Attitude-Normative Belief Interactions in Predicting Adolescent Substance Use (original) (raw)
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Social Psychology Quarterly, 1990
We tested an interactive model of attitudes and perceived social support in a panel survey of substance use among Irish postprimary students. We hypothesized that contingent consistency interactions would be more likely 1) for perceived social support from friends than from parents: 2) for perceived substance use by others than for verbal support: 3) in predicting change than in predicting current substance use: 4) for younger than for older adolescents: and 5) for drug use than for drinking and smoking. Contrary to predictions, we found significant contingent consistency interactions for all three behaviors and regardless of the age of the students. These interactions were more likely when predicting current behavior rather than behavior change. The significant interactions primarily involved perceived substance use by friends. Increased accessibility, selective friendship choices, and rationalization processes are possible explanations for the findings.
Psychometric evaluation of beliefs and attitudes of drug use scale in youth
Journal of Substance Use, 2020
Purpose: The aim of this study was to adapt the beliefs and attitudes of substance abuse scale, and to assess the validity and reliability of the scale in Turkish adolescents. Methods: A convenience sample of 436 undergraduate students was recruited from a university in Turkey. Item analysis, principal component analysis, internal consistency reliability and Cronbach's alpha were used to measure the psychometric properties of the items of the scale. Results: There were identified two factors with eigenvalues greater than 1 explained 54.1% of the total variance (beliefs and attitudes of substance abuse scale). Factor analysis yielded that all of factor loadings were above 0.40 and factor loadings of the items ranged from 0.47 to 0.66 in the scales. Internal reliability coefficients were 0.81 and 0.76 for the two dimensions. Conclusion: The present study provides evidence of the beliefs and attitudes of substance abuse scale's validity, reliability and acceptability in Turkish adolescents.
The association of normative perceptions with adolescent smoking intentions
Journal of Adolescence, 2010
The social norms approach suggests that tobacco use among a referent population will reduce provided they are presented with accurate information about the perceived norms of that behaviour. This study investigated adolescents' perceived tobacco-related norms on future smoking intentions, using a sample of 11-16 year olds (n ¼ 804) from wave two of the Youth Tobacco Policy Survey. Structural equation modelling was used to analyse, simultaneously, the hypothesized normative model on future smoking intentions among both adolescent smokers and never smokers. While among adolescent smokers perceived prevalence, perceptions of the tobacco industry and risk from smoking were associated with future smoking intentions, among never smokers only perceived sibling approval was associated with future smoking intentions. The research highlights the need for more comprehensive anti-tobacco related campaigns that incorporate messages and stimuli relevant to behaviour reflecting these normative types. Ó
Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 2000
The study investigates the relationship between smoking and drinking, and the use of illicit drugs in a cohort of London adolescents. A high prevalence of drug experimentation and positive attitudes to illicit drug use were characteristic of those who both drank alcohol and smoked cigarettes on a regular basis. There was then a clear hierarchy in which lower prevalence of use and more negative attitudes marked those who only smoked, then those who only drank, while non-smokers and non-drinkers (the largest group) had lowest lifetime and recent drug use prevalence and the most negative attitudes about drug use.
International Journal on Disability and Human Development, 2012
The social norms approach is an increasingly popular intervention for substance use that has been used extensively in the American college system. It operates by correcting normative misperceptions individuals hold about their peers. However, there have been few direct comparisons of substance use misperceptions between student populations in different European countries. The current study sought to address this through use of a survey of substance use and normative beliefs at universities in fi ve European countries. Students at each site were invited to take part in an online survey that included items on personal substance use and the perceived use of peers. A total sample of 6404 students was obtained. Mann-Whitney and χ 2 analysis were used to demon strate an apparent misperception effect, with the majority of students at each site signifi cantly (p < 0.05) overestimating the substance use of their peers. This study suggests that students in Europe are prone to misperceiving the substance use of their peers in a manner similar to their American college counterparts, despite the cultural and legislative differences between these settings. This provides support for the potential in using social norms approaches to reduce rates of harmful substance use in European student populations.
BMC Public Health, 2015
Background: Preventive strategies are the most effective approach for dealing with issues of substance abuse, particularly in teenagers. Such strategies adapt well to this target population. Our objective was to reveal the opinions and beliefs held by teenagers about tobacco and alcohol as types of drugs, and their effects on health. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, participants completed a self-administered questionnaire based on the World Health Organization "Health Behaviour of School-aged Children" study. Our sample included 1,005 schoolchildren aged between 11 and 13 years, resident in the province of Córdoba in Spain. Descriptive and univariate analyses were performed using a chi-squared test. Results: Of respondents, 25% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 22.2-27.6%) and 61% (95% CI: 58.0-64.1%), respectively, did not consider tobacco or alcohol to be drugs. No relationship was found between tobacco and alcohol use, and the belief that these are drugs (p = 0.477 and p = 0.217, respectively). A total 98.2% of adolescents surveyed (95% CI: 97.3-99.1%) believed that tobacco causes physical damage, mainly to the lungs, heart, and to the developing fetus. Additionally, 92.4% (95% CI: 90.6-94.0%) believed that alcohol is detrimental to health and identified the liver as the organ most frequently damaged by alcohol consumption. The media was identified as the main source of information about these substances by 78.0% of respondents (95% CI: 75.4-80.6%). Conclusions: Teenagers possess an acceptable level of knowledge and information about the negative effects of tobacco and alcohol on health; however, many of them do not consider these substances to be drugs.
Substance Use & Misuse, 2014
The study examines groups of 15-16-year-old students whose attitudes toward drug use are out of line with the prevailing norms. It analyzes data from eight countries from the 2003 European School Survey on Alcohol and Other Drugs (ESPAD): Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, France, Malta, Slovenia, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. In those countries, 22,900 15-16-year-old pupils answered the ESPAD questionnaire. Groups of subjects whose responses are far removed from the modal value are sought and studied. The aim is to explore "rare answers" compared to what is perceived by the majority of students. In order to explore what can lead a pupil to an atypical perception of risk, a cluster analysis, based on the risk perceptions of alcohol, tobacco, and cannabis use, was run to isolate the groups in which pupils tend to answer differently. Six clusters were established classifying students into those who failed to respond, deny the risks, do not know about the risks, see any drug use as great risk, see regular use as great risk, and who see a moderate risk for most frequencies of use. The nonresponders, risk deniers, and those ignorant of the risks are infre-
Beliefs About Alcohol Use Among Youths During Early Adolescence
Journal of Child & Adolescent Substance Abuse, 2013
Understanding alcohol use onset among young adolescents is critical in identifying their perceptions, socialization, and decision-making that will assist in prevention efforts. This study examined childrenÕs beliefs about alcohol. We conducted focus groups with 18 youth in grades 3-8 to explore their views about 1) the risk and protective factors of underage drinking, and 2) the consequences of alcohol use. Findings suggest that youthsÕ perceptions of media content, use of family members as verbal and behavioral referents, non-family member adultsÕ alcohol use, and peer factors are concomitant processes that youth consider in formulating beliefs about alcohol use.