Suchergebnisse

The reasons that high school students give for their use of each of nine classes of licit and illicit substances are examined cross sectionally and over time. The data derive from the Monitoring the Future project, which involves annual surveys of large, nationally representative samples of American high school seniors. Reasons for use are found to vary substantially by drug, and also by degree of involvement with the drug; but reasons vary only to a rather limited degree by sex. An analysis of trends between 1976 and 1984 shows only a modest degree of change in the reasons given for using the various substances, despite the fact that prevalence rates for some drugs have changed substantially. Among the most commonly mentioned reasons for substance use are experimentation, social/recreational reasons, and relaxation.

This article examines various aspects of school physical characteristics relating to problem behavior among students. We hypothesize that an attractive physical environment will be associated with less truancy, cigarette, alcohol, and marijuana use, whereas a negative physical environment will be associated with higher levels of these behaviors. Analyses use data from nationally representative samples of 8th-, 10th-, and 12th-grade students who participated in annual surveys conducted by the Monitoring the Future project from 2000 to 2003. Analyses also use data collected from principals and field interviewers of the same schools. Results based on multilevel logistic and linear regressions indicate that students are sensitive to schools' ambience and that the association of various aspects of the school's physical environment with students' problem behaviors is greater for 10th-grade students than for 8th and 12th-grade students. The implications of these findings for school policies and practices are discussed.