Victimization of American Indian Youth: Social Bond's Mediating Role on Alcohol and Marijuana Use

• In Event: Substance Use in Varying Cultures

Abstract

Applying General Strain theory and Social Bond theory, this study examined possible roles played by violent peer victimization in American Indian youths’ use of alcohol and marijuana. As its central premise, the study hypothesized that social bond factors would mediate any relationship between victimization and substance use; in the study, such factors included being bonded to one’s school and possessing conventional beliefs. The study data came from cross-sectional research published as Drug Use Among Young American Indians: Epidemiology and Prediction. The research comprised two waves, 1993–2006 and 2009–2013. The present study employed only the 2009–2013 data. The final sample of more than 2,600 American Indian youth, the present study’s results for the data on alcohol and marijuana use generally supported the hypotheses. Specifically, higher levels of violent peer victimization were found to be associated with more extensive alcohol use and marijuana use among respondents. The study demonstrated that the included social bond factors mediated the victimization–substance use relationship. The present study findings (1) add to the limited extant literature focusing on American Indian youth and also (2) substantiate that peer victimization is a powerful and significant stressor detrimental to youth in the United States.

Authors

• Michaela LaNay Wilson, Texas Woman's University

• Celia Lo, Texas Woman's University