This article reviews current research findings and presents a conceptual framework for better understanding the relationship between bullying victimization (hereafter referred to as victimization) and substance misuse (hereafter referred to as SM) among adolescents. Although victimization and SM may appear to be separate problems, research suggests an intriguing relationship between the two. We present a brief, empirical overview of the direct association between victimization and adolescent SM, followed by a proposed conceptual framework that includes co-occurring risk factors for victimization and SM within family, peer, and school/community contexts. Next, we discuss potential mediators linking victimization and SM, such as internalizing problems, traumatic stress, low academic performance, and school truancy/absence. We then identify potential moderating influences of age, gender/sex, social supports, and school connectedness that could amplify or abate the association between victimization and SM. Finally, we discuss practice and policy implications.

Homesickness can put individuals at risk for a host of adjustment difficulties. The millions of students that leave home for college each year may be particularly susceptible to experiencing homesickness. There is little work, however, examining individual variation in homesickness over time and how these changes predict different outcomes in college. The present study examines weekly levels of homesickness during the first term of college and tests the associations between homesickness and various aspects of adjustment. Results showed that, on average, homesickness decreased slightly across the first semester of college, but there were individual differences in homesickness trajectories. Freshman who reported higher levels of homesickness showed worse overall adjustment to college, even when controlling for negative emotional experience and prior adjustment. Homesickness was associated with poorer social outcomes, but these social difficulties were limited to interactions with others in the college environment. Academic outcomes were not adversely impacted by homesickness. Findings suggest that homesickness is a common experience for freshman and, despite its relatively transient nature, homesickness has important implications for college adjustment.

Emerging adults have the highest prevalence rate of alcohol and drug use and represent a large proportion of treatment admissions in the United States. Those who do not attend college experience higher rates of use and may not have similar advantages as those attending college. A systematic review included studies investigating prevention and treatment outcomes among emerging adults in non-college settings. We included studies reporting an average age between 18 and 25 conducted outside of college settings. We extracted data for experimental effects (experimental group compared to control), and contrasted treatments with active and no intervention controls. We also examined several moderators. Fifty studies were meta-analyzed, including 32 prevention and 18 treatment studies. Overall, our experimental weighted mean effect size was d = .17 for both prevention and treatment studies. Comparisons across treatment types typically yielded nonsignificant results. Across prevention and treatment studies, smaller effects existed for studies delivering personalized feedback interventions. For treatment studies only, the percent of students included in the sample was a significant moderator. Overall effects were similar to current meta-analyses on college drinking. However, personalized feedback may be a less effective prevention strategy in non-college settings, and the field should prioritize increasing the effectiveness of treatments targeting non-college students. (PsycINFO Database Record

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