Background: Prenatal problems are among theorized etiologies for child disruptive behavior problems. A key question concerns whether etiological contributors are shared across the broad range of disruptive psychopathology or are partially or largely distinct. Method: We examined prenatal smoking exposure and low birth weight as risk factors for…

Background: Inconsistent findings exist regarding correlates of physical activity (PA) in the literature. Leisure-time physical activity among U.S. adults has declined for the last decade. Purpose: This article examines differences in vigorous-intensity and moderate-intensity physical activity by gender, race/ethnicity, age, education, and income…

Background: This study examines the longitudinal associations between adolescent tobacco and cannabis use and young adult functioning. Methods: Data for analysis come from the Ontario Child Health Study (OCHS), a prospective study of child health, psychiatric disorder and adolescent substance use in a general population sample that began in 1983,…

Context and Purpose: This study examines the prevalence of tobacco, alcohol, and illicit drug use among adolescents and adults in 3 types of counties: "rural" (nonmetropolitan counties with urban population less than 20,000), "urbanized nonmetropolitan" (nonmetropolitan counties with urban population 20,000 or higher), and…

Purpose: To examine substance use differences among African-American adolescents living in rural and more urban areas in Iowa and Georgia and factors thought to be related to those differences. Specifically, negative affect and perceived availability were examined as mediators of the relation between community size and alcohol, tobacco, and drug…

Periodically, Maryland's sixth, eighth, tenth, and twelfth graders are surveyed to determine the nature, extent, and trend of alcohol, tobacco, and other drug (ATOD) use among adolescents. The "2007 Maryland Adolescent Survey (MAS)" presents the latest findings regarding ATOD use by Maryland's adolescents and compares State and local…

The Monitoring the Future study has provided the nation with a window into the important, but largely hidden, problem behaviors of illicit drug use, alcohol use, and tobacco use. It has provided a clearer view of the changing topography of these problems among adolescents and adults, a better understanding of the dynamics of factors that drive…

The current study examined important predictors of substance use during early adolescence. The authors hypothesized that adolescents' relationships with key adults (i.e., teachers and parents) influence their choices to use substances indirectly through links with their decisions regarding peer groups. A total of 461 middle school students from an…

"Child Care Health Connections" is a bimonthly newsletter published by the California Childcare Health Program (CCHP), a community-based program of the University of California, San Francisco School of Nursing, Department of Family Health Care Nursing. The goals of the newsletter are to promote and support a healthy and safe environment…

This article describes the implementation of an innovative curriculum called Drugs-At-Work (DAW), which was evaluated in three phases. In phase-one, data collected after the third year of the study suggested that the curriculum had a significant impact on the fifth-grade participants, who in turn influenced their sixth-grade classmates the…

This document presents the Save-Your-Life Glossary, which consists of four parts: (1) the glossary itself, which defines alcohol, Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS), drug, and tobacco-related terms; (2) the alerts sections, which focus on popular drugs or issues that concern young people; (3) the focus sections, which categorize and…

The California Student Substance Use Survey marks a milestone in the state's efforts to monitor, understand, and prevent adolescent substance use and abuse. Chapter 1 presents the methodology. This survey follows a shift in California policy to a written parental consent requirement. Sample characteristics, consent procedures, and methods of data…

A national survey to obtain adolescent drug use patterns in Malta was conducted on November 29, 1991. A total of 20,815 students were surveyed in Malta and Gozo. Ages ranged from 11 to 17 years. Tabular reports were prepared for each participating school, regionally, and for the total or national sample. The overwhelming majority of students…

American society has placed considerable emphasis on the value of a part-time job for working-age students. This work is infrequently based upon real economic need. Many adults believe employment will teach a young person many important traits such as responsibility, time-management, budget management, and organizational skills. Although this may…

This issue of the newsletter "Prevention Forum" focuses on smoking among adolescents. The articles are as follows: (1) "Where There's Smoke--Will Prevention Put Out the Fire?" (Joanne Burgess), an overview of the Surgeon General's report "Preventing Tobacco Use among Young People," including interviews with prevention…