Adolescent cigarette consumption: the influence of attitudes and peer drug use.

Predictors of tobacco consumption were investigated with path analytic techniques using household survey data from 1,093 teenagers aged 13-17. When current smokers are compared to past or never smokers, pro-tobacco attitudes are always the most important predictor variable followed by friends' use of marijuana and own use of marijuana, suggesting that pro-tobacco attitudes are responsible for maintaining tobacco consumption. We infer that peer illicit drug use has the greatest effect in taking up smoking because it is the most important predictor of past smoker status compared to never smoking and it does not appear as such an important predictor of current use compared to never smoker status. Pro-tobacco attitudes are a consequence of smoking rather than an influence upon taking up smoking.

Stages of drug use: a community survey of Perth teenagers.

A Guttman stages of drug use model was confirmed for Australian youth in this systematic household survey of 13-17-year-olds in Perth (n = 1093). The same model held for both sexes and all ages although the model was more efficient for the older youth. General drug use prevalence, expansion of drug repertoire and frequency of use all increased with age. Multiple drug use was prevalent. Marijuana use was not a necessary stage for the progression to other illicit drug use as 29% of current users of other illicit drugs reported never using marijuana. The hazard rate for use of marijuana or other illicit drugs, if one was a current tobacco smoker, was high. Alcohol and tobacco were implicated as important 'gateway' drugs though hazard rates showed tobacco to be the more important of the two. Implications of the study are that delaying or eliminating the onset of tobacco use are important goals of prevention programmes and that multiple drug use should be recognized and addressed in health education programmes for youth.