Alcohol and cannabis co-use in a national sample of U.S. adults ages 30-80.

INTRODUCTION: Growing cannabis legalization has coincided with an increased focus on use of both alcohol and cannabis (AC co-use) among younger people; however, little is known about AC co-use among adults over age 30. This study examines the prevalence of different types of AC co-use among adults, as well as compares AC co-users and alcohol-only users on individual, social network, and neighborhood characteristics. METHODS: Data come from three annual surveys of a nationally representative sample of 1,770 U.S. adults, initially between the ages of 30-80, conducted between 2019 and 2021. The baseline sample is 52.8 years old on average, 51.8 % female, and 60.1 % non-Hispanic White. RESULTS: Past month co-use at baseline was reported by 8.4% of adults, and mostly consisted of simultaneous use, with less than 5% of the sample initiating co-use over the two-year follow-up period. Multivariable models indicate AC co-use was cross-sectionally associated with respondents being male, younger, Hispanic (vs White), and having more alcohol use and related problems, and with their social network composition (e.g., having more drinking buddies and cannabis users in the network). However, co-use status was not associated with mental health, physical ailments, or neighborhood quality. Longitudinal analyses indicated that AC co-use at baseline predicted more alcohol use one year later and alcohol related problems two years later among men only. CONCLUSIONS: AC co-use among adults over age 30 deserves further attention given its prevalence and associations with heavier drinking and related problems. Network-focused interventions may be a promising approach for reducing AC co-use.

Decline in Trust in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Researchers present a subset of results from May and October 2020 surveys fielded through the RAND American Life Panel to assess changes in levels of trust in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic. Non-Hispanic White and Hispanic respondents reported significant declines in trust, while the changes were not statistically significant for non-Hispanic Black respondents or respondents of other races.

Trajectories of alcohol use and problems during the COVID-19 pandemic: The role of social stressors and drinking motives for men and women.

INTRODUCTION: Increased alcohol use coinciding with onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly among women, has been documented among U.S. adults. This study examines trajectories of alcohol use and alcohol problems over a 9-month period during the pandemic, the extent to which these trajectories are predicted by social stress and drinking motives, and whether results differ for women and men. METHODS: Data come from three online surveys of a nationally representative sample of U.S. adults ages 30-80 conducted in May-July 2020, October-November 2020, and March 2021. The analytic sample consists of N = 1118 who initially reported any past year alcohol use. The early-COVID survey assessed demographics, social stressors, and drinking motives. All three surveys assessed average drinks per day in past month and drinking-related problems. RESULTS: Alcohol use declined for men, but remained stable for women. Alcohol problems increased for both sexes, especially for men. Level of alcohol use was associated with loneliness and social demands for men, and drinking motives for both sexes, with changes in use related to loneliness and social demands for men. Level of alcohol problems was associated with loneliness for women and drinking motives for both sexes, with changes in problems related to drinking motives for women. Interactions of social stress with drinking motives were not found. CONCLUSIONS: Sex differences in alcohol use and alcohol problems during the pandemic-as well as their associations with indicators of social stress and drinking motives-highlight the importance of tailoring prevention and treatment efforts for men and women.

Associations of social capital with binge drinking in a national sample of adults: The importance of neighborhoods and networks.

BACKGROUND: While considerable research on adult binge drinking has focused on social influences, the potential role of social capital has been largely overlooked. This study examines the role of social capital, assessed in terms of both neighborhood and social network characteristics, in understanding adult binge drinking. METHODS: Adults ages 30-80 were randomly drawn from the RAND American Life Panel and completed an online survey (analytic sample n = 1383). The main predictor variables were neighborhood cohesion, neighborhood order, and social network density. Associations of social capital with past month binge drinking (any, number of days) were examined, controlling for demographic characteristics. RESULTS: Zero-inflated negative binominal regression analysis indicated that any binge drinking was more likely among adults who lived in highly ordered neighborhoods and who had denser social networks but was negatively associated with neighborhood cohesion. However, binge drinking was more frequent among those who lived in neighborhoods lacking order and who had sparser social networks, but had no association with neighborhood cohesion. Age was not found to moderate associations of social capital with binge drinking. CONCLUSIONS: Given that the associations of social capital with adult binge drinking behavior appear to differ by level of influence and type of drinking behavior, there is a need to gain a more nuanced understanding of these complex associations, including the mechanisms through which they operate.

Patterns of Substance Use and Associations with Mental, Physical, and Social Functioning: A Latent Class Analysis of a National Sample of U.S. Adults Ages 30-80.

OBJECTIVE: Trends show increased substance use among adults, yet little research on general population samples has examined differential patterns of licit and illicit substance use that can inform prevention and treatment efforts. This study identifies distinct patterns (classes) of substance use among 30- to 80-year olds, identifies demographic subgroups with the highest probability of class memberships, and compares classes on key indicators of functioning. Method: Participants (n = 1,877) were from the RAND American Life Panel. Online survey measures included current alcohol, tobacco, cannabis, and nonmedical prescription drug use, as well as mental, physical, and social functioning. Results: Latent class analysis identified four classes: "Lighter Drinking" (46.6%), "Abstaining" (33.7%), "Heavy Drinking with Cigarette/Cannabis Use" (17.1%), and "Cigarette Smoking with Prescription Drug/Cannabis Use" (2.6%). Of these classes, "Cigarette Smoking with Prescription Drug/Cannabis Use" reported the worst mental and physical functioning, and greater loneliness than the "Lighter Drinking" class. "Heavy Drinking with Cigarette/Cannabis Use" reported worse mental and physical functioning than the "Lighter Drinking" class and less social support than the "Lighter Drinking" and "Abstaining" classes. The "Abstaining" class reported consistently worse functioning than the "Lighter Drinking" class. Both polysubstance use classes were associated with younger age, less education, and lower income, and heavy drinking polysubstance use was associated with being male and unmarried. Conclusions: Although lighter drinking was the most common pattern, 20% of adults were classified into two polysubstance use classes associated with poorer functioning. Targeted efforts may be needed to reach certain subgroups of adults who are particularly susceptible to polysubstance use.

Socioeconomic status and well-being during COVID-19: A resource-based examination.

The authors assess levels and within-person changes in psychological well-being (i.e., depressive symptoms and life satisfaction) from before to during the COVID-19 pandemic for individuals in the United States, in general and by socioeconomic status (SES). The data is from 2 surveys of 1,143 adults from RAND Corporation's nationally representative American Life Panel, the first administered between April-June, 2019 and the second during the initial peak of the pandemic in the United States in April, 2020. Depressive symptoms during the pandemic were higher than population norms before the pandemic. Depressive symptoms increased from before to during COVID-19 and life satisfaction decreased. Individuals with higher education experienced a greater increase in depressive symptoms and a greater decrease in life satisfaction from before to during COVID-19 in comparison to those with lower education. Supplemental analysis illustrates that income had a curvilinear relationship with changes in well-being, such that individuals at the highest levels of income experienced a greater decrease in life satisfaction from before to during COVID-19 than individuals with lower levels of income. We draw on conservation of resources theory and the theory of fundamental social causes to examine four key mechanisms (perceived financial resources, perceived control, interpersonal resources, and COVID-19-related knowledge/news consumption) underlying the relationship between SES and well-being during COVID-19. These resources explained changes in well-being for the sample as a whole but did not provide insight into why individuals of higher education experienced a greater decline in well-being from before to during COVID-19. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

Adolescent peer networks and the moderating role of depressive symptoms on developmental trajectories of cannabis use.

This paper investigated how depressive symptoms moderate the role of peer cannabis use on developmental patterns of individual cannabis use from adolescence to young adulthood, controlling for a broad set of individual and family factors. Data from two sources were analyzed separately: two saturated schools in the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health Waves I-III (N=1550) covering 1994-2001; and three schools in the CARBIN study, covering 2012-2014. Discrete mixture models identified developmental trajectories of cannabis use in each data source, and logit models linked network and depressive symptom information to the trajectories. Five similar cannabis use trajectories were identified in both datasets: Nonuse, Low, Moderate, Increasing, and High. Peer cannabis use at baseline predicted higher individual cannabis use trajectories, controlling for a wide range of factors. However, the association between peer cannabis use and higher levels of use (Moderate and High) attenuated as the adolescent's level of depressive symptoms increased. Although these results may suggest that depression dampers adolescents' susceptibility to peer influence, these results are also consistent with the notion that depressed adolescents withdraw from their peer groups, distancing them from the initial source of peer influence over time. The resulting isolation may place adolescents at higher risk of adverse outcomes.

Longitudinal Associations of Homophobic Name-Calling Victimization With Psychological Distress and Alcohol Use During Adolescence.

PURPOSE: Homophobic victimization, and specifically name-calling, has been associated with greater psychological distress and alcohol use in adolescents. This longitudinal study examines whether sexual orientation moderates these associations and also differentiates between the effects of name-calling from friends and nonfriends. METHODS: Results are based on 1,325 students from three Midwestern high schools who completed in-school surveys in 2012 and 2013. Linear regression analysis was used to examine the associations among homophobic name-calling victimization and changes in anxiety symptoms, depressive symptoms, and alcohol use one year later, controlling for other forms of victimization and demographics. RESULTS: Homophobic name-calling victimization by friends was not associated with changes in psychological distress or alcohol use among either students who self-identified as heterosexual or those who self-identified as lesbian, gay, or bisexual (LGB). In contrast, homophobic name-calling by nonfriends was associated with increased psychological distress over a one-year period among LGB students and increased drinking among heterosexual students. CONCLUSIONS: Homophobic name-calling victimization, specifically from nonfriends, can adversely affect adolescent well-being over time and, thus, is important to address in school-based bullying prevention programs. School staff and parents should be aware that both LGB and heterosexual adolescents are targets of homophobic name-calling but may tend to react to this type of victimization in different ways. Further research is needed to understand the mechanisms through which homophobic victimization increases the risk of psychological distress and alcohol use over time.

Befriending Risky Peers: Factors Driving Adolescents' Selection of Friends with Similar Marijuana Use.

Adolescents often befriend peers who are similar to themselves on a range of demographic, behavioral, and social characteristics, including substance use. Similarities in lifetime history of marijuana use have even been found to predict adolescent friendships, and we examine whether this finding is explained by youth's selection of friends who are similar on a range of more proximate, observable characteristics that are risk factors for marijuana use. Using two waves of individual and social network data from two high schools that participated in Add Health (N = 1,612; 52.7% male), we apply longitudinal models for social networks to test whether or not several observable risky attributes (psychological, behavioral, and social) predict adolescent friendship choices, and if these preferences explain friend's similarities on lifetime marijuana use. Findings show that similarities on several risk factors predict friendship choices, however controlling for this, the preference to befriend peers with a similar history of marijuana use largely persists. The results highlight the range of social selection processes that lead to similarities in marijuana use among friends and larger peer groups, and that also give rise to friendship groups whose members share similar risk factors for substance use. Friends with high "collective risk" are likely to be important targets for preventing the onset and social diffusion of substance use in adolescents.

A prospective study of marijuana use change and cessation among adolescents.

BACKGROUND: With marijuana use increasing among American adolescents, better understanding of the factors associated with decreasing use and quitting can help inform cessation efforts. This study evaluates a range of neighborhood, family, peer network, and individual factors as predictors of marijuana use, change, and non-use over one year, and cessation over six years. METHODS: Data come from adolescents in Waves I and II of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (N=458, one-year sample), or Waves I and III (N=358, six-year sample), and reported using marijuana at least four times in the past month at Wave I. RESULTS: Eighteen percent of adolescents stopped using marijuana after six years. Results suggest neighborhood context affects overall use level, whereas neighborhood context and friends were critical to cessation vs. continuation of use. Decrease in use were more likely among adolescents in disadvantaged or less cohesive neighborhoods, or who moved between waves. Non-use after one year was more likely among adolescents who did not move, had fewer marijuana-using friends, and did not exclusively have outside-of-school friends. Cessation at six years was more likely among adolescents in less disadvantaged and more cohesive neighborhoods, and for those with within-school friends. CONCLUSIONS: Results highlight the importance of both objective and subjective neighborhood characteristics, as well as peer networks, on adolescent marijuana use. Factors associated with decreases in use appear distinct from those that predict quitting, suggesting that continuation vs. cessation is linked to peers as well as neighborhood context. Relocated and isolated individuals may face challenges with cessation.

Peer influence on marijuana use in different types of friendships.

PURPOSE: Although several social network studies have demonstrated peer influence effects on adolescent substance use, findings for marijuana use have been equivocal. This study examines whether structural features of friendships moderate friends' influence on adolescent marijuana use over time. METHODS: Using 1-year longitudinal data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, this article examines whether three structural features of friendships moderate friends' influence on adolescent marijuana use: whether the friendship is reciprocated, the popularity of the nominated friend, and the popularity/status difference between the nominated friend and the adolescent. The sample consists of students in grade 10/11 at wave I, who were in grade 11/12 at wave II, from two large schools with complete grade-based friendship network data (N = 1,612). RESULTS: In one school, friends' influence on marijuana use was more likely to occur within mutual, reciprocated friendships compared with nonreciprocated relationships. In the other school, friends' influence was stronger when the friends were relatively popular within the school setting or much more popular than the adolescents themselves. CONCLUSIONS: Friends' influence on youth marijuana use may play out in different ways, depending on the school context. In one school, influence occurred predominantly within reciprocated relationships that are likely characterized by closeness and trust, whereas in the other school adopting friends' drug use behaviors appeared to be a strategy to attain social status. Further research is needed to better understand the conditions under which structural features of friendships moderate friends' influence on adolescent marijuana use.

Selection and Influence Mechanisms Associated With Marijuana Initiation and Use in Adolescent Friendship Networks.

Friends are thought to influence adolescent drug use. However, few studies have examined the role of drugs in friendship selection, which is necessary to draw sound conclusions about influence. This study applied statistical models for social networks to test the contribution of selection and influence to associations in marijuana use among friends in two large high schools (N = 1,612; M age = 16.4). There was evidence for friend selection based on similar lifetime and current marijuana use at both schools, but friends were found to influence the initiation and frequency of adolescent marijuana use in just one of these schools. There was minimal evidence that peer effects were moderated by personal, school, or family risk factors.

Neighborhood characteristics and the initiation of marijuana use and binge drinking.

BACKGROUND: This study examines whether residential neighborhood characteristics influence the initiation of marijuana use and binge drinking, and if these neighborhood factors heighten or dampen peer influences on substance use. METHODS: Predictors of marijuana (N=6516) and binge drinking (N=6630) initiation over a 1-year period were identified using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health. Participants were of ages 12-19 years at baseline. The main predictor variables were neighborhood characteristics, using both objective (proportion of households below the poverty line and female-headed, unemployment rate, residential stability) and subjective (perceived cohesion and safety) measures. Binge drinking was defined as 5 or more drinks in a row. RESULTS: Initiation occurred for 12.9% of adolescents in the case of marijuana and 16.4% for binge drinking. Marijuana initiation was more likely among adolescents who lived in neighborhoods with a higher unemployment rate, and binge drinking initiation was more likely among those who perceived greater safety in their neighborhood, after adjusting for other neighborhood characteristics, demographics, friend characteristics, and behavioral and family risk factors. There was no evidence that neighborhood context moderates the associations of peer factors on initiation. CONCLUSIONS: Select neighborhood characteristics appear relevant to the initiation of marijuana use and binge drinking, although the mechanisms appear to be distinct for each substance. If these results are found to be robust, future research should aim to better understand how neighborhood context influences the initiation of adolescent substance use in order to inform prevention efforts.

Resisting Smoking When a Best Friend Smokes: Do Intrapersonal and Contextual Factors Matter?

This longitudinal study examines individual differences in the tendency to initiate (N = 4,612) and escalate (N = 2,837) smoking when adolescents gain a best friend who smokes. Potential moderating factors include self-esteem, depression, problem behavior, school and family bonds, and household access to cigarettes. In addition to acquiring a smoking best friend, initiation was predicted by trouble at school, household access, poorer grades and delinquency, whereas escalation was predicted by depressive symptoms. There was little evidence that the examined individual difference factors moderate the association between gaining a smoking best friend and increased adolescent smoking. Results point to the challenges of identifying factors that may lead adolescents to be more or less susceptible to the influence of pro-smoking friends.

Romantic attraction and adolescent smoking trajectories.

Research on sexual orientation and substance use has established that lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) individuals are more likely to smoke than heterosexuals. This analysis furthers the examination of smoking behaviors across sexual orientation groups by describing how same- and opposite-sex romantic attraction, and changes in romantic attraction, are associated with distinct six-year developmental trajectories of smoking. The National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health dataset is used to test our hypotheses. Multinomial logistic regressions predicting smoking trajectory membership as a function of romantic attraction were separately estimated for men and women. Romantic attraction effects were found only for women. The change from self-reported heterosexual attraction to lesbian or bisexual attraction was more predictive of higher smoking trajectories than was a consistent lesbian or bisexual attraction, with potentially important differences between the smoking patterns of these two groups.

Adolescent romantic relationships and change in smoking status.

Although smoking rates have decreased, smoking among adolescents continues to be a problem. Previous research has shown the importance of peer influences on adolescent smoking behavior but has mostly neglected the impact of adolescent romantic relationships. This study examines the influence of romantic relationships with smokers and non-smokers on smoking initiation and cessation over a one-year period using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health). For initial non-smokers, we examined whether the total length of time in romantic relationships with smokers and non-smokers at Wave I, as well as amount of exposure to smoking through romantic partners, predicted smoking initiation at Wave II. Among initial regular smokers, we examined whether these same relationship characteristics predicted smoking cessation at Wave II. These analyses were conducted separately for respondents in any type of romantic relationship, as well as just those respondents in close romantic relationships. Results indicated that, for close romantic relationships, cessation was more likely among smokers with more time in relationships with non-smoking partners. Greater exposure to smoking through romantic partners at Wave I significantly decreased the likelihood of cessation among initial smokers and increased the likelihood of initiation among initial non-smokers. For all relationships, greater exposure to smoking through romantic partners at Wave I significantly reduced the likelihood of cessation. These associations held when controlling for best friend smoking, as well as demographic factors and school-level smoking, suggesting that peer-based smoking programs aimed at adolescents should incorporate a focus on romantic relationships.

Friendship networks and trajectories of adolescent tobacco use.

This article examines how friendship networks in adolescence are linked to tobacco use trajectories through a combination of analytic techniques that traditionally are located in separate literatures: social network analysis and developmental trajectory analysis. Using six years of longitudinal data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, we identify a set of six unique developmental trajectories of smoking (never smokers, steady lows, delayed increasers, early increasers, decreasers, and steady highs). Individuals' locations in their friendship networks were then linked to their trajectory group membership. Adolescents with a greater number of smoking friends were more likely to belong to the higher use trajectories. Beyond this exposure to smoking peers, individuals who at baseline were either members of a smoking group or liaisons to a smoking group were more likely than members of a nonsmoking group to belong to the higher use trajectories. Liaisons to a smoking group were particularly likely to belong to the delayed increaser trajectory group. Trajectory group membership for adolescents who belonged to a nonsmoking group did not significantly differ from those who were isolates or liaisons to a nonsmoking group. The study suggests features of an individual's social network have long-lasting associations with smoking behaviors.

Long-term economic benefits attributed to IVF-conceived children: a lifetime tax calculation.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate whether lifetime future net tax revenues from an in vitro fertilization (IVF)-conceived child are substantial enough to warrant public subsidy relative to the mean IVF treatment costs required to obtain 1 live birth. STUDY DESIGN: Mathematical generational accounting model. METHODS: The model estimates direct financial interactions between the IVF-conceived child and the government during the child's projected lifetime. In the model, we accrue IVF costs required to conceive the child to the government, and then we estimate future net tax revenue to the federal and state governments from this individual, offset by direct financial transfers from the government (eg, child allowances, education, Medicare, and Social Security). We discount lifetime costs and gross tax payments at Treasury Department rates to establish the present value of investing in IVF. We applied US Congressional Budget Office projected changes in tax rates over the course of the model. RESULTS: An IVF-conceived child, average in every respect (eg, future earnings, healthcare consumption, and life expectancy), represents a net positive return to the government. Based on an average employed individual born in 2005, the projected net lifetime tax contribution is US $606,200. Taking into consideration IVF costs and all direct financial interactions, the net present value is US $155,870. CONCLUSIONS: Lifetime net taxes paid from a child relative to the child's initial IVF investment represent a 700% net return to the government in discounted US dollars from fully employed individuals. This suggests that removing barriers to IVF would have positive tax benefits for the government, notwithstanding its beneficial effect on overall economic growth.

EMERGING PARENTAL GENDER INDIFFERENCE? SEX COMPOSITION OF CHILDREN AND THE THIRD BIRTH.

For much of the twentieth century, parents in the United States with two children of the same sex were more likely to have a third child than were parents with one son and one daughter, that is, there was an effect of the sex of previous children on the occurrence of a third birth. Using multiple cycles of the Current Population Survey and National Survey of Family Growth, the authors examine the strength of this effect on both fertility behavior and intentions over multiple decades. Changes in the societal gender system are expected to weaken this pronatalist effect in recent periods. Consistent with this expectation, there has been some attenuation of the effect of sex composition of previous children on the third birth, suggesting declining salience of children's gender for parents.