This research is designed to answer the following question: Does the quality of a person’s relationships with their parents and with their peers influence the extent to which that person engages in marijuana use? “Data for this study come from the [seventh wave of the] National Youth Survey (NYS). The NYS is a nationally representative, longitudinal survey of 1,725 U.S. youth between the ages of 11 and 17 at the time of the first interview in early 1977. Respondents were interviewed annually through 1981 (Waves 1-5) and then again in 1984 (Wave 6) and 1987 (Wave 7). By the last wave of interviews, respondents were between the ages of 21 and 27 years” (King & South, 2011, p. 107). The variables used consisted of two independent variables, Perceived Disapproval by Parents Towards Deviance and Perceived Disapproval by Peers Towards Deviance, and the dependent variable of Marijuana Use. The variable Perceived Disapproval by Parents was operationalized by creating a composite variable from the following questions: “PARENTS OPIN: CHEAT ON INCOME TAX (Y7_378), PARENTS OPIN: STOLEN WORTH <$5 (Y7_379), PARENTS OPIN: SOLD HARD DRUGS (Y7_380), PARENTS OPIN: USED MARIJUANA (Y7_381), PARENTS OPIN: STOLE WORTH >$50 (Y7_382), PARENTS OPIN: HIT SOMEONE (Y7_383), PARENTS OPIN: DESTROYED PROPERTY (Y7_385), PARENTS OPIN: BROKE INTO VEHICLE (Y7_386), PARENTS OPIN: DELIB HURT SP/PARTN (Y7_387)” (National Youth Survey [United States]: Wave VII, 1987). The composite variable was created by taking
There has been an extensive amount of research done on risk factors and marijuana use. Among adolescents the vast majority of the research has identified five major risk factors associated with adolescent marijuana use, family relations (parent-child attachment), peer associations, substance abuse programs, gender, and race. Some researchers have found that the family is the best predictor of adolescent marijuana use, while others claim that peer associations are predictors of adolescent marijuana use. Others believe that substance abuse programs are the key to deterring adolescent drug use. The final groups of researchers believe gender and race are the underlining predictors. The following studies will give a quick overview of the prior research on risk factors and adolescent marijuana use.
Research has found that teenagers who used cigarettes were twelve times more likely to graduate to marijuana use. A similar study conducted by Denise Kandel (1992) revealed that use of marijuana affects dopamine levels in the brain in a similar way to nicotine. Cigarette smoking facilitates consumption of other substances. Smoking cigarettes initiate juveniles into the sensation of drug inhalation, which desensitizes them from the feeling of smoke clouding their lungs. This paper finds that marijuana pervades the life of a juvenile tobacco smoker. Teenagers who smoke cigarettes
In order to pay for drug use, teens engage in criminal behavior, motor vehicle theft, and breaking-and-entering offenses (University of Washington ADAI). Teen Marijuana users need money to pay for drug use, and in order to obtain money, teens engage in problematic behaviors. There are also legal aspects when selling, using, or possessing marijuana, involving fines, jail time, and possibly a criminal record (Teens Health 2). Teen marijuana users’ problematic behaviors involving the law can lead to consequences, sometimes with the potential to damage the teen’s future. Laws against growing, possessing, and selling marijuana exist in all states but Washington and Colorado (2). Over 7.2 million Americans have been arrested on marijuana charges since 1990, many of which were teenagers (NORML). Marijuana association damages the lives of many teens who get caught engaging in marijuana associated problematic behaviors. The problematic behaviors associated with teen marijuana use can potentially damage not only a teen’s future, but also society.
Studies show that our drug situation is a major public health and safety threat, and drug addiction is a condition that can be successfully stopped and cured. Legalizing drugs would boost their availability and normalize their use, leading to negative health results, mainly between young people. Drug legalization also weakens preventative health strategies a base in improving our overall public health in the United States. A drug like Marijuana places a strong tension on our health care system, and poses a substantial crisis to the health and safety of the consumer themselves, their families, and our communities. We all know that marijuana use, mostly long-term and chronic use that begin at a young age usually around 16-19, can lead to reliance and addiction. “In 2012, approximately 4.2 million people met the diagnostic criteria for wrong use or dependence on marijuana. Marijuana and other drugs is associated with addiction, respiratory illnesses, and cognitive impairment” (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration). “Studies also show that marijuana effectiveness has nearly tripled over the past 20 years, raising deliberate concerns about ramification for public health – especially among young people, for whom long-term use of marijuana could possibly be linked with lower IQ later in life” (DAWN Report). Drug use puts a lot of emphasis on parents, Siblings, grandparents and anyone who is part of the household. There are many reasons why. You can't always count on them to do what they say they will do, they may get distracted and forget because their pivot is the idea of getting and taking drugs, they might deceit or keep money to purchase more drugs, they might get terminated from their jobs, they might not come home at night, and they may do terrible things
In this article, whether or not prenatal marijuana exposure (PME) contributes to marijuana use at age fourteen is studied. Over the years the use of marijuana and its effects on adolescents has increased. There have been attempts to prevent the use of marijuana among adolescents, but in order to prevent something you have to know the reason for the occurrence. “Among preteens and adolescents, PME predicted poorer performance on tests of memory, attention, and executive functioning” (Day, Goldschmidt & Thomas, 2006). In addition to PME, factors such as: child management practices,
Marijuana is a popular and universal drug. It is easily accessible to most people and is the number one illicit drug used in North America. Although the availability and knowledge of this drug is fairly equal for all people in North America, marijuana tends to be more prevalent in teenagers and young adults. Maisto, Galizio, and Conners (2004) reported that "use of marijuana [in young people] was 8.0% among those aged 12-17; 16% among those aged 18-25," as compared to "6.8% among those aged 26-34; and 2.4% among those 35 and older." People of all ages, races, and religions use marijuana and have their own reasons to use it. Young people first try marijuana because of some common reasons. Some teenagers feel pressured by their peers to
The University of Michigan “annually survey in 2010 ” identified that adolescents nationwide, will start using drugs from 8, 10, and 12-grade use drugs, which include alcohol, Tabaco, marijuana, and other drugs; the survey shows the increased of marijuana use among high school seniors to daily basis. Consumption is the highest in comparison with the previous study nearly 65% of those students use marijuana as their primary drug of choice.
The article I choose for this longitudinal study examines how family background effects African American adolescents’ marijuana use at young age. The total of 1069 participants consisted of 527 females and 542 males from various family background ages between 17-26. For 15 years, each year the participants were interviewed one-on-one by trained professionals to gain more incite.
Teenage marijuana use is at an all time high, it has been found that today’s teen marijuana smokers are doing so at extreme amounts, some even do so daily. What are the factors that cause them to start experimenting and smoking marijuana? The amounts of marijuana being smoked by today’s teenagers must have an effect on the developing teens. The minds and bodies of the teens who smoke must be facing some sort of developing issues. Marijuana is a mild drug compared to harsher drugs like cocaine, heroin, meth, etc. the users of marijuana will eventually look for a stronger and long lasting high so they will turn to these harsher and more addicting substances. The decisions that today’s teens are making to smoke marijuana might have a
The main implication is that drug use is learned and gives support to the idea that it is crucial to know the effects of your environment, TV programs, and peers. Throughout our class course we have been told about these different theories. In class we see that juveniles tend to learn behavior from peers. This now gives me a better understanding that it is not just juveniles. Although this was interesting I feel that there was much more questions about the different variable that could have been asked to gain further knowledge. I did appreciate that this group of citizens were studied. When reading the article it did point out that most of marijuana surveys include the younger generation. The younger the influences are thrown into our life the more social learning we go through with weed, especially in our youth when we tend to cling to those we have the most in common
Many children and teens are very mature to say “no” for using cannabis in the wrong ways, for example in Colorado teenagers stubbornly refuse to smoke cannabis. Jacob Sullum points out “…the percentage of Colorado high schools reporting having consumed marijuana within the past 30 days fell from 22 percent in 2011 to 20 percent in 2013.”(Marijuana Re-Legalization: Its effects on teens) This report shows that not every teenager or child is automatically going to use them for the wrong ways. The study concludes that “legalizing medical marijuana has not increased teen pot
Why is it important that parents make wise decisions? It is important because these choices not only affect themselves but also affect their children. Parents and caregivers are vital to the development and growth of children. Parents play a crucial role in every stage of childhood and can play a positive role in helping them get the best out of life. The most simplest decisions in a parents life could damage the life of a child. That's why the way parents raise their children play an important role and have different effects on their child's life.
Marijuana has become one of the most used illegal substances in the United States. (Pawson 2014). Accoding to Pawson and Kelly, marijuana use is an increasingly normalized behavior which is shifting the public’s view of it. Continued normalization could potentially change it from something that is sometimes seen as morally wrong to something that will seem as normal as smoking a cigarette. Their goal was to examine marijuana use as a cultural practice and how that can define the values of youth. After they completed their observations it was found that in the younger generations marijuana was a not seen as a violation of moral code but rather and up and coming social normality (Pawson 2014).
Today in our lives, we are surrounded by many people. Some of these people we are surrounded by are either people we do not care for, or they are the people that we cannot spend enough time with. These people we enjoy the most of, are either our family or our closest friends. You may think that friends and family are just a like, but they do differ from each other, and without either of them our life would feel incomplete.
The topic I have chosen for my paper is that of relationship between parents and children. Some of the points that I will be discussing are child abuse, child neglect and how it can affect a child and the relationship with the parents.