May/June 2001 Article 1 Article 2

Predictors of Substance Use at School Among High School Students Kristin E. Voelkl, Ph.D. and Michael R. Frone, Ph.D. Abstracted from Journal of Educational Psychology, 92, 583-592, 2000. Previous studies have looked at alcohol and marijuana use by adolescents. In the current study, Drs. Kristin (Voelkl) Finn and Michael Frone examined substance use in a specific setting: the school. Despite the ongoing commitment to drug-free schools, surprisingly few studies have focused on the school setting as a specific context for alcohol and drug use. Research has concentrated on overall substance use among adolescents. Therefore, researchers know little about the prevalence, predictors, and outcomes of students’ use of alcohol and drugs between classes, coming to school drunk or high, or being under the influence of alcohol and drugs at school functions. Relative to students who use alcohol and drugs outside of school, those who use alcohol and drugs at school may experience the highest levels of risk for poor classroom concentration, poor school performance, poor relations with teachers and other students, and dropping out. Prior Research The National Youth Risk Behavior Survey (Kann et al., 1998) revealed that about 6% of high school students drank alcohol at school on one or more of the 30 days preceding the survey. Similarly about 7% of high school students were currently using marijuana on school property. In another national survey, 33% of students reported seeing other students in their school under the influence of alcohol, and 27% reported seeing students high on marijuana at school (Nolin, Vaden-Kiernan, Feibus, & Chandler, 1997). Other data suggest that the availability of drugs at school is widespread. One third of the nation’s secondary students reported they had been offered, sold, or given an illegal drug on school property (Kann et al., 1998). The prevalence of drug use at school clearly suggests that the issue of school-related substance use is relevant for many of America’s youth. Predictors of Use at School The goal of this study was to explore the predictors of alcohol and drug use during the school day among high school students. Finn and Frone tested whether four sets of personal predispositions (demographics, personality characteristics, academic attitudes, and substance use expectations) and the situational opportunity for substance use predicted alcohol and marijuana use at school. They also explored whether the relation of personal predispositions to substance use was moderated by high school students’ perceived ease of using alcohol and marijuana at school. Demographically, Finn and Frone hypothesized that boys and older high school students would report higher levels of alcohol and marijuana use at school than girls and younger students, respectively. They also considered another risk factor: family socioeconomic status, as measured by mother’s and father’s education. Result: Consistent with expectations, boys were more likely than girls to report using alcohol and marijuana at school. Age was unrelated to either alcohol or marijuana use at school. Mother’s education level was positively related to both alcohol and marijuana use at school while father’s education level was not related to substance use at school. For personality, Finn and Frone hypothesized that behavioral under-control (comprised of impulsiveness, rebelliousness, unconventionality, and risk-taking) and negative affect (e.g. signs of depression, low self-esteem, etc.) would be positively related, and that self-esteem would be negatively related, to alcohol and marijuana use at school. Result: Of the personality variables examined, higher rebelliousness was associated with increased alcohol use. Risk-taking and low self-esteem were associated with increased marijuana use at school. Since past research has repeatedly shown that attachment or bonding to conventional institutions like school is inversely related to overall levels of substance use, Drs. Finn and Frone hypothesized that perceived academic ability, educational aspirations, and identification with school would be negatively related to substance use at school. Result: Although academic ability and educational aspirations were not related to either outcome, identification with school was significantly and negatively related to both alcohol and marijuana use at school. Past research shows that students’ beliefs about the anticipated outcomes of substance use are strong predictors of overall substance use. Based on past research, Finn and Frone hypothesized that students who believed that alcohol and marijuana use could reduce negative affect and improve cognitive and motor performance, would be more likely to use at school. Result: The expectation that alcohol can reduce tension was significantly and positively related to alcohol use at school. Beliefs that alcohol and marijuana can improve performance were significantly and positively related to both alcohol and marijuana use at school. Finn and Frone further hypothesized that students who are predisposed to using alcohol or marijuana at school will be more or less likely to act on their predispositions depending on whether their situational surroundings afford them the opportunity. Result: Self-esteem, rebelliousness, risk taking, school identification, and tension reduction expectancies were more strongly related to alcohol use when alcohol was perceived to be easily used at school. In addition, male students, students who did not identify with school, and students who expected that marijuana improves performance were more likely to use marijuana at school when they perceived it was easy to do so. Conclusions Finn and Frone concluded that drug use at school may be the synergistic outcome of both personal predispositions and the perceived opportunity to use drugs at school without getting caught. In other words, high school students predisposed to engage in deviant behavior at school do so only when there are perceived opportunities to act and avoid detection. Their results suggest that various attempts to reduce students’ perceived opportunity to use drugs at school (e.g., close monitoring by school personnel or reduced availability of substances at school) may act as a protective factor that reduces substance use at school by inhibiting the expression of personal predispositions. Future Research Future research should explore the individual moderating influences of physical availability, social availability, and school monitoring on the relation of personal predispositions to substance use at school. The results from such a study may allow more precise recommendations regarding strategies to reduce substance use at school. In addition, future research on student substance use should be expanded to examine substance use during school-sponsored extracurricular events such as dances and sporting events. Because adolescents spend a large amount of time at school, much more attention needs to focus on school as a specific context for substance use. In the absence of such efforts, adolescent substance use in general will not be fully understood, and the issue of substance use at school will continue or perhaps increase. Clinical Implications Prevention programs should include material that specifically addresses on-campus substance use. Reducing students’ perceived opportunity to use drugs at school may reduce use. Providing early intervention may prevent school substance use problems from spilling over into achievement at school, on- the-job, and in personal relationships. References Bahr, S. J., Marcos, A. C., & Maughan, S. L. (1995). Family, educational, and peer influences on the alcohol use of female and male adolescents. Journal of Studies on Alcohol, 56, 457-469. Kann, L., Kinchen, S. A., Williams, B. I., Ross, J. G., Lowry, R., Hill, C. V., Grunbaum, J., Blumson, P. S., Collins, J. l., & Kolbe, L. J. (1998, August). Youth risk behavior surveillance – United States, 1997 (Report No. SS-3). Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office. Nolin, M., Vaden-Kiernan, N., Feibus, M. L., & Chandler, K. (1997). Student reports of availability, peer approval, and use of alcohol, marijuana, and other drugs at school: 1993 (Report No. NCES 92-279). Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education. This research was supported by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism through a Scientist Development Award (K21-AA00194) to Michael R. Frone. Kristin Voelkl Finn, Ph.D. is a former RIA postdoctoral fellow and recently-named principal investigator of a grant to study alcohol and marijuana use in school settings. Michael R. Frone, Ph.D. is a senior research scientist with the Institute. His primary area of research is employment. Article 1

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