NCJ Number
217576
Journal
Journal of Youth and Adolescence Volume: 36 Issue: 2 Dated: February 2007 Pages: 169-183
Date Published
February 2007
Length
15 pages
Annotation
This study examined the impact on adolescent illicit drug use of the joint influences of parental response to the child, child characteristics, and deviant peers.
Abstract
The findings show that parental rejection and deviant peer affiliations were associated with an increased frequency of drug use. When children were younger, high warmth from parents toward them was linked with greater drug use. When they were older, however, higher parental warmth was linked to lower levels of drug use. The effects for both parental rejection and parental warmth were most consistent and strongest when symptoms of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) were in the model. Deviant peer affiliation did not mediate the effect of parental rejection and warmth on drug use, nor did it mediate the effects of a child's ADHD symptoms on drug use. Gender was not a significant predictor of the frequency of drug use. Study participants were children who were age 10 and older (n=3,434) at the first wave (1995) of the Canadian National Longitudinal Survey of Children. They were followed until they were 16 and 17 years old (Wave four). Child-reported drug use was measured across all four cycles of the survey. Child-reported measures of parenting affect (rejection or warmth) were available for cycles one to three. ADHD symptoms were assessed with the Hyperactivity-Inattention scale. Respondents were asked about their associations with deviant peers in all four of the survey waves. 4 tables, 3 figures, and 67 references