Is the Association between Neighborhood Drug Prevalence and Marijuana use Independent of Peer Drug and Alcohol Norms? Results from a Household Survey of Urban Youth

Abstract

To inform policy debates surrounding marijuana decriminalization and add to our understanding of social and structural influences on youth drug use, we sought to determine whether there was an independent association between neighborhood drug prevalence and individual-level marijuana use after controlling for peer drug and alcohol norms. We analyzed cross-sectional data from a household survey of 563 youth aged 15-24 in Baltimore, Maryland. The study population was 88 % African-American. Using gender-stratified, weighted, multilevel logistic regression, we tested whether neighborhood drug prevalence was associated with individual-level marijuana use after controlling for peer drug and alcohol norms. Bivariate analyses identified a significant association between high neighborhood drug prevalence and marijuana use among female youth (AOR=1.76, 95 % CI=1.26, 2.47); the association was in a similar direction but not significant among male youth (AOR=1.26, 95 % CI=0.85, 1.87). In multivariable regression controlling for peer drug and alcohol norms, high neighborhood drug prevalence remained significantly associated among female youth (AOR=1.59, 95 % CI=1.12, 2.27). Among male youth, the association was attenuated toward the null (AOR=0.95, 95 % CI=0.63, 1.45). In the multivariable model, peer drug and alcohol norms were significantly associated with individual-level marijuana use among female youth (AOR=1.54, 95 % CI=1.17, 2.04) and male youth (AOR=2.59, 95 % CI=1.65, 4.07). This work suggests that individual-level marijuana use among female youth is associated with neighborhood drug prevalence independent of peer norms. This finding may have important implications as the policy landscape around marijuana use changes.

The association of unemployment from age 21 to 33 with substance use disorder symptoms at age 39: The role of childhood neighborhood characteristics

“…Empirical studies have also documented possible gender differences in the association of financial and employment-related stressors with substance use (Boden et al, 2014; Mulia et al, 2014; Redonnet et al, 2012; Rospenda et al, 2008) in the impact of neighborhood factors on substance use (Fone et al, 2013; Kuipers et al, 2012; Leifheit et al, 2015; Matheson et al, 2012). …”

Neighborhood, Peer, and Parental Influences on Minor and Major Substance Use of Latino and Black Adolescents

“…Studies have found that neighborhoods significantly encourage engagement in social activities, especially for adolescents [ 22 ]. Thus, regularly witnessing substance use and having it readily available can increase the likelihood of use, can encourage normalization of these behaviors, and can contribute to later substance use in Latino and Black adolescents [ 22 , 23 , 24 ]. Research found that high visibility of drug sales was the biggest disadvantage of densely populated neighborhoods for Black youths [ 23 ].…”

Mediation of Neighborhood Effects on Adolescent Substance Use by the School and Peer Environments

“…Neighborhoods are a promising point of intervention to alter substance use behaviors; mounting evidence suggests that aspects of the neighborhood environment influence risk of problematic drug use among adolescents (11–13). However, reducing exposure to neighborhood poverty has not resulted in uniformly beneficial effects on drug use and abuse among adolescents.…”