title: Exploring child maltreatment and its relationship to alcohol and cannabis use in selected Latin American and Caribbean countries.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Research from developed countries shows that child maltreatment increases the risk for substance use and problems. However, little evidence on this relationship is available from developing countries, and recognition of this relationship may have important implications for substance demand reduction strategies, including efforts to prevent and treat substance use and related problems. Latin America and the Caribbean is a rich and diverse region of the world with a large range of social and cultural influences. A working group constituted by the Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission and the Center for Addiction and Mental Health in June, 2010 identified research on this relationship as a priority area for a multinational research partnership.
  
  
  METHODS
  This paper examines the association between self-reported child maltreatment and use in the past 12 months of alcohol and cannabis in 2294 university students in seven participating universities in six participating countries: Colombia, El Salvador, Jamaica, Nicaragua, Panama and Uruguay. The research also considers the possible impact of religiosity and minimal psychological distress as factors contributing to resiliency in these samples.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The results showed that experience of maltreatment was associated with increased use of alcohol and cannabis. However, the effects differed depending on the type of maltreatment experienced. Higher levels of religiosity were consistently associated with lower levels of alcohol and cannabis use, but we found no evidence of an impact of minimal psychological distress on these measures.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This preliminary study shows that the experience of maltreatment may increase the risk of alcohol and cannabis use among university students in Latin American and Caribbean countries, but that higher levels of religiosity may reduce that risk. More work to determine the nature and significance of these relationships is needed.
authors.affiliation: University of the West Indies, Mona Campus, Mona, Jamaica.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Longman-Mills
authors.forename: W Y
authors.initials: WY
authors.lastname: González
authors.forename: M O
authors.initials: MO
authors.lastname: Meléndez
authors.forename: M R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: García
authors.forename: J D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Gómez
authors.forename: C G
authors.initials: CG
authors.lastname: Juárez
authors.forename: E A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Martínez
authors.forename: S J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Peñalba
authors.forename: E M
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Pizzanelli
authors.forename: L I
authors.initials: LI
authors.lastname: Solórzano
authors.forename: M G M
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Wright
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Cumsille
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: De La Haye
authors.forename: J C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Sapag
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Khenti
authors.forename: H A
authors.initials: HA
authors.lastname: Hamilton
authors.forename: P G
authors.initials: PG
authors.lastname: Erickson
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Brands
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Flam-Zalcman
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Simpson
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Wekerle
authors.forename: R E
authors.initials: RE
authors.lastname: Mann
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000328:Adult; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology; D002648:Child; D002649:Child Abuse / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D003105:Colombia / Q000453:epidemiology; D004544:El Salvador / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007563:Jamaica / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D002189:Marijuana Abuse / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology; D009527:Nicaragua / Q000453:epidemiology; D010176:Panama / Q000453:epidemiology; D012067:Religion; D012307:Risk Factors; D057566:Self Report; D013334:Students / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D014495:Universities; D014583:Uruguay / Q000453:epidemiology; D055815:Young Adult