Nothing to Do, Nobody Cares: Unpacking Geographic Variation in Adolescent Substance Use

• In Event: Data and Methodological Innovations in Substance Use Research

Abstract

Research on adolescent substance use traditionally finds rates of use are higher among urban youth. However, recent work illustrates that rural adolescents may now have comparable or even higher rates of substance use. Further, rates of use appear to be non-linear across the urban-rural continuum. This study examines the factors that may contribute to higher rates of substance use among rural youth. Using data from the 2000-2002 Communities that Care Youth Survey (n=310,171) we first explore variation in adolescent alcohol and marijuana use across eight distinct community types (e.g., large city, mid-size city, small town, rural). Second, drawing on routine activities and social disorganization theories, we examine whether geographic differences in substance use (particularly among youth in rural areas) are attributable to community-level variations in opportunities for prosocial activities (e.g., clubs, scouting), accessibility/availability of substances (e.g., ease of acquiring substances), neighborhood disadvantage/disorder (e.g., signs of physical disorder; socioeconomic disadvantage), and/or informal and formal control (e.g., parental disapproval of substance use; perceptions of police detection of substance-using youth). Preliminary findings demonstrate geographic variation in both alcohol and marijuana use and the extent to which rates of use are influenced by opportunities, availability, disorder, and control.

Authors

• Courtney Thrash, University of Nebraska-Lincoln

• Tara Warner, University of Nebraska-Lincoln