Tobacco, alcohol, and marijuana use among black adolescents: a comparison across gender, grade, and school environment.
Self-report measures of tobacco, alcohol, and marijuana use were administered to 2,748 black adolescents, grades 7 through 12. The proportion of students who had tried any of the substances increased by grade. Males and females were not significantly different in their use of cigarettes and alcohol. Males were more likely to have tried smokeless tobacco, smoked marijuana, and used combinations of substances. Females who reported using more than one substance preferred the combination of cigarettes and alcohol. Significant effects of school environment were noted. Increasing age-related experimentation is exacerbated by school setting (junior high versus senior high). Given that blacks have disproportionately high cancer prevalence and mortality rates, intervention programs may also need to consider school environment, substance specific initiation points, and combined use preferences in order to maximize the desired effect within this population.
Thomas
S M
SM
Dept of Psychology, Univ of New Orleans.
Fick
A C
AC
Henderson
J
J
Doherty
K
K
D000293:Adolescent; D000294:Adolescent Behavior; D001741:Black or African American; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000208:ethnology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008145:Louisiana / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008385:Marijuana Smoking / Q000208:ethnology; D012737:Sex Factors; D012907:Smoking / Q000208:ethnology; D012931:Social Environment; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000208:ethnology*