A Comparative Analysis of Cigarette, Alcohol, and Illicit Drug Use among an Ethnically Diverse Sample of Hispanic, African American, and Non-Hispanic White Adolescents

Abstract

Longitudinal findings are presented on lifetime, past year, and magnitude of use of cigarettes, alcohol, and illicit drugs among non-Hispanic White (NHW), African-American, Cuban, Nicaraguan, Colombian, and Puerto Rican adolescent boys. The T-3 sample included 5,370 adolescents of whom 3,403 were Hispanic. About one-half the Hispanic sample was foreign born. Significant increases in lifetime use and magnitude of use of all three substances were found over the three data collection periods for all six groups. NHW and Hispanic adolescents had higher substance use rates than African-Americans. Most differences were not significant for NHW and Hispanic subgroups. Foreign-born Hispanics reported positive relationships between length of time in country and substance use. Significant relationships were found in two instances. Length of time in country was related to lifetime use of all substances for Cubans and for past year use of alcohol and illicit drugs. It was also significantly related to lifetime and past year use of alcohol and for lifetime illicit drug use among Nicaraguans. Although substance use did not vary greatly for different Hispanic groups, the authors suggest caution be used in offering generalizations, especially among young groups with diverse nativity and immigration histories.

Diferencias en el consumo de drogas ilegales entre nativos e inmigrantes en una amplia muestra de consumidores de droga por vía parenteral en Cataluña (España)

“…Although this point needs to be further investigated, our preliminary results are in agreement with those of several studies carried out in the USA, which found that duration of residence was a predictor of alcoholism and drug use among Puerto Rican adults and adolescents (Fernandez-Pol et al, 1985;Velez & Ungemack, 1989). A similar pattern was observed among foreign-born Cuban and Nicaraguan students in terms of their use of alcohol and illicit drugs (Warheit, Vega, khoury, Gil, & Elfenbein, 1996). Among immigrants that initiate drug use in the host country, this phenomenon could be explained by the "healthy immigrant" effect (McDonald & Kennedy, 2004).…”

Looking Beyond Nativity: The Relation of Age of Immigration, Length of Residence, and Birth Cohorts to the Risk of Onset of Psychiatric Disorders for Latinos

“…Similarly, among Mexican Americans, longer residence in the U.S. (13 years or more) was associated with increased risk of lifetime mood disorders and substance abuse/dependence (Alderete, Vega, Kolody, & Aguilar-Gaxiola, 2000). Studies among Latino immigrant youth, particularly Cuban and Nicaraguan, have found a similar trend with positive associations found between longer time in the U.S. and past year use of cigarettes, alcohol, and illicit drugs (Gfroerer & Tan, 2003;Warheit et al, 1996). The progressive effects of acculturation and social stress have been proposed as explanations for these findings (Vega et al, 2004).…”

“…Recent studies have looked beyond nativity to examine the effect of migration differences, such as age of arrival to the U.S. and length of U.S. residence on the mental health of Latino immigrants (J. Angel & Angel, 1992;Mills & Henretta, 2001;Portes & Rumbaut, 2001;Singh & Siahpush, 2001;Vega & Gil, 1998;Vega et al, 2002;Vega, Sribney, Aguilar-Gaxiola, & Kolody, 2004;Warheit, Vega, Khoury, & Gil, 1996). These findings provide a more complicated picture of the immigrant experience and indicate that factors beyond nativity contribute to the risk of poor mental health.…”

School commitment and alcohol use: The moderating role of race and ethnicity.

“…Similarly, Whites report the greatest proportion of binge drinking in the past two weeks (0.34), followed by Hispanics (0.16) and Blacks (0.04). Prior research supports this finding of a differential pattern of alcohol use across race/ethnicity groups (e.g., Costa et al, 1999;Warheit et al, 1996).…”

“…While previous research suggests that there may be important racial and ethnic differences in the strength of school bonds, the evidence is unclear and inconsistent. Further complicating matters is the finding that Black teens use alcohol less frequently than Whites, with Hispanic use varying greatly across studies (Chavez & Swaim, 1992;Oetting & Beauvais, 1990;Warheit, Vega, Khoury, Gil & Elfenbein, 1996;Windle, 1991) and by group (Cervantes, Gilbert, DeSnyder & Padilla, 1990;Warheit et al, 1996). This finding, in conjunction with the aforementioned evidence regarding the average level of school bonding by racial/ethnic group, suggests that a lower level of school bonding is not as serious a risk factor for minority students as it is for Whites.…”