Skipping school and using drugs: A brief report

Abstract

Empirical evidence suggests that the setting of drug use is an important factor in an adolescent's decision to use drugs. In this study, one salient setting is examined–truancy from school. A total of 1000 eleventh grade students from one district in the Mid-Western United States were invited to participate in an in-school anonymous survey in 2006. Truancy was a common behaviour among the surveyed students and drug use while skipping school was a common behaviour among truants. The establishment of truancy as a setting for drug use may have important implications. Limitations, implications and future directions are discussed. This study was funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (grant number K01 DA017810).