By Benjamin Chambers, November 17 2008
Need to make the case that teen alcohol and drug use must be addressed in the community or in the justice system?
Check out page 3 of OJJDP's latest research bulletin. There you'll find an excellent, compact chart showing that youth who drink, use marijuana, or sell drugs are much more likely to be delinquent.
I admit I was underwhelmed when I first heard about the bulletin. The central conclusion, according to an email I received, was this:
"... [G]iven one substance-related behavior, other substance-related behaviors become more likely."
To anyone familiar with teens in the justice system, that's old news.
But the bulletin is quite informative. It does a very nice job, using graphics like the one shown here, to demonstrate that drinking, using marijuana, or selling drugs makes teens much more likely to be doing more than one of those behaviors.
And although we all know there's a correlation between delinquent behavior and drug and alcohol use, I've rarely seen it quantified so clearly. Check it out.
Topics: No bio box, Research Updates
Updated: November 17 2008