NCJ Number
165991
Date Published
1996
Length
8 pages
Annotation
This paper presents the results of a study that tested the validity of social learning theory for juveniles' use of alcohol and marijuana.
Abstract
Data were collected by administering a self-report questionnaire to 3,065 male and female adolescents attending grades 7 through 12 in seven communities in three midwestern States. A two-stage sample design was followed. The use of alcohol and marijuana was measured by a six-point frequency-of- use scale that ranged from nearly every day to never. The study measured the following main concepts of social learning theory: imitation, differential association, definitions, and differential reinforcement. The findings from the regression analyses show strong support for the social learning theory of adolescent alcohol and drug behavior. When all the independent variables are incorporated into the full regression equation, the model explains 55 percent of the variance in drinking behavior and 68 percent of the variance in marijuana behavior. The analyses also show that some subsets of variables specified by the theory are more important than others. Ranked in terms of relative effectiveness in explaining variance in alcohol and marijuana use, they are differential association, definitions, combined social/nonsocial differential reinforcement, differential social reinforcement, and imitation. Not only does the differential association subset explain the highest proportion of variance, but the differential peer association variable is the most important single variable. 88 references