Adolescent marijuana use has become increasingly more problematic compared with the past; thus, understanding developmental processes that increase the liability of marijuana use is essential. Two developmental pathways to adolescent substance use have been proposed: an externalizing pathway that emphasizes the expression of aggressive and…

Background: Although the link between substance use and criminal behavior is well-established, associations between the use of specific substances and specific criminal charges remains unclear. That is, there are mixed findings in the literature, and the majority of extant literature focuses only on associations between alcohol and marijuana use…

This study explores the links between cyberbullying victimization and a set of health risk behaviors associated with juvenile delinquency (cigarette smoking, marijuana usage, alcohol usage, and sexual frequency). These links are examined with data from the 2015 Youth Risk Behavior Survey (n = 9,122). Using cluster analysis, respondents are…

Introduction: E-cigarette use remains a controversial topic in public health and medicine. Historically, cigarette smoking was identified as a gateway to marijuana use among adolescents. Recently, the prevalence of adolescent cigarette smoking has declined, but that of e-cigarette use continues to increase. As e-cigarettes eclipse cigarettes among…

While it is well understood that adolescent religiosity is associated with the use and abuse of licit and illicit substances, few studies have revealed the pathways through which religiosity buffers youth against involvement in such behavior. The aim of this study is to examine the complexity of the relationships between religiosity, sensation…

Truant youths are likely to engage in a number of problem behaviors, including sexual risky behaviors. Previous research involving non-truant youths has found sexual risk behaviors to be related to marijuana use and depression, with differential effects for male and female youths. Using data collected in a National Institute on Drug Abuse…

Background: Cannabis is a substance frequently consumed by adolescents, which is a risk factor for many psychopathological disorders. At the same time, adolescents in high-schools are likely to be exposed to significant stress from school that can sometimes lead to a burnout syndrome. Objective: The purpose of this study is to explore the impact…

Background: Homeless youth, as a vulnerable population are susceptible to various mental and health risk behaviours. However, less is known of the mental health status of these homeless youth and its role in risky sexual behaviours; neither do we understand the reasons homeless youth give for their engagement in various health risk behaviour.…

The current study prospectively examined hypothesized short- and long-term reciprocal relations between perceived parental knowledge and adolescent heavy episodic drinking, marijuana use, and delinquency. Using the contextual model of parenting style (Darling & Steinberg, 1993), we examined the extent to which the bidirectional nature of…

Few studies investigating the validity of marijuana use have used samples of truant youths. In the current study, self-reports of marijuana use are compared with urine test results for marijuana to identify marijuana underreporting among adolescents participating in a longitudinal brief intervention for drug-involved truant youths. It was…

The study purpose is to examine the impact of early substance use on lifetime and past year contraction of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), including chlamydia, gonorrhea, herpes, and syphilis. A secondary analysis of the 2012 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (N = 52,529) was conducted to determine if lifetime or past year STD…

This study examined patterns of association between experiencing 12 traumatic life events, resilience, and substance use at a conservative church-affiliated university. The authors used data (N = 278) from a Health Risk and Protective Factors Study that was conducted during the 2012 spring semester. Initial bivariate analysis indicated several…

Substance use and sexual risk behaviors are common among adolescents, but research has focused attention on alcohol use. Much less is known about the relationship of marijuana use and sexual risk behavior among high-risk, especially truant, youths. We report interim findings from a NIDA-funded experimental, brief intervention (BI) study involving…

Background: Overweight adolescents engage in risk behaviors at different rates than healthy-weight peers. Most extant research has focused on white or regional samples. Purpose: This article examined associations between weight and risk behaviors and determined whether associations differ by race/ethnicity. Methods: Youth Risk Behavior Survey data…

Fatherhood can be a turning point in development and in men's crime and substance use trajectories. At-risk boys (N = 206) were assessed annually from ages 12 to 31 years. Crime, arrest, and tobacco, alcohol, and marijuana use trajectories were examined. Marriage was associated with lower levels of crime and less frequent substance use. Following…