RESUMEN
OBJECTIVE: Few studies of recreational cannabis legalization (RCL) have assessed adolescents both before and after RCL or considered moderators of RCL effects. The present study tested whether RCL was more strongly associated with cannabis use for girls and among youth whose parents had a history of cannabis use during adolescence. METHOD: Data were pooled from 940 adolescents from three intergenerational studies that began in Washington (where RCL was enacted in 2012), Oregon (RCL year = 2015), and New York (RCL year = 2021). Youth were assessed repeatedly from ages 13 to 18 years (k = 3,650 person-years) from 1999 to 2020 (prior to RCL in New York). Parent cannabis use at or before age 18 years (yes/no) was assessed prospectively during the parent's adolescence. Multilevel models focused on the between-subjects effects of years of youth exposure to RCL on adolescents' mean cannabis use likelihood, and interactions with child sex and parent use history. RESULTS: Child exposure to RCL was associated with a higher likelihood of cannabis use if their parents had a history of adolescent use, (Estimate [SE] = 0.67 [0.25], p = 0.008), versus no such history (Estimate [SE] = -0.05 [0.28], p = 0.855). RCL effects were not moderated by child sex. CONCLUSIONS: The effects of RCL on adolescents' cannabis use may depend on their parents' history of using the drug. Identifying other moderators of RCL effects, and understanding the mechanisms of these risks and the ways that parents and communities can offset them, are prevention priorities.
(1) Adolescents' use of cannabis may have intergenerational consequences, making it more likely their future offspring will use cannabis. (2) Whether or not recreational cannabis legalization influences adolescents' cannabis use may depend on their parents' cannabis use history. (3) Parenting in a state with liberalized cannabis policies may present new challenges and require that novel prevention resources be developed.
Asunto(s)
Conducta del Adolescente , Cannabis , Femenino , Niño , Humanos , Adolescente , Padres , Washingtón/epidemiología , Legislación de MedicamentosRESUMEN
OBJECTIVE: Intergenerational studies have identified relations between adolescents' and their future offspring's cannabis and alcohol use, but rarely have examined the association for other illicit drug use. Given the low prevalence of such use in community populations, we pooled data from three prospective intergenerational studies to test this link. METHOD: Participants were 1,060 children of 937 parents who had been repeatedly assessed since early adolescence. Children and parents reported on their use of cocaine, stimulants, hallucinogens, sedatives/tranquilizers, and opiates/narcotics from ages 10 to 18 years. Intergenerational similarities in any versus no use of these drugs were formally modeled using logistic regression. Patterns also were descriptively analyzed. RESULTS: Parent illicit substance use was associated with significantly higher odds of child use (adjusted odds ratio [95% confidence interval] = 2.682 [1.328-5.416], p = 0.006). However, intergenerational continuity was modest; 87% of children whose parent used illicit drugs in adolescence did not use such drugs, and 77% of parents of children who used illicit drugs had not themselves used these drugs during adolescence. CONCLUSIONS: The use of illicit substances by parents during their teenage years poses a risk for their offspring's similar behaviors. However, the discontinuity of these behaviors across generations implies children are largely resilient to or protected from this risk, and conversely that other aspects of parents' and children's experiences or characteristics may be more powerful risks for children's illicit drug use than this transgenerational influence.
(a) Parents' use of illicit drugs during adolescence significantly increased risk that their adolescent children would use such drugs. (b) However, most parents who used illicit drugs did not have children who used illicit drugs, and conversely, the majority of adolescents who used illicit drugs did not have parents who had used such drugs in their adolescence.
RESUMEN
Criminal offending and mental health problems often co-occur. This study examined competing models to understand bidirectional associations between crime and mental health problems over time among at-risk men in the U.S. It was hypothesized that there would be significant cross-lagged associations of offending and mental health problems in early adulthood. Longitudinal data were drawn from 206 at-risk men enrolled in the Oregon Youth Study. Random intercept cross-lagged models examined bidirectional associations between mental health problems (assessed with the 53-item Brief Symptom Inventory) and self-reported offending in early adulthood across 6 time points from ages 19-20 to 29-30 years. Sociodemographic factors, prior levels, and common risk factors (i.e., parents' criminality, mental health problems, and socioeconomic status, as well as child age, antisocial propensity, and internalizing behaviors) were controlled during analysis. A robust association between mental health problems and offending was found for the early adult period, especially for total and violence offenses. Findings did not support the hypothesized positive cross-lagged effects. Instead, two cross-lagged effects emerged indicating that offending was inversely related to subsequent mental health problems. Childhood antisocial propensity and internalizing behaviors emerged as important predictors of stable between-person level differences in offending and mental health problems, respectively, although results differed as a function of offense categories (total, violence, property, drug). Findings indicate that the relation between mental health problems and offending is unidirectional, temporal, and partially spurious. Preventing child internalizing behaviors and child antisocial behaviors holds promise for reducing early adult mental health problems and offending.