Author ORCID Identifier
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
10-9-2012
Publication Title
Journal of Drug Issues
Volume
43
Issue
1
First Page
69
Last Page
84
Abstract
Although social disorganization theory hypothesizes that neighborhood characteristics influence youth delinquency, the impact of neighborhood disadvantage on adolescent substance use and racial/ethnic differences in this relationship have not been widely investigated. The present study examines these issues using longitudinal data from 1,856 African American, Hispanic, and Caucasian adolescents participating in the Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods (PHDCN). The results indicated that neighborhood disadvantage did not significantly increase the likelihood of substance use for the full sample. When relationships were analyzed by race/ethnicity, one significant (p ≤ .10) effect was found; disadvantage increased alcohol use among African Americans only. The size of this effect differed significantly between African American and Hispanic youth. In no other cases did race/ethnicity moderate the impact of disadvantage on substance use. These results suggest that disadvantage is not a strong predictor of adolescent substance use, although other features of the neighborhood may affect such behaviors.
Recommended Citation
Fagan, A.A., Wright, E.M., & Pinchevsky, G.M. (2012, October 9). Racial/Ethnics Difference in the Relationship Between Neighborhood Disadvantage and Adolescent Substance Use. Journal of Drug Issues, 43(1), 69-84. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022042612462218
Comments
This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Sage in [Journal of Drug Issues] on [October 9, 2012], available online: https://doi.org/10.1177/0022042612462218
Reuse restricted to noncommercial and no derivative uses.
Copyright held by authors.