The Relationship Between Childhood Abuse and Adulthood Illicit Substance Misuse

• In Event: Poster Session 2

Abstract

The understanding of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) and their link to later-life consequences is well established. Concerns have arisen regarding the factors that lead young individuals to experiment and misuse drugs. The objective of this project is to (A) utilize the Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health) longitudinal study to explore the outcomes of individuals who have experienced Physical, Sexual, or Emotional Abuse. (B) Starting in the academic year of 1994-95, surveys and interviews were conducted in the homes of over 20,000 adolescents, spanning grades 7 through 12. (C) Chi-squared analysis was used to compare these variables, assessing whether childhood abuse significantly influences substance misuse in adulthood. In addition, to control for confounding variables, a Multivariate Regression was conducted to test the effects of these outside influences. The primary variables examined for outside influence were those related to mental health. (D) The results consistently indicate a significant connection between childhood abuse and later misuse of prescription drugs in adulthood.

Authors

• Abby Gray Williamson, University of Central Florida

• Thomas Jones, University of Central Florida

• Jason Ford, University of Central Florida