NCJ Number
227783
Journal
American Indian and Alaska Native Mental Health Research Volume: 5 Issue: 1 Dated: 1992 Pages: 13-31
Date Published
1992
Length
19 pages
Annotation
This study compared rates of drug use for Indian youth living on reservations, Indian youth living off reservations, and Anglo youth.
Abstract
The lowest rates of drug use were consistently found among Anglo youth; higher rates were found among nonreservation Indian youth, but the highest rates of drug use were among Indian youth on reservations. Rates of tobacco use, both smoked and smokeless, as well as marijuana use were especially high for Indian youth. Indian youth also showed a pattern of earlier initiation into drug use compared to Anglo youth. Higher rates of drug use were observed for males compared to females, although gender differences were not great enough to suggest that prevention efforts for males should have a higher priority. It is generally recognized that to be most effective, drug-use prevention must begin early. This is especially true for Indian children on reservations. A significant number of these children have already begun to use drugs while in elementary school. Prevention efforts after elementary school have only a small likelihood of being effective. It may be that many Indian youth begin their drug use due to the influence of older siblings or cousins. This suggests that prevention approaches should make greater use of family interventions. The samples consisted of three groups of students, all of whom were surveyed in 1988-90. All three groups were administered the American Drug and Alcohol Survey under similar classroom conditions. The reservation Indian sample consisted of the 7th-12th grade students who lived on reservations. The Anglo and nonreservation Indian groups were part of a separate survey project conducted in junior and senior high schools across the United States. 8 tables, 4 figures, and 14 references