Self-control, symptomatology, and substance use precursors: Test of a theoretical model in a community sample of 9-year-old children.

The authors tested a theoretical model of how self-control constructs are related to psychological symptomatology and variables that predispose to involvement versus noninvolvement in substance use: willingness to use, affiliation with peers who use, and efficacy for resisting use. Data were obtained from a sample of 332 children (mean age = 9.3 years) who were interviewed in households. Structural equation modeling showed that good self-control was related to more positive well-being and less externalizing symptomatology, whereas poor self-control was related to more externalizing and to more internalizing symptomatology. Externalizing had paths to willingness and peer use, well-being had inverse paths to these variables, and poor self-control had a direct effect to lower resistance efficacy. Multiple-group analyses indicated gender differences in paths from symptomatology to predisposing factors. Implications for understanding vulnerability to substance use are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Correlates and predictors of HIV risk among inner-city African American female teenagers.

Objective Design: For human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-related prevention initiatives to be most effective, they should be broad-based and incorporate multiple domains of influence. This study tested how several ecodevelopmental domains influenced HIV-risk related attitudes and behaviors in a community sample of African American female teens (N = 242). Main Outcome Measures: Outcome measures were number of partners, frequency of intercourse, number of pregnancies, abstinence/condom use, HIV/AIDS-related attitudes and behaviors, and HIV testing. Results: Structural Equation Modeling revealed many direct paths from ecodvelopmental domains to risky sexual behaviors. The findings include having more partners was associated with parental alcohol-related problems, more drug use, and a younger age at first intercourse. More frequent intercourse was associated with less cultural pride and more drug use. More pregnancies were related to a younger age at first intercourse and parental alcohol problems. HIV testing was associated with having experienced sexual abuse, an older age at first intercourse, and stronger self-efficacy. Conclusions: Prevention programs that focus on risk reduction could expand their focus beyond sexual behavior to include a broad-range of psychosocial domains that are associated with HIV-risk. The effectiveness of prevention programs should be monitored carefully for appropriateness in different ethnic groups. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Religiosity and substance use: Test of an indirect-effect model in early and middle adolescence.

The authors tested hypothesized pathways from religiosity to adolescent substance use (tobacco, alcohol, and marijuana) with data from samples of middle school (n = 1,273) and high school students (n = 812). Confirmatory analysis of measures of religiosity supported a 2-factor solution with behavioral aspects (belonging, attendance) and personal aspects (importance, value, spirituality, forgiveness) as distinct factors. Structural modeling analyses indicated inverse indirect effects of personal religiosity on substance use, mediated through more good self-control and less tolerance for deviance. Religiosity was correlated with fewer deviant peer affiliations and nonendorsement of coping motives for substance use but did not have direct effects on these variables. Parental support and parent-child conflict also had significant effects (with opposite direction) on substance use, mediated through self-control and deviance-prone attitudes. Implications for prevention research are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Misperceived risk among female adolescents: Social and psychological factors associated with sexual risk accuracy.

This study of 411 urban female adolescents had 3 objectives: (a) assess the relationship between perceived risk and sexual risk behavior (condom use, number of partners, partner risk, presence of STDs, and aggregate sexual risk), (b) assess the accuracy of risk perceptions, and (c) identify variables related to inaccurate sexual risk perceptions. Participants were classified as accurate or inaccurate risk perceivers on the basis of actual sexual behavior and perceived risk. Accurate versus inaccurate risk perceivers were compared on psychological maintenance variables (self-esteem, distress, and coping), relationship context variables (partnership duration and pressure to have unprotected sex), and risk knowledge at different levels of sexual risk. Approximately half of the participants underestimated the risk of their sexual behavior. Accurate and inaccurate risk perceivers differed on risk knowledge, partnership duration, and pressure to have unprotected sex. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

5-HTTLPR status moderates the effect of early adolescent substance use on risky sexual behavior.

Objective: A longitudinal, prospective design was used to investigate a moderation effect in the association between early adolescent substance use and risky sexual behavior 2 years later. A genetic vulnerability factor, a variable nucleotide repeat polymorphism (VNTR) in the promoter region of the serotonin transporter gene SLC6A4, known as 5-HTTLPR, was hypothesized to moderate the link between substance use at age 14 and risky sexual behavior at age 16. This VNTR has been associated with risk-taking behavior. Design: African American youths in rural Georgia (N = 185) provided 2 waves of data on their substance use and sexual behavior. Genetic data were obtained via saliva samples. Main Outcome Measures: Substance use and sexual risk behavior were assessed using youth self-report items developed for this investigation. Results: Multiple regression analyses indicated that the presence of 1 or 2 copies of the short allele of the VNTR interacted with substance use to predict sexual behavior. Substance use had little effect on sexual behavior for youths without the short allele; this effect was greatly increased for youths with the short allele. Conclusion: Genetic vulnerability affected the implications of early onset substance use for later sexual behavior. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Examining the effects of academic beliefs and behaviors on changes in substance use among urban adolescents.

This study examines substance use between 10th and l2th grades in a predominantly African American sample of 785 adolescents from an urban environment. Psychological distress, academic factors, and perceptions of parents and peers are used to explain l0th-grade substance use and changes in use using hierarchical linear modeling. Results indicate that low achievement and motivation, high truancy, and perceptions of peer substance use are associated with higher 10th-grade substance use. Growth curve analyses reveal that adolescents who perceive negative school attitudes among peers are more likely to increase their cigarette and marijuana use. Among high-achieving students, low motivation is a risk factor for increased cigarette use. Implications focused on enhancing motivation, reducing truancy, and understanding adolescents' perceptions of their peers. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Parenting training for women in residential substance abuse treatment. Results of a demonstration project

This paper presents findings on the impact of implementing a parenting component in two urban residential treatment programs in Massachusetts for pregnant and parenting chemically-dependent women. The parenting component consisted of multiple services for both women and their infants while they were in residential treatment as well as aftercare services after discharge from treatment. Findings presented focus on: (a) the characteristics of the 170 pregnant and parenting women who participated in the parenting component during its 48 months of implementation; (b) changes in the parenting skills and self-esteem of women who completed parenting training; (c) the quality of mother-child interaction; and (d) the participants' perceptions about the impact of the parenting training. Women in both programs made dramatic improvements in self-esteem and experienced significant gains in parenting knowledge and attitudes. The participants were also overwhelmingly positive about the impact of the parenting training on their lives. Study findings underline the importance of parenting services for pregnant and parenting women in residential substance abuse treatment.     

Externalizing problems in fifth grade: Relations with productive activity, maternal sensitivity, and harsh parenting from infancy through middle childhood.

This study used data from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development's Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development to examine relations between parenting, self-control, and externalizing behavior from infancy through 5th grade. Results indicate that self-control measured during middle childhood mediates relations between maternal sensitivity, opportunity for productive activity, and parental harshness and both mother-reported and teacher-reported externalizing behavior. Results showed that parenting measured during middle childhood was more strongly related to 5th-grade externalizing behavior compared with parenting measured during infancy and early childhood. However, there was evidence that parenting during the preschool years was related to 5th-grade externalizing behavior through later parenting and self-control. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Time perspective and early-onset substance use: A model based on stress–coping theory.

This research tested the relation of time perspective to early-onset substance use (tobacco, alcohol, and marijuana) with a sample of 454 elementary school students with a mean age of 11.8 years. An adaptation of the Zimbardo Time Perspective Inventory (P. G. Zimbardo & J. N. Boyd, 1999) was administered with measures derived from stress-coping theory. Independent effects showed future orientation inversely related to substance use and present orientation positively related to substance use. Structural modeling analysis indicated that the relation of time perspective measures to substance use was indirect, mediated through behavioral coping and anger coping. Proximal factors for substance use were negative affect, peer substance use, and resistance efficacy. Results are discussed with respect to epigenetic models and the role of executive functions in self-control ability. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Parents' attitudes about children: Associations with parental life histories and child-rearing quality.

This study examined relations among parents' perceptions of their childhood, attitudes about life, expectations for child behavior, attitudes about their child's behavior, and the child-rearing environment parents provide. Eighty mothers of 1–5 yr olds were interviewed about perceptions of receiving harsh parenting as children, current attitudes about life, developmental expectations, and views of intentionality and severity of their child's misbehavior. The home environment was measured using the Home Observation for Measurement of the Environment (R. H. Bradley & B. Caldwell, 1979) scale. Mothers who reported harsh parenting as children, negative attitudes about life, and unrealistic developmental expectations had negative attitudes about their own child. These attitudes were related to provision of lower quality home environments. Results support a constructivist approach to understanding parental social cognitions and behavior. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Behavioral and emotional self-control: Relations to substance use in samples of middle and high school students.

The authors tested how behavioral and emotional self-control are related to adolescent substance (tobacco, alcohol, and marijuana) use. Data were obtained from 489 middle school students and 602 high school students. Multiple indicators were developed for each domain of self-control, and confirmatory analyses were used to test the measurement structure of latent constructs. Results showed that the domains of behavioral self-control and emotional self-control were statistically distinct, and both were related to adolescent substance use. Structural modeling analyses indicated indirect effects for self-control constructs primarily through pathways to competence and recent events. In addition, poor behavioral control had a direct effect to deviant peer affiliations, and poor emotional control had a direct effect to coping motives for substance use. The results indicate that both types of self-regulation are relevant for adolescent substance use. Implications for prevention and treatment research are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Moderators of the relation between substance use level and problems: Test of a self-regulation model in middle adolescence.

The authors tested predictions, derived from a self-regulation model, about variables moderating the relationship between level of substance use (tobacco, alcohol, and marijuana) and problems associated with use. Data were from two independent studies of adolescents, with mean ages of 15.4 and 15.5 years (Ns=1,699 and 1,225). Factor analysis indicated correlated dimensions of control problems and conduct problems. Protective moderation was found for variables indexing good self-control; risk-enhancing moderation was found for variables indexing poor self-control. These effects were generally independent of deviance-prone attitudes and externalizing symptomatology. Multiple-group structural modeling indicated moderation occurred for paths from life stress and coping motives and for paths from level to control and conduct problems. Moderation effects were also found for parental variables, peer variables, and academic competence. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Self-esteem and the relation between risk behavior and perceptions of vulnerability to unplanned pregnancy in college women.

This article reports 2 studies testing the hypothesis that individuals with high self-esteem are more likely than those with low self-esteem to interpret information about their personal vulnerability to health risks in a self-serving manner. Study 1 used an experimental paradigm to demonstrate that self-esteem moderates the influence of review of sexual and contraceptive behavior on college women's perceptions of vulnerability to unplanned pregnancy (N?=?125). Study 2 used a longitudinal design to demonstrate that self-esteem also moderates the relation between naturally occurring changes in college women's sexual behavior and changes in their risk perception (N?=?273). Together, these studies provide evidence that people with high self-esteem use self-serving cognitive strategies to maintain their risk perceptions. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Personality and cognitive factors influencing substance use and sexual risk for HIV infection among gay and bisexual men.

Substance use reliably predicts sexual risk behavior, and sensation-seeking personality characteristics have been found to covary with these associations. In a study of 289 gay and bisexual men attending a large gay pride event, the authors examined the role of substance use sexual outcome expectancies in explaining associations between sensation seeking, substance use, and risky sex. Consistent with previous research, alcohol and other drugs were associated with sexual behavior. However, path analyses showed that sensation seeking accounted for variance in sexual behavior over and above substance use before sex and that sensation seeking predicted substance use expectancies that in turn predicted substance use before sex. It was concluded that altering substance use outcome expectancies may be an important strategy for HIV risk reduction for individuals high in sensation seeking. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Resilience Against Discrimination: Ethnic Identity and Other-Group Orientation as Protective Factors for Korean Americans.

This study investigated the resilience of 84 Korean American college students in the context of perceived ethnic discrimination. Two cultural resources, multidimensional ethnic identity and other-group orientation, were hypothesized as protective factors that moderate the negative effects of discrimination. Only 1 aspect of ethnic identity was found to have a moderation effect. Specifically, ethnic identity pride operated as a protective-reactive factor that moderated the effects of discrimination on depressive symptoms and social connectedness but not on self-esteem. Ethnic identity pride and perceived discrimination had first-order effects on self-esteem. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Gender differences in adolescent sexual attitudes: the influence of individual and family factors

The present study, continuing a recent trend, examined multiple influences on adolescent sexuality, focusing on sexual attitudes because of their influence on sexual behavior. Empirical analyses were based on a nonrandom availability sample of 1,587 public high school students and 1,372 parents. Multiple regression analyses were conducted in three phases to elaborate models for adolescent attitudes about premarital sexual intercourse; separate models were developed for females and males. First, a regression model was developed that featured individual adolescent characteristics (e.g., age, gender, locus of control, self-esteem, and religious participation) as predictor variables. A second regression model was developed that included family characteristics (e.g., number of siblings, number of parents in home, communication with mother and father, family strengths, parent contribution to sexuality education, parental discussion of sexual values, and the sexual attitudes of mother and father). In the final step, multiple regression was conducted on both individual and family factors. Results indicated that (1) the integrated model had more explanatory power than either separate model, and (2) females were influenced by more family factors and males were influenced by more individual factors.     

The role of self-control in early escalation of substance use: A time-varying analysis.

The research tested prediction about the role of temperament and self-control in early substance use (tobacco, alcohol, and marijuana). A sample of 1,526 participants was assessed in 6th grade (mean age=11.5 yrs) and followed with yearly assessments through 9th grade. Latent growth models showed temperament dimensions were related to early substance use, and their effects were mediated through generalized self-control ability. Time-varying effects indicated rate of growth in substance use was higher among participants who showed increases in poor self-control and lower among participants who showed increases in good self-control. Results in self-report data were corroborated by independent teacher ratings. Findings are discussed with reference to epigenetic models of protection and vulnerability. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Illicit substance use among adolescents: a matrix of prospective predictors

This paper reviews findings from 58 prospective studies of illicit substance use (ISU) among adolescents. It arranges 384 findings according to three types of influence (viz., social, attitudinal, and intrapersonal) and four levels of influence (viz., ultimate, distal, proximal, and immediate). The bulk of evidence reconfirms the importance of several predictors of ISU (e.g., intentions and prior substance-related behavior, friendship patterns and peer behaviors, absence of supportive parents, psychological temperament), reveals that a few variables thought to be well-established predictors may not be (e.g., parental behaviors, parental permissiveness, depression, low self-esteem), and uncovers several variables where findings were either sparse or inconsistent (e.g., the role of public policies concerning ISU, mass media depictions of ISU, certain parenting styles, affective states, perceptions of parental disapproval for ISU, and substance-specific refusal skills). Directions for future research are discussed.     

Good self-control moderates the effect of mass media on adolescent tobacco and alcohol use: Tests with studies of children and adolescents.

Objective: To investigate whether self-control moderates the effect of media influences on tobacco and alcohol use among youth and if so how this effect occurs. Design: In Study 1, a regional sample of 10-year olds (N = 290) was interviewed in households; attention to tobacco/alcohol advertising was assessed. In Study 2, a national sample of youth ages 10–14 years (N = 6,522) was surveyed by telephone; exposure to tobacco/alcohol use in movies was assessed. Good self-control was measured in both studies. Main Outcome Measures: Willingness to use substances and affiliation with peer substance users (Study 1); involvement in smoking or drinking (Study 2). Results: In Study 1, the effect of tobacco/alcohol advertising on predisposition for substance use was lower among persons scoring higher on good self-control. In Study 2, the effect of movie smoking/alcohol exposure on adolescent tobacco/alcohol use was lower, concurrently and prospectively, among persons scoring higher on good self-control. Moderation occurred primarily through reducing the effect of movie exposure on positive smoking/alcohol expectancies and the effect of expectancies on adolescent use; some evidence for moderation of social processes was also noted. Covariates in the analyses included demographics, sensation seeking, and IQ. Conclusion: Good self-control reduces the effect of adverse media influences on adolescent tobacco and alcohol use. Findings on the processes underlying this effect may be useful for media literacy and primary prevention programs. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A correlational framework for understanding sexuality in women age 50 and older

To investigate a biopsychosocial perspective of sexuality in women age 50 and older, 657 community-residing women completed anonymous surveys, including demographics; health; self-esteem; intimacy; and sexual knowledge, attitudes, interest, participation, and satisfaction. Cronbach's alphas for major variables ranged from .52 (sexual knowledge) to .92 (intimacy). Mean scores for major variables ranged from 2.96 (sexual participation) to 3.43 (self-esteem, sexual attitudes). Significant correlations were described among the predictor variables and sexual interest, participation, and satisfaction. Significant predictors of sexual interest, participation, and satisfaction were identified through stepwise multiple regression procedures. Findings suggest a biopsychosocial model for clinicians to use in assessment and intervention with older women and sexual issues, for educators to use to organize teaching about aging and female sexuality, and for researchers to use to investigate older women's sexuality in different samples of older women.