Proximal and distal social influence on alcohol consumption and marijuana use among middle school adolescents

Abstract

Objectives This study assesses the independent and combined effects of (1) perceived peer norms, (2) best friend use, and (3) being in the presence of others who use on middle school adolescents' consumption of marijuana and alcohol, and how the effects of these sources of social influence evolve over time as youth progress through middle school. Methods The analytic sample consisted of 11,667 adolescents (50% female; >65% Hispanic) in 6th, 7th or 8th grade from 16 middle schools across three school districts in Southern California. Participants were assessed at 5 time points from 2008 to 2011. Results All sources of social influence were predictive of alcohol and marijuana consumption. As youth grew older, spending time with other adolescents who drink increased adolescents' likelihood of drinking alcohol, whereas perceived norms became less influential. Furthermore, as adolescents spent more time around other youths who drink, the predictive value of perceived norms on alcohol consumption decreased. Similarly, as youth grew older, the influence of best friend's use and spending time with other adolescents who use marijuana remain stable, whereas perceived norms became less influential. Conclusion Findings suggest that perceived peer norms may be more influential in early adolescence; whereas proximal social determinants (e.g., being in the presence of other peers who consume) become more influential as youth enter middle adolescence. Prevention programs should continue to address misperception of norms with younger adolescents to decrease the chances of initiation, but also utilize strategies such as refusal skills and alternate coping mechanisms for older adolescents.

Cannabis use in children with individualized risk profiles: Predicting the effect of universal prevention intervention

“…Adding such items to the risk screening/data collection tools in future studies could aid the relatively easy and effective identification of an increased risk of cannabis use in the group of 12-15-year-olds. This is supported by the results of, e.g., Salvy et al (2014), who found statistically significant effects of age, perceived norms, use by best friends, and the presence of others who use cannabis on the self-reported cannabis use in the previous month.…”

“…The following adolescent demographic, social, and psychological characteristics are, according to the literature, associated with cannabis use: male gender (Kulis, Yabiku, Marsiglia, Nieri, & Crossman, 2007;Vigna-Taglianti et al, 2009), poorer academic performance (Diego, Field, & Sanders, 2003;Griffin, Botvin, Nichols, & Doyle, 2003), lower satisfaction with the relationship with parents and specific parenting styles (Becoña et al, 2013) -e.g., lower levels of security in attachment styles and maternal monitoring (Branstetter, Furman, & Cottrell, 2009), the level and character of relationships with peers and friends -specifically that cannabis use is more related to proximal influences (being in the presence of others and use by best friends) than to peer norms (Salvy, Pedersen, Miles, Tucker, & D'Amico, 2014), worse self-imageoccasional and frequent cannabis use was significantly higher for adolescents with a low self-image (Weiss, Merrill, & Akagha, 2011), a lower level of structured leisure time activities (Calafat et al, 2009;Perez, Ariza, Sanchez-Martinez, & Nebot, 2010), thoughts of hurting oneself (Kokkevi, Rotsika, Arapaki, & Richardson, 2012;Ystgaard et al, 2009), and a tendency to break the rules (Gervilla, Cajal, & Palmer, 2011;Monshouwer et al, 2006). These characteristics were already found to be suitable for constructing risk profiles concerning cannabis use in a previous study (Miovský, Voňková, Gabrhelík, & Šťastná, 2015).…”

The Effects of Proximal and Distal Social Stimulation on Ethanol Intake in Male and Female CD-1 Mice

“…In humans, there are social factors other than proximal stimulation due to direct visual contact that influence ethanol consumption. For example, distal social stimulation based on perceived normative levels of ethanol consumption has been reported to influence ethanol consumption and in the same manner as the effects of proximal social stimulation [5]. This indicates that social stimulation effects may transcend the physical presence of others provided by direct visual contact.…”

Animal models of social contact and drug self-administration

“…A number of epidemiological studies have explored the link between social factors and drug self-administration, and have provided cogent support for the influence of peers (Bot et al, 2005; Kelly et al, 2013; Salvy et al, 2014). The results of this research indicate that peer influence occurs at both a distal (e.g., incorporation of group norms) and proximal (e.g., spending time with others who use drugs) level.…”

“…The results of this research indicate that peer influence occurs at both a distal (e.g., incorporation of group norms) and proximal (e.g., spending time with others who use drugs) level. Equally important to note is recent evidence suggesting that distal factors become less salient over time while proximal factors become more influential (Salvy et al, 2014). Thus, at the broadest level, peers play a critical role in the expression and continuation of drug use, with proximal influences having a progressively greater impact over time.…”