Young people's awareness of illicit drug use in the family

Bibliographic Data

ID15397643
AuthorsAlasdair J M Forsyth, Alasdair Forsyth (University of Glasgow, corresponding author), Marina Barnard (University of Glasgow)
Year2003
Volume11
Issue6
Pages459-472
Publication date2003-12-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueAddiction Research & Theory (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1476-7392 • E-ISSN: 1606-6359
PublisherTaylor & Francis (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/16066350310001621216
OpenAlexW1982933854
LanguageEN
References cited25

A sample of Scottish schoolchildren aged 14–15 (N = 1240) were asked a series of questions regarding their knowledge and experience of illicit drugs. They were asked to report on personal lifetime drug use and whether they knew of any family member who had ever used drugs. More than four in ten respondents admitted to having used an illegal drug, with a similar number admitting to awareness of drug use by another family member. There was a strong statistical relationship between respondents’ own use and drug use by all types of family members. However, although respondents who reported using drugs themselves were more likely to nominate other drug users in their family, only a small minority of respondents stated that a family member initiated them into drug use and few stated that they were aware of any problematic use. Although prior drug use by family members may not directly lead to use by young people, these data indicate that illegal drug use tends to cluster within families.KeywordsAdolescentDrug useFamilyRelationships

Drug · Family medicine · Family member · Illicit drug · NOMINATE · Psychiatry · Cannabis and Cannabinoid Research · Medicine · Prenatal Substance Exposure Effects · Psychology · Substance Abuse Treatment and Outcomes

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