Synthetic and Other Drug Use among High School Students: The Role of Perceived Prevalence, Access, and Harms

Autor/inn/en	Debnam, Katrina J.; Saha, Shonali; Bradshaw, Catherine
Titel	Synthetic and Other Drug Use among High School Students: The Role of Perceived Prevalence, Access, and Harms
Quelle	(2018), (25 Seiten) PDF als Volltext (1); PDF als Volltext kostenfreie Datei (2) Verfügbarkeit
Zusatzinformation	Weitere Informationen
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Monographie
DOI	10.1080/10826084.2018.1455699
Schlagwörter	High School Students; Drug Use; Drug Abuse; Risk; Correlation; Incidence; Middle School Students; Institutional Characteristics; Student Attitudes; Educational Environment; Drinking; Smoking; Marijuana; Socioeconomic Status; Health Education; Drug Education; Maryland + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? High school; High schools; Student; Students; Oberschule; Schüler; Schülerin; Studentin; Drug consumption; Substance abuse; Drogenkonsum; Risiko; Korrelation; Vorkommen; Middle school; Middle schools; Mittelschule; Mittelstufenschule; Schülerverhalten; Lernumgebung; Pädagogische Umwelt; Schulumwelt; Trinken; Rauchen; Socio-economic status; Sozioökonomischer Status; Gesundheitsaufklärung; Gesundheitsbildung; Gesundheitserziehung; Drogenarbeit
Abstract	Background: Synthetic and other drugs have become available to teens, yet little is known about risk factors of use. Objective: To examine adolescent use of one class of synthetic drugs and its association with perceptions about its prevalence, access, and risk of substance use. Methods: Adolescents from a convenience sample of 104 middle and high schools (N=59,218) participated in an anonymous survey to assess school climate and substance use in 2013-2014. Multilevel logistic regression examined the association between risk for synthetic and other drug use, perceptions of substance use, and school-level characteristics. Results: Results indicated that 2,407 (4.3%) students reported synthetic and other drug use in the past 30 days. A large proportion of youth perceived drugs to be problematic at school but underestimated the harms associated with drug use. Participants also perceived tobacco, alcohol, marijuana, and prescription drugs are easy to obtain. Risk factors for synthetic and other drug use included the perception that substance use was a large problem at school, ease of access to drugs, and limited harm associated with drug use. School enrollment and socio-economic status of students reduced odds of drug use. Similar trends were found regarding marijuana use. Conclusion/Importance: Synthetic and other drug use is an emerging public health concern. Many youth identified substances as problematic and easily accessible in their schools but underestimated their potential harms. Health and education professionals need to increase effective education around substance use, including common risk factors for synthetic drug use. [This is the pre-copyedit version of an article published in "Substance Use & Misuse Journal."] (As Provided).
Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2020/1/01