title: Comparing the developmental trajectories of marijuana use of African American and Caucasian adolescents: patterns, antecedents, and consequences.
abstract: Adolescent marijuana use has tripled recently, and the once-noted race gap between African American and Caucasian adolescents in marijuana use appears to have disappeared. Yet, relatively little research has examined marijuana use among African American adolescents. In this study, we examined developmental trajectories of marijuana use among Caucasian and African American adolescents to identify whether and when differences in marijuana use appear and whether the precursors and outcomes associated with these developmental trajectories differ by race. Findings indicate that both the developmental patterns and outcomes associated with marijuana use are different for African American and Caucasian adolescents. Early-onset Caucasian and mid-onset African American adolescents experienced the greatest number of negative outcomes later in life associated with their marijuana use, suggesting that groups to target for intervention may vary by race.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40506-0044, USA. tbrow2@uky.edu
authors.forename: Tamara L
authors.initials: TL
authors.lastname: Brown
authors.forename: Kate
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Flory
authors.forename: Donald R
authors.initials: DR
authors.lastname: Lynam
authors.forename: Carl
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Leukefeld
authors.forename: Richard R
authors.initials: RR
authors.lastname: Clayton
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001741:Black or African American; D000374:Aggression / Q000523:psychology; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000523:psychology; D003415:Crime; D019548:Crime Victims / Q000523:psychology; D018450:Disease Progression; D005106:Exploratory Behavior; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D002189:Marijuana Abuse / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology*; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000150:complications / Q000523:psychology; D010379:Peer Group; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D012067:Religion; D012307:Risk Factors; D012574:Schools; D012725:Sexual Behavior; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000150:complications / Q000523:psychology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology; D044465:White People