Research & Resources

Alcohol, Marijuana, and Cigarette Polysubstance Use During Adolescence and Young Adulthood

In this study, researchers examined frequency of alcohol, marijuana, and cigarette poly-substance use over time and how key risk factors contribute to this substance use during adolescence and young adulthood. Participants were 1,263 9th and 10th graders oversampled for ever-smoking a cigarette at baseline from 16 Chicago-area high schools between 2004 and 2006. Results showed that depression, anxiety, negative mood regulation expectancies, and grade point average all significantly influenced both initial and longitudinal levels of substance use across adolescence and young adulthood. Findings underscore the importance of identifying and treating youth with depression and anxiety symptoms, as well as providing resources early for those struggling in school, in order to help with substance use prevention and intervention efforts.
This paper, “Risk factors for alcohol, marijuana, and cigarette polysubstance use during adolescence and young adulthood: A 7-year longitudinal study of youth at high risk for smoking escalation,” was funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse and published in the journal Addictive Behaviors.

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