It's a rave new world: estimating the prevalence and perceived harm of ecstasy and other drug use among club rave attendees

The use of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA or "ecstasy") appears to be increasing worldwide, with "rave" attendees being one high-risk population. To date, however, only one study has collected ecstasy use information from rave attendees in the United States. To address this limitation, we collected self-report drug use information from 70 adult "club rave" attendees within the Baltimore-Washington corridor in April and May 2002. Data collection was scheduled between 12 A.M. and 5 A.M. Participation rates were high, with 85 percent of the club rave attendees completing the interview. Eighty-six percent of the respondents reported lifetime ecstasy use, 51 percent reported 30-day use, and 30 percent reported using ecstasy within the two days preceding the interview. While past-year ecstasy users were comparable to non-users with respect to a host of demographic and drug use variables, non-ecstasy users were significantly more likely than past-year users to perceive risks associated with the regular use of alcohol and ecstasy. Not surprisingly, non-ecstasy users were significantly more likely than past-year users to perceive harmful long-term physical and psychological effects associated with ecstasy ingestion. These findings suggest that rave attendees may be an important population for ecstasy-related prevention efforts.     

Using "short" interrupted time-series analysis to measure the impacts of whole-school reforms. With applications to a study of accelerated schools

The present article introduces a new approach for measuring the impacts of whole-school reforms. The approach is based on "short" interrupted time-series analysis, which has been used to evaluate programs in many fields. The approach is used to measure impacts on three facets of student performance: (a) average (mean) test scores, which summarize impacts on total performance; (b) the distribution of scores across specific ranges, which helps to identify where in the distribution of student performance impacts were experienced; and (c) the variation (standard deviation) of scores, which indicates how the disparity in student performance was affected. To help researchers use the approach, the article lays out its conceptual rationale, describes its statistical procedures, explains how to interpret its findings, indicates its strengths and limitations, and illustrates how it was used to evaluate a major whole-school reform--Accelerated Schools.     

Low emotional intelligence as a predictor of substance-use problems

This study explored the relationship between low emotional intelligence and substance-use problems in adults. One hundred and forty-one participants completed the Self-Administered Alcoholism Screening Test, the Drug Abuse Screening Test, an emotional intelligence scale, and a measure of psychosocial coping. Low emotional intelligence was a significant predictor of both alcohol-related problems and drug-related problems. Poorer coping predicted drug-related problems, but not alcohol-related problems. Coping was not found to be a significant mediator between emotional intelligence and substance-use problems. Possible implications for intervention and treatment efforts are discussed.     

Beliefs and social norms about codeine and promethazine hydrochloride cough syrup (CPHCS) onset and perceived addiction among urban Houstonian adolescents: an addiction trend in the city of lean

In the current study, we used a qualitative approach to investigate relevant beliefs and norms associated with codeine and promethazine hydrochloride cough syrup (CPHCS) consumption, initiation, and perceived addiction among 48 alternative school students who identified themselves as current CPHCS users. In general, both boys and girls believed that CPHCS addiction started during an individual's initial consumption. A majority of both groups reported that their second CPHCS event was initiated during the same or next day after their first event. Our findings suggest that friends and an innovative form of hip-hop music called "screw" are strong reinforcers of CPHCS use.     

Casual sex among Australian schoolies

This study of the casual sexual partnering of 570 male and 776 female Australian high school students on a schoolies week vacation expands on earlier research on factors that influence the sexual activity of vacationing youth. Over 60% of the men and nearly 40% of the women who engaged in sexual intercourse during schoolies week did so with a casual partner. We used logistic regression to test an expanded version of Triandis Theory of Interpersonal Behavior (TIB) in explaining casual sexual partnering. Situational experiences (similar to what others have called situational disinhibition), prior sexual experiences and intentions (similar to what others have called spillover) influenced casual sexual partnering. Different causal pathways were demonstrated for men and women.     

Cultural perspectives of death,grief, and bereavement

The cultural makeup of the United States continues to change rapidly, and as minority groups continue to grow, these groups' beliefs and customs must be taken into account when examining death, grief, and bereavement. This article discusses the beliefs, customs, and rituals of Latino, African American, Navajo, Jewish, and Hindu groups to raise awareness of the differences health care professionals may encounter among their grieving clients. Discussion of this small sample of minority groups in the United States is not intended to cover all of the degrees of acculturation within each group. Cultural groups are not homogeneous, and individual variation must always be considered in situations of death, grief, and bereavement. However, because the customs, rituals, and beliefs of the groups to which they belong affect individuals' experiences of death, grief, and bereavement, health care professionals need to be open to learning about them to better understand and help.     

More harm than good? Diagnostic codes for child and adult abuse

This study sought to understand the reasons for the lack of use of ICD diagnostic codes for child and adult abuse. New Jersey professionals were recruited to participate in three focus groups on child abuse, adult or primarily woman abuse, and elder abuse. Participants included health care providers, advocates from the community, and representatives of state agencies and the insurance industry. Concerns about coding abuse included further jeopardizing victims/patients, diagnostic uncertainty, and lack of resources. Members of the child abuse group were somewhat more receptive to coding abuse. Reasons to code, such as for documentation and reimbursement were discussed and rebutted. Most participants concluded that use of the abuse codes should be judicious because they have the potential to do more harm than good. More research is needed on the implications of coding for victims/patients along with medical education in the identification of abuse in general and coding abuse in particular.     

An analysis of VDT monitor placement and daily hours of use for female bifocal users

A population of 72 bifocal wearers was studied to determine the relationship between VDT (video display terminal) placement for those who reported musculoskeletal pain and those who did not. The mean hours worked was 50.4 minutes (p=0.003) greater for those who reported head/neck pain versus those who did not and 48.6 minutes (p=0.004) greater for those who reported shoulder/arm pain that those who did not. There was no statistically significant difference between the means of monitor height, distance, or angle for those who reported pain symptoms versus those who did not. This study indicates that, self reported pain symptoms are correlated with hours of VDT work and that there appears to be a threshold at approximately five hours for pain symptoms among bifocal wearers. No such correlation can be made for monitor placement     

Treatment of incarcerated, sexually-abused adolescent females: an outcome study

This study examined the psychosocial functioning of 100 adolescent females (ages 12-17) sentenced to secure care in a southeastern state and the impact of gender-specific, cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) intervention on the psychosocial functioning of subjects who reported a history of sexual abuse. The Multidimensional Adolescent Assessment Scale (MAAS) was used to assess psychosocial functioning. Pre-test scores on the MAAS revealed significantly higher scores on 12 of 16 dimensions of psychosocial functioning and higher rates of serious criminal behavior for youth who subsequently disclosed sexual abuse histories as compared to those without such histories. At post-test, statistically significant improvements in psychosocial functioning were observed on 14 of 16 MAAS subscales for those who received the CBT intervention. Thus, incarcerated female adolescents who reported a history of sexual abuse demonstrated more impairment in their functioning as compared to those without a reported history of sexual abuse and responded positively to gender-specific, CBT-based intervention.