Influence of Risk and Protective Factors on Substance Use Outcomes Across Developmental Periods: A Comparison of Youth and Young Adults

Abstract

Data were collected from samples of youth (ages 11–18; N = 38,268) and young 10 adults (ages 18–24; N = 602) across 30 Tennessee counties using surveys and telephone interviews conducted in 2006–2008. Data were analyzed using hierarchical nonlinear modeling to determine: (1) which risk and protective factors predicted alcohol and marijuana use, and (2) whether predictors differed as a function of developmental period. Findings provide preliminary evidence that prevention efforts need to take into consideration the changing environment and related influences as youth age, especially as they move from a more protected community environment to one where they live somewhat independently. Implications and limitations are discussed.

Keywords :

• protective factors
• risk factors
• youth

THE AUTHORS

Melissa S. Harris Abadi, Ph.D., is an Associate Research Scientist at PIRE. She received her Ph.D. in Health Communication, with cognate areas in psychology and statistics, from the University of Kentucky. Dr. Harris has worked as an investigator on multiple substance use prevention and treatment projects, both nationally and internationally. Her areas of expertise are in health message development and testing, development and evaluation of school-based and community-based substance use interventions, evaluation of treatment programs, and cultural and evidence-based adaptation of programs and interventions.

Stephen R. Shamblen, Ph.D., is a Researcher at PIRE, trained as a social psychologist, with a heavy focus in quantitative methods. Dr. Shamblen has been involved in numerous evaluations of school-based and environmental strategy-based substance abuse prevention programs. His primary interests involve examining the efficacy of various secondary data indicators as measures of need for prevention funding.

Kirsten Thompson, MA, is a Research Associate and Project Manager at PIRE. She received her Master's in Anthropology from The George Washington University in 2005. Ms. Thompson has worked on multiple substance use prevention and treatment projects in rural Tennessee and frontier Alaska. Her primary research areas of interest include substance abuse, health education, obesity, and nutrition.

David A. Collins, Ph.D., is a Research Scientist at PIRE. He holds an MPA and a Ph.D. from the University of Louisville. His research and evaluation experience in the field of youth substance abuse prevention has included State Incentive Grants in several states and being an investigator on several NIDA (National Institute on Drug Abuse)-funded studies to prevent youth use of harmful legal products in frontier Alaska. Dr. Collins has also led an R21 feasibility study of environmental strategies in home and medical environments to reduce availability of prescription drugs for nonmedical use in an Appalachian Tennessee county.

Knowlton Johnson, Ph.D., is currently a Senior Scientist at PIRE. During his 40-year career in research, he has conducted drug and alcohol prevention and treatment research at the University of Maryland, University of Alaska-Anchorage, University of Louisville, and PIRE. His current research and development activities focus on prevention of the use of inhalants and other legal products to get high in Alaska; prevention and treatment of alcohol and other drug use/abuse in Afghanistan, Brazil, El Salvador, Peru, and Thailand; HIV/AIDS prevention and care in Thailand and Liberia; and system/organization capacity-building and sustainability of prevention systems, both nationally and internationally.