Comorbid Substance Use and Mental Health Disorders: Prior Treatment/Admission as a Predictor of Criminal Arrest Among American Youths

Nkemjika, Stanley; Olatunji, Eniola; Olwit, Connie; Jegede, Oluwole; Brown, Colvette; Olupona, Tolu; Okosun, Ike S.

doi:10.7759/cureus.21551

Cited by 1 publication

(1 citation statement)

References 28 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Of most concern, a history of arrest was strongly related to significantly higher rates of substance use among both gender groups and was more strongly pronounced among women. Previous research found that substance use disorder (SUD) substantially increased the risk of involvement in the criminal justice system; moreover, concurrent mental illness and SUD elevated the odds of arrest (Magee et al, 2021 ; Nkemjika et al, 2022 ; Prince & Wald, 2018 ). This study adds to the literature by providing findings for the young population, separately for men and women.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mental health disparities in young adults with arrest history: a survey-based, cross-sectional analysis

Baser,

Rodchenko,

Zeng

et al. 2024

Health Justice

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background Over 4.53 million arrests were made in 2021 in the United States. People under 26 years of age were more likely to be arrested than older people. Although mental health disparities are prominent in the incarcerated population, the subject has not been closely examined among young adults specifically. Objectives This study examines how criminal justice involvement, specifically arrests, affects the mental health of adults between 18 and 25 years of age. Methods We analyzed secondary data using the 2021 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH). The study used a subsample of 13,494 people aged 18 to 25 years, including 7,330 women and 6,164 men. History of arrest was the key independent variable. Depression, serious mental illness (SMI), substance use, suicidal ideation, and suicide attempt were the outcome variables. We performed five multivariate logistic regression models for each outcome variable, controlling for race/ethnicity, income, and education level for men and women separately. Results Of 13,494 respondents, 6.63% had a history of arrest. Among young women, a history of arrest was associated with significantly higher adjusted odds ratios for all mental health concerns. Most notably, a history of arrest increased the likelihood of substance use by a factor of 15.19, suicide attempts by 2.27, SMI by 1.79, suicidal ideation by 1.75, and depression by 1.52. Among young men, a history of arrest was associated with increased adjusted odds ratios (AORs) for substance use (AOR, 13.37; p < .001), suicidal ideation (AOR, 1.45; p = .011), and suicide attempt (AOR, 1.82; p = .044). Conclusions We found a strong relationship between young people having an arrest history and mental health concerns. More specifically, a history of arrest was associated with all mental health concerns among young women, while it was associated with only substance use and suicide among young men. Providing arrestees with appropriate mental health care would benefit them and the criminal justice system by decreasing the odds of recidivism.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%