Monitoring the Future (MTF) is an ongoing research program conducted at the University of Michigan's Institute for Social Research under a series of investigator-initiated research grants from the National Institute on Drug Abuse beginning in 1975. The integrated MTF study includes annual surveys of nationally-representative samples of 8th, 10th,…

Our aim was to clarify the role of alcohol and other drug (AOD) use in major depression among gay men attending general medical practices. A secondary analysis was conducted on survey data collected from 531 gay men attending high-HIV-caseload general practices in Adelaide and Sydney, Australia. The survey contained demographic, social,…

Examined drug preferences of a group of active multiple drug abusers referred for treatment. Nearly half the respondents preferred drugs other than type they most frequently used. Preferences were related to method of administration. Results suggest preference is one among several determinants of drug use. (Author/BEF)

Investigated the relationship between anomie theory, as measured by Srole's Anomie Scale, and self-admitted drug use in an adult population (N=1,449). Bivariate cross-comparison correlations indicated anomie was significantly correlated with several drug variables, but these associations were extremely weak and of little explanatory value.…

This interactive theory of drug use posits that drug-taking behavior is caused by several constellations of intra- and extra-individual forces. Influences interact to modify each other while determining the presence of a variety of lifestyle behaviors including drug and alcohol use. The model grows as new data are collected. (Author/BEF)

Examined interrelationships among sex, race, drug-use patterns, and personality variables in chronic users of illicit drugs. Blacks were characterized by lower levels of sensation seeking, less psychopathology, use of fewer drug categories, and later drug use than Whites. Use and personality patterns among women differed little from men.…

The popular conception of illegal drug use as inevitably pushing users toward compulsive drug abuse, and the ideological stance that drug use is a moral weakness, are offered by many as justification for punitive drug control. Challenging this view are the research on "set and setting" as determinants of the consequences of drug use, and…

Compares an adolescent and a parental group with regard to standardized measures of alcohol consumption in order to test the hypothesis that drinking patterns are not unique to the adolescent society but rather exemplify the models in the adult community. Independent samples of students and adults were found to be very similar in patterns of…

Examined subgroups of people in relation to specific types of drugs. Multiple drug clusters identified here yielded six basic drug clusters. Typology of drug abusers was developed by proximity cluster analysis. Set of psychosocial measures was differentially related to use of types of drugs and drug abusers. (Author/BEF)

Reliability and validity of the Risk Behavior Assessment, a questionnaire evaluating drug use and sexual human immunovirus risk behavior through self-reports, were studied with 218 drug users who also provided urine samples. Overall, self-reports of drug use and sexual behavior were reliable. (SLD)

Problem behavior theory predicts that norm-violating attitudes and activities reflect syndrome. Findings from community sample revealed that criminal behavior was more determined by general deviance in adulthood than in young adulthood, whereas sexual involvement became less determined by common factors between these times. Drug use and low social…

This study identified differences and similarities among the perceptions of adult and adolescent community members regarding drug use patterns and practices. A written questionnaire was administered to 5,128 adolescents from grades 7 through 12 in the rural inland northwest, and a similar questionnaire was administered to over 900 adults in the…

Kruglanski's endogenous-exogenous partition, when applied to reasons given by smokers for smoking cigarettes, distinguishes two types of actions: (1) endogenous reasons implying that the behavior of consuming the cigarette is the goal of the action and the actor is positive toward the behavior, and (2) exogenous reasons implying that the behavior…

Examined the role of difficult temperament or behavioral style and tobacco, alcohol, and marijuana use in the 133 subjects of the New York Longitudinal Study. Results indicated that the possession of difficult temperamental characteristics at age five and in early adulthood are associated with drug use in young adulthood. (JAC)

Researchers surveyed 78 clients in drug abuse treatment facilities to determine their perceptions regarding factors related to their use and abuse of drugs. About 40% of the sample began using drugs between 11 and 15 years of age. Males tended to begin using drugs at an earlier age than did females. Over 90% of participants reported using drugs…