Phyllis L. Ellickson

In a recent randomized field trial, Ellickson et al. found the Project ALERT drug prevention curriculum curbed alcohol misuse and tobacco and marijuana use among eighth-grade adolescents. This article reports effects among ninth-grade at-risk adolescents. Comparisons between at-risk girls in ALERT Plus schools (basic curriculum extended to ninth grade with five booster lessons) and at-risk girls in control schools showed the program curbed weekly alcohol and marijuana use, at-risk drinking, alcohol use resulting in negative consequences, and attitudinal and perceptual factors conducive to drug use. Program-induced changes in perceived social influences, one's ability to resist those influences, and beliefs about the consequences of drug use mediated the ALERT Plus effects on drug use. No significant effects emerged for at-risk boys or at-risk adolescents in schools where the basic ALERT curriculum (covering seventh and eighth grades only) was delivered. Possible reasons for gender differences and implications for prevention programming are discussed.

This article uses a unique panel data set to examine the relationship between high school marijuana use and annual earnings at age 29. The authors estimate a series of OLS models that incrementally add potential confounding variables, including marijuana use at age 29. The analysis finds that part of the negative relationship reflects an indirect pathway whereby early marijuana use affects human capital accumulation, which in turn affects earnings. Moreover, the authors find evidence that the remaining association between early marijuana use and earnings, after controlling for differences in human capital, reflects the cumulative effect of marijuana use on cognitive ability and motivation. (JEL J30, I12)

Στόχοι: Να διερευνηθεί η σχέση ανάμεσα στη χρήση αλκοόλ από εφήβους και στην έκθεση σε διαφημίσεις για το αλκοόλ, στις Ηνωμένες Πολιτείες. Να αξιολογηθεί, εάν η συμμετοχή σε κάποιο πρόγραμμα πρόληψης για τη χρήση αλκοόλ και ναρκωτικών ουσιών μπορεί να μετριάσει αυτή τη σχέση. Σχεδιασμός: Μοντέλα παλινδρόμησης με πολλαπλές μεταβλητές ελέγχου, οι οποίες διερεύνησαν τη σχέση ανάμεσα στην έκθεση των εφήβων σε διαφημίσεις για το αλκοόλ στη δεύτερη τάξη του γυμνασίου και στην κατανάλωση αλκοόλ στην τρίτη τάξη του γυμνασίου, σε δύο ομάδες εφήβων από τη Νότια Ντακότα: (1) μαθητές στην πρώτη τάξη του γυμνασίου που δεν κατανάλωναν αλκοόλ (n= 1206) και (2) μαθητές στην πρώτη τάξη του γυμνασίου που κατανάλωναν αλκοόλ (n= 1905). Διερευνήθηκε η αλληλεπίδραση ανάμεσα στο πρόγραμμα παρέμβασης και στους σημαντικούς παράγοντες πρόβλεψης της χρήσης αλκοόλ που σχετίζονται με τις διαφημίσεις. Χώρος: Σαράντα ένα σχολεία μέσης εκπαίδευσης στην Νότια Ντακότα στις ΗΠΑ. Συμμετέχοντες: Συνολικά 3.111 μαθητές της πρώτης τάξης του γυμνασίου, οι οποίοι ακολουθήθηκαν μέχρι την τρίτη τάξη του γυμνασίου. Μετρήσεις: Διαμορφώθηκαν...

Aims  To examine the relationship between exposure to different forms of alcohol advertising and subsequent drinking among US adolescents and assess whether exposure to an alcohol and drug prevention program mitigates any such relationship.Design  Regression models with multiple control variables examined the relationship between exposure to alcohol advertising in grade 8 and grade 9 drinking for two groups of South Dakotan adolescents: (1) seventh‐grade non‐drinkers (n = 1206) and (2) seventh‐grade drinkers (n = 1905). Interactions between the intervention program and the significant advertising predictors were tested.Setting  Forty‐one middle schools in South Dakota, USA.Participants  A total of 3111 seventh‐graders followed through grade 9.Measurements  Advertising variables were constructed for four types of alcohol advertising—television, in‐store displays, magazines and concession stands. Other predictors tested included measures tapping social influences, social bonds, problem behavior, alcohol beliefs, television exposure and demographics.Findings  For seventh‐grade non‐drinkers, exposure to in‐store beer displays predicted drinking onset by grade 9; for seventh‐grade drinkers, exposure to magazines with alcohol advertisements and to beer concession stands at sports or music events predicted frequency of grade 9 drinking. Although exposure to television beer advertising had a significant bivariate relationship with alcohol use for grade 7 non‐drinkers, it was not a significant predictor of drinking for either group in multivariate analyses. Participation in the prevention program, ALERT Plus, reduced future drinking for both groups and counteracted the effect of in‐store beer displays.Conclusions  Several forms of alcohol advertising predict adolescent drinking; which sources dominate depends on the child's prior experience with alcohol. Alcohol prevention programs and policies should help children counter alcohol advertising from multiple sources and limit exposure to these sources.

This study used latent growth mixture modeling to identify discrete developmental patterns of marijuana use from early adolescence (age 13) to young adulthood (age 23) among a sample of 5,833 individuals. After the a priori removal of abstainers, 4 trajectory groups were identified: early high users, who decreased from a relatively high level of use at age 13 to a more moderate level: stable light users, who maintained a low level of use: steady increasers, who consistently increased use; and occasional light users, who began use at age 14 and used at low levels thereafter. Analyses of covariance comparing the trajectory groups on behavioral, socioeconomic, and health outcomes at age 29 revealed that abstainers consistently had the most favorable outcomes, whereas early high users consistently had the least favorable outcomes.