Monitoring the Future, National Survey Results on Drug Use, 1975-1999, Volume I: Secondary School Students

• NCJ Number: 185563
• Author(s): Lloyd D. Johnston Ph.D.; Patrick M. O'Malley Ph.D.; Jerald G. Bachman Ph.D.
• Date Published: 2000
• Length: 505 pages
• Grant Number(s): R01DA01411
• Sponsoring Agency: National Institute on Drug Abuse
• Corporate Author: University of Michigan
• Sale Source: National Institute on Drug Abuse; NCJRS Photocopy Services
• Publication Format: Book (Softbound)
• Publication Type: Survey
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: For Volume II, see NCJ-185548

Annotation

This first volume of a two-volume report presents findings on the prevalence and trends in drug use and related factors for secondary school students (8th, 10th, and 12th graders); trend data are presented for varying time intervals, covering up to a 24-year interval in the case of the 12th graders.

Abstract

Volume II presents the comparable results for young adult high school graduates 19-32 years old, as well as college students. Distinctions are made among important demographic subgroups in the surveyed populations based on gender, college plans, region of the country, population density, parents' education, and race/ethnicity. Data on grade of first use, trends in use at lower grade levels, and intensity of drug use also are reported. Key attitudes and beliefs about use of the various drugs have been demonstrated by this study to be important determinants of trends in use over time; therefore, they are also tracked, as are students' perceptions of certain relevant aspects of the social environment, particularly perceived availability, peer norms, use by friends, and exposure to use. Use and trends are reported for the following drugs: marijuana, LSD, amphetamines, inhalants, crack cocaine, cocaine, PCP, heroin, tranquilizers, barbiturates, methaqualone, alcohol, and cigarette smoking. An overview of trend findings shows that from the late 1970's to the early 1990's there were appreciable declines in the use of several illicit drugs among 12th-grade students and even larger declines in their use among American college students and young adults. Explanations for these declines and the implications for drug control policy are discussed. This volume also contains an appendix on how to calculate confidence intervals for point estimates and how to calculate statistics that test the significance of changes over time or of differences between subgroups. 73 tables, 66 figures, and appended supplemental tables for trends by subgroup and trends in prevalence rates for specific drugs within general classes