. The relationship of ethnic identity to drug use was examined. This study indicates that the questionnaire measures can be used to examine similarities and differences in ethnic identity and drug use among adolescents from different ethnic groups. A key finding of this study was that white adolescents scored lower in ethnic identity than did members of the four ethnic minority groups and the mixed racial group. However, the most significant key finding was that in the ethnic minority sample high levels of cultural identity were associated with heavy drug use. The results of this study suggest that social influences may play a larger role in the development of heavy drug use irrespective of the nature and origins of these social influences.     

A covariance structure model test of antecedents of adolescent alcohol misuse and a prevention effort

As part of an alcohol misuse prevention evaluation, questionnaires were administered to 4,157 junior high school students to determine levels of alcohol misuse, exposure to peer use and misuse of alcohol, susceptibility to peer pressure, internal health locus of control, and self-esteem. A conceptual model of the antecedents of adolescent alcohol misuse and the effectiveness of a prevention effort was tested using covariance structure modeling techniques. The factor loadings for the model were all moderate to high, indicating that the observed variables served well as measurement instruments for the latent variables. The hypothesized structural relationships among the latent variables of alcohol misuse, exposure to peer use and misuse of alcohol, susceptibility to peer pressure, internal health locus of control, and self-esteem were supported by the data. The full model explained 45 percent of the variance in alcohol misuse in the analysis based on the total sample. The direct effect of the intervention on alcohol misuse was small but significant in the hypothesized direction. The direct effects of the intervention on susceptibility to peer pressure and internal health locus of control were not significant. The model was tested separately for groups of students who had high versus low scores on susceptibility to peer pressure in order to test the interaction between susceptibility to peer pressure and exposure to peer use and misuse of alcohol. The percentage of variance accounted for in alcohol misuse did not increase upon testing the model separately for students who had high versus low scores on susceptibility to peer pressure. Observed differences in the significance of the parameter estimates between the high and low susceptibility to peer pressure groups suggest that different approaches to the design and evaluation of substance abuse prevention programs may be necessary for different subgroups of students.     

Determinants of tobacco use among Korean female adolescents: Longitudinal test of the theory of triadic influence

This study aimed to examine the influences of social, attitudinal, and intrapersonal factors at three levels on tobacco use among female adolescents in South Korea using longitudinal national data. The study analyzed data from the Korean Youth Panel Study, with a study population consisting of middle-school second-graders (N = 1594). Using time dependent Cox regression, our analyses yielded the following main findings: the theory of triadic influence was verified to provide a theoretical framework for smoking among Korean female adolescents. All of the social factors at the three levels, including parental supervision, attachment to friends, and peer smoking prevalence, were found to influence tobacco use among Korean female adolescents. Stigma on the distal level and attitude towards smoking on the proximal level were significant attitudinal factors. Among intrapersonal factors, self-control on the distal level and stress on the proximal level were found to be significant. The study findings suggest that including parental education and promoting attachment to non-smoking friends, as well as enhancing sound relationships with them, would provide an effective strategy for the prevention and cessation of smoking. Prevention and cession should include strategies that alleviate stigma and stress, and improve negative attitude toward smoking and the level of self-control.     

Alcohol-related content in undergraduate nursing curricula in the northeastern United States

Societal alcohol abuse and misuse is disproportionate to the number of related didactic and clinical hours reported by traditional baccalaureate nursing programs in the United States. Because no recent research re-examines the findings from earlier studies, a survey was developed and then electronically distributed to all nursing department deans or program chairs of traditional baccalaureate nursing programs in the Northeast (N=117). Twenty-seven (23%) schools responded. Results showed limited didactic and clinical offerings. Most schools cover content related to definition, psychological and medical complications, and treatment and rehabilitation. Clinical applications were limited as was content addressing public dimensions of alcohol misuse. The current findings showed little change from those of studies conducted more than 20 years ago. Based on the current findings, further survey development is encouraged with the intent of continuing exploration of curricular offerings related to alcohol misuse.     

Complementing SBIRT for Alcohol Misuse with SBIRT for Trauma: A Feasibility Study

Reducing alcohol misuse is a priority for U.S. health officials considering that misuse of alcohol is a leading preventable cause of morbidity and mortality. Consequently, health centers are integrating Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT) for alcohol misuse within usual care. Although SBIRT is well validated among general patient samples, results have not generalized to drinkers with probable alcohol use disorder; moreover, little is known about the efficacy of SBIRT with patients who are of low-income or ethnic or racial minority status. Members of these groups are of particular concern because they are at risk to experience trauma, potentially in concert with alcohol misuse. Therefore, translational approaches to delivering SBIRT particularly with these groups of interest might be needed to meet the Grand Challenge of reducing alcohol misuse. Accordingly, this study combined SBIRT with a model designed to address psychological trauma: T-SBIRT. With a sample of 112 adults, most of whom were African American or Latino/a, authors analyzed multiple indicators of feasibility. Results indicated that T-SBIRT is suitable for and acceptable to patients accessing community-based health services, and T-SBIRT can promote high referral acceptance rates to specialty treatment, particularly among patients with probable alcohol use disorder.