title: The influence of high school dropout on substance use among African American youth.
abstract: The role of high school dropout in the onset and rapid escalation of substance use was investigated with 1,762 African American youth participating in the 1990 and 1992 follow-ups of the National Educational Longitudinal Study of 1988 (NELS:88). In 1990, all youth were students; most were in the 10th grade and approximately 16 years old. Path analysis models were used to examine dropout's unique contribution to substance use and its mediational effect on the association of prior problem behavior with later substance use. Compared with students, dropout youth were 1.6 times more likely to smoke cigarettes and 1.3 times more likely to smoke marijuana. Partial mediational effects emerged for problem behavior and use of cigarettes and marijuana.
authors.affiliation: Center for Family Research, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602-4527, USA. smkogan@uga.edu
authors.forename: Steven M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Kogan
authors.forename: Zupei
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Luo
authors.forename: Gene H
authors.initials: GH
authors.lastname: Brody
authors.forename: Velma McBride
authors.initials: VM
authors.lastname: Murry
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001741:Black or African American / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012574:Schools; D013332:Student Dropouts / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000208:ethnology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires