Association of substance-use behaviours and their social-cognitive determinants in secondary school students.
In two samples of Flemish secondary school students, co-occurrence of different types of substance use was observed: smoking was associated with marijuana use in Sample 1 (n = 597) and alcohol consumption in Sample 2 (n = 403). It was investigated whether social-cognitive determinants of these behaviours were also associated. Low to medium correlations were observed. Confirmatory factor analyses showed that a model with general social-cognitive factors (across different substances) did not have adequate fit. Substance use was mainly associated with variables referring to the specific substance under consideration, with the exception of self-efficacy in buying and smoking cigarettes; this factor was linked not only to smoking but also to alcohol and marijuana use. Adolescents who regularly used two substances generally held positions on social-cognitive scales that were more unfavourable than those who only used one substance. In order to change determinants of use, substance-specific cognitions and skills may be important targets.
Victoir
An
A
Research Group for Stress, Health, Well-being, University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium. An.Victoir@psy.kuleuven.be
Eertmans
Audrey
A
Van den Bergh
Omer
O
Van den Broucke
Stephan
S
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology*; D001290:Attitude; D001530:Belgium / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D020377:Self Efficacy; D012907:Smoking / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology*; D012931:Social Environment; D013334:Students / Q000523:psychology*; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology*