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Abstract
Background: Anabolic–androgenic steroid (AAS) use has been identified as a serious public health problem. Objectives: This study investigates the prevalence and correlates of AAS use among Norwegian adolescents. Methods: In 2012, a nationally representative sample of 2,055 17-year-old adolescents (963 males and 1,088 females) participated in a survey. The response rate was 70.4%. In addition to questions about AAS use, participants completed the Parental Monitoring Scale, the Family Relations/Cohesion Scale, the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test C, the Mini-International Personality Item Pool-Five-Factor Model, the Eysenck Narrow Impulsiveness Subscale, the Arnett Inventory of Sensation Seeking, the Short-Form Buss–Perry Aggression Questionnaire, the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, and the UCLA Loneliness Scale. They also answered questions about demography, gambling, smoking, snus, and narcotic use. Descriptive statistics and logistic regression were used to analyze the data. Results: The lifetime prevalence of AAS use was 0.30% (0.52% in males and 0.09% in females), while current prevalence was 0.25%. Moreover, 19.39% of the sample reported having an acquaintance who used or had used AAS. Having an acquaintance who used or had used AAS was significantly related to snus use, depression, aggression, extraversion, and conscientiousness in both univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses. Conclusions/Importance: Our findings suggest a high prevalence of AAS use among Norwegian adolescents and denote the significance of social, personality, and health factors in adolescents’ exposure to AAS milieu.
THE AUTHORS
Dominic Sagoe, MPhil, MPhil, is a PhD research fellow at the Department of Psychosocial Science, University of Bergen, Norway. He conducts research on human enhancement drugs and methods with special focus on anabolic–androgenic steroid. He also works on other drug and behavioral addictions.
Cecilie Schou Andreassen, PhD, is a postdoctoral research fellow at the Department of Psychosocial Science, University of Bergen, Norway, and a clinical psychologist specialist at the Bergen Clinics Foundation, Norway. Her main research interest concerns addictive behaviors as well as work and organizational psychology.
Helge Molde, PhD, is an associate professor at the Department of Clinical Psychology, University of Bergen, Norway. He is involved in several research projects in the field of addiction with special focus on gambling. He is currently leading a project using large longitudinal data to investigate how gambling is affected by structural game characteristics.
Torbjørn Torsheim, PhD, is a professor of quantitative research methods at the Department of Psychosocial Science, University of Bergen, Norway. His main interest is in the application of survey methodology and self-report scales in school-aged children and adolescents.
Ståle Pallesen, PhD, is a professor at the Department of Psychosocial Science, University of Bergen, Norway. His main research interest includes sleep and sleep problems as well as chemical and non-chemical addictions.