Poster #155 - Motives and Sources for Prescription Opioid Misuse Among Adolescents and Young Adults

• In Event: ASC Poster Session I

Abstract

Objective: Criminal justice contact is correlated with substance use, including prescription opioid misuse (POM). Research shows that certain sources (eg, purchased) and motives (eg, to get high) for POM are linked with adverse mental health symptoms and substance use disorders. The current research assesses the association between criminal justice contact and sources and motives for POM among U.S. adolescents and young adults (AYA).

Data/Methods: Data were from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (2015-2019). Adolescent (12-17) and young adult (18-25) respondents who reported past-year POM provided information on criminal justice contact, sources (physician, free from friend/relative, purchased, theft), and motives (self-treatment vs. non-self-treatment).

Results: Logistic regression models suggest that AYA with criminal justice contact are more likely to report non-self-treatment motives such as getting high. Multinomial logistic regression models indicate that AYA with criminal justice contact are less likely to report free from a friend/relative or theft compared to physician source, while being more likely to report purchased compared to physician source.

Conclusions: Findings indicate that AYA with criminal justice contact are more likely to report sources and motives for POM that are associated with adverse outcomes, highlighting the importance of screening interventions in this population.

Authors

• Jason Ford, University of Central Florida

• Thomas Jones, University of Central Florida

• Brady T. West, University of Michigan

• Philip T. Veliz, University of Michigan

• Sean Esteban McCabe, University of Michigan

• Ty S. Schepis, Texas State University