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National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign
Phase 1 (Report No. 1)
3.1.1.1 Youth Attitudes, Norms and Behaviors Regarding Drugs
Focus group youth shared a wealth of information about their attitudes, norms, and behaviors regarding drugs. The overall pattern of findings among youth in the three age groups (elementary school students, middle school students, and high school students) in the target sites was very similar to the pattern for youth in the comparison sites. The site-specific findings for each target site along with those for its matched comparison site are reported in Section 4. This section presents the results for target sites as a whole, as well as aggregate results for the comparison sites.
Access to drugs -- The issue of access was important in understanding youth's opportunities for drug use. Across numerous target sites, youth talked about how easy it was to obtain drugs. Youth in comparison sites said the same thing. Youth attend more social events and parties as they get older, and they reported that these events are often occasions for "getting high." Drugs also are available in and around middle and high schools. Youth often said that they obtained drugs from older friends, siblings, and adults. For example, a young person may go to a liquor store and ask adults-maybe even older-looking teenagers or homeless persons- who are nearby to purchase alcohol, offering cigarettes as payment. Older friends sometimes reserve hotel rooms for parties, and siblings returning home from college occasionally had parties at which drugs and alcohol were readily available. Youth often obtained alcohol at drive-through liquor stores where "they don't even card you." Although a person must be over 18 to enter an "under-21" club, non-urban high school students at one site explained that they could get served if they "made arrangements beforehand." Furthermore, many high school youth in both urban and non-urban areas reported that proprietors of adult clubs did not always check for proof of legal age.
Use of free time and organized activities -- During the baseline focus groups, youth were asked how they spent their free time (i.e., unsupervised time before or after school, in the evening, on the weekend, or during the summer) and what kind of organized, supervised, outside-of-school activities they engaged in. The questions focused on how these activities served as protective factors or as opportunities for using drugs.
- Free time -- While some free-time activities such as watching TV, doing homework, and "hanging out" with friends were common to all youth, others were structured by age group, urbanicity, local site context, and ethnicity. Target sites as a whole were very similar to comparison sites as a whole.
- Age group differences -- Youth in the 4th-6th grade focus groups mentioned doing homework, watching TV, reading, going to friends' houses, participating in sports, and playing with their pets. The 7th-9th graders talked about "hanging out," bicycling, playing video and other games, watching TV, phoning friends, going to the mall, attending slumber parties, participating in sports, doing homework, searching the Internet, and playing with their pets. The 10th-12th graders mentioned attending parties, dances, and sports events; "hanging with friends"; going to clubs or to the movies; driving around; participating in school clubs and bands; "raves" (a party where drugs are used); playing video games or pool; listening to music; and practicing a musical instrument.
- Urban/non-urban differences -- Non-urban communities, which were more likely to have a middle-class population than were center-city urban areas, appeared to have more community and family resources than did urban communities, thereby allowing their youth to engage in more types of activities. For example, non-urban youth mentioned using computers much more often than did urban youth, although some urban youth reported that they had access to computers at youth centers. Non-urban youth also reported that they were heavily involved in preparing for college and completing their college applications. Non-urban youth often used their homes as bases for activities, while urban youth used Boys and Girls Clubs or recreation centers. Urban youth and some non-urban ethnic minority youth reported spending free time at relatives' homes, indicating the importance of their ties to extended families.
- Site-specific examples --
Certain sites had rather striking profiles. In San Diego, youth of all ages mentioned that they had no place to go besides the Boys and Girls Club and the mall. Young people in Sioux City mentioned a number of activities but still complained that there was "no place for youth to hang out." At other sites, youth in both urban and non-urban groups mentioned no activities or places to go other than a friend's house or the movies, often saying, "There is nothing to do!" By contrast, urban Milwaukee 4th-6th graders described numerous activities-many of them church- or family-centered. San Diego non-urban 4th-6th graders explained that their free time was spent in activities within their extended families on both sides of the Mexico-U.S. border.
- Examples of ethnic differences -- It was not always possible to discern ethnicity (researchers did not ask participants to report their ethnicity), but some youth groups in Milwaukee consisted entirely of African Americans and some of the focus groups in San Diego consisted entirely of Hispanics. Variability in the way ethnic minority youth use their free time may be important and it is possible that the extended families of African Americans and Hispanics are providing a protective factor. It was striking that evidence of few activities or "nothing to do" came from focus group participants in predominantly white neighborhoods in sites such as Portland and Sioux City.
High school students had more opportunities and more constraints. They had greater freedom to initiate their own activities or spend time with their friends, and they often had cars for transportation. However, they often were very busy with part-time or summer jobs or community service work at hospitals or churches. As a result, they watched less television than younger youth. They also were involved in social relationships and attended clubs and parties. High school students also had to confront financial and transportation barriers as they planned their free time.
High school focus group participants at 15 sites (6 target sites and 9 comparison sites) indicated that either they or their friends had been involved with drugs, but it was rare for youth to say directly (i.e., without a probe about drugs) that their free time provided opportunities for drug use. When the Baltimore urban 10th-12th graders were listing their free-time activities, only one made a direct mention of drug involvement ("getting high"). Most of the drug use among high school students appeared to take place in private. Both middle school and high school students may have been discouraged from spending time at malls by anti-loitering laws or by curfews for those 17 years old and younger.
The few unprobed mentions of alcohol or drug use were mentioned when youth were discussing their attendance at parties. Some parties took place at the students' homes, when the parents were away or asleep. Some parties were held with the parents' tacit awareness. Other parties were held at clubs. At one site, non-urban 10th-12th graders reported that their parents allowed drug use and even purchased the alcohol for their parties. One urban high school focus group participant talked about parties where "some kids like to get high, go on drive-bys, and shoot at houses-rival gang houses." During a break in a non-urban middle school focus group, two boys laughed about "my hemp farm" and "my microbrewery," saying "it's a party everyday." But in most target and comparison sites, the youth concurred that attendance at parties had more to do with peer membership or interest groups than whether drugs would be available. While youth were aware that some parties had drugs and alcohol present, that was not the drawing card. "You hear about them, but don't go; I don't go because I don't know anyone there" (Sioux City urban 10th-12th grader).
Urban and non-urban differences in opportunities for drug use -- Non-urban youth cited opportunities for drinking and drug use at unsupervised parties or at parties where parents turned a blind eye, at "field parties," and at "parties in the woods." Non-urban parents and community members also mentioned such social events because they frequently were associated with accidental deaths due to drug or alcohol overdoses or to driving under the influence. Another venue for drug use among older youth was the "hotel party," which was mentioned mainly by non-urban high school students as an opportunity for unsupervised "partying" involving drugs and sex. An older-looking student or an older friend typically would obtain a hotel suite for the group's use.
The most common places for drug use by non-urban youth were friends' houses when parents were absent or unaware, parking lots, parks, skateboard parks, bike trails, and empty buildings. The most frequently mentioned place to use drugs was school-walking to and from school, the school parking lot, the school bus, school locker rooms, bathrooms and hallways, behind school buildings, in empty gymnasiums, or in other areas of the school. School athletic events also provided opportunities to buy and use drugs, even when parents and teachers were present.
Urban youth reported similar opportunities for drug use, with the exception of parties in fields or woods, with the streets and the neighborhood being mentioned most often. Inner-city African American youth were wary of parties at houses of people they did not know because they feared violence. Otherwise, urban youth mentioned the same venues as non-urban youth: friends' houses when parents were away, clubs, hotel rooms, neighborhood streets, parking lots, school parking lots, and the school building itself. The patterns that emerged for urban and non-urban youth were similar for both target and comparison sites.
Organized activities -- Several types of organized activities were reported across age groups and for both urban and non-urban areas: church activities; afterschool programs, including Boys and Girls Clubs, the YMCA, and community recreation centers; sports activities through schools or community programs; extracurricular school activities, such as clubs or cheerleading; and community service or volunteer activities. Some activities, such as sports or church activities were time-consuming because they required participation several times per week. There also were seasonal programs (such as Bible study classes) that occurred only during the summer. Jobs were mentioned in the context of free time, especially in urban areas where many older youth have full-time jobs; most of the jobs were occasional or part-time and were held by middle or high school students.
As with free time activities, organized activities showed differences by age group, urbanicity, SES, site-specific conditions, and availability of activities. Additionally, there were some ethnic differences in organized activities reported by African American and Hispanic youth.
- Age group -- Washington, D.C., high school students pointed out that most Boys and Girls Clubs and Police Athletic League programs were targeted to pre-teens and young adolescents. Hence, 15- to 17-year-olds were left with little to do. Urban high school students in Birmingham reported that they had the opportunity to become involved in civic improvement activities such as the Mayor's Youth Advisory Board or international student exchange programs.
- Urbanicity and SES -- Students from the inner-city areas pointed out that securing full-time employment in an urban area was important for supporting oneself, whereas non-urban youth were looking only for additional income. In more affluent areas (urban or non-urban), families had more resources and thus could afford to enroll their children in computer classes, gymnastics programs , or ballet, ice skating, music, or drama lessons.
- Ethnic group -- There was significant variation among ethnic groups across sites regarding the types of organized activities available to them. For example, African American high school students in Baltimore and Nashville mentioned jobs, and younger African American and Hispanic groups in Milwaukee, San Diego, and Phoenix organized their lives around attending church, Sunday school, and other church-related activities. There also were differences in geographic and economic contexts and the activities available at particular sites. For example, downhill and cross-country skiing were common in Duluth, fishing was popular in Eugene and, in rural Iowa, middle school students often were expected to work on their family's farm.
Organized activities as opportunities for drug use -- The reason for asking youth to describe their organized activities was to learn if these activities offered protective factors or opportunities for drug use. A common presumption is that organized activities would serve as protective factors for youth (e.g., keeping them supervised or too busy to begin experimenting with drugs). Many focus group participants indeed reported that involvement in organized activities protected them from using drugs or other illicit activities, and they valued such activities for this reason. Students in several urban sites, including Washington, D.C., complained that there were not enough positive structured activities available.
Other high school and middle school students had mixed views about the protective quality of organized activities, and they mentioned that often there is a relationship between participation in sports and drug use. Middle school students in non-urban Baltimore and urban Portland focus groups recognized that if a student was caught using drugs or drinking he or she would be dismissed from the the sports team. Being on an organized team also encouraged students to get good grades. However, non-urban Baltimore middle school students reported that the team parties held after games were a major source of peer pressure for abusing alcohol. Non-urban youth at other sites noted that drugs were available at organized sporting events, and they were aware that some good athletes used drugs and might not be punished if they got caught.
One urban high school student explained that the idea of keeping young people out of trouble through organized activities really depended on the person. He said, "If a person wants to get in trouble, he will find time and do it anyway, despite how busy he is." This theme was reported as well by middle school students who pointed out that the types of activities youth are involved in also depended on who their friends were, where they lived, the kind of parents they had, and how much they enjoyed their home life.
Only one young person in a non-urban high school focus group specifically mentioned personal drug use through an organized activity, such as a youth group, where drugs and alcohol were present. As this youth described it, "...it's fun. I mean there's nothing wrong with it." In many other focus groups, high school students mentioned that organized sports provided opportunities for using drugs, either before or after practice, at games, or during travel to competitions. For example, high school athletes who participated in the urban and non-urban focus groups at one site indicated that their being involved in structured sports activities gave them easy access to drugs. They consistently reported that in an athletic or team setting, drug use was seen as a necessary part of belonging to the group.
In summary, youth in all sites reported that organized activities served as a protective outlet for some, but some activities, such as competitive team sports, also presented opportunities for buying and using drugs. Group activities for which there is peer pressure for membership and acceptance may provide some youth (who might otherwise not come across drugs) with access to drugs and alcohol. Jerry-Szpak and Brown (1994), researchers at the Department of Behavioral Studies at the University of Missouri, have reported the incidence of alcohol use among youth who participated in structured athletics.
Peer group attitudes, norms, and behaviors related to drug use -- The following sections analyze youth's statements about their own attitudes, norms, and behaviors regarding drug use.
- Attitudes and norms --
It is not possible to make a rigid distinction between attitudes and norms related to drugs. Youths' attitudes generally related to the availability and early use of drugs and to types of drugs; their normative statements cluster around the issues of why young people start using drugs, why they do so despite awareness of the dangers, and what makes it possible for them to resist drugs.
Many students conveyed the attitude that drugs are common and that drug use starts early. For example, non-urban high school students at one site said that drugs were everywhere-at school, at parties, at social events and, for some, at home. Across target and comparison sites, middle school and high school students talked about the easy accessibility of alcohol and drugs. In 15 of the sites (6 target sites), focus group participants said that either they or their friends had used drugs. The most commonly mentioned drugs were alcohol and marijuana. Middle school students at one site reported they had easy access to prescription drugs, tranquilizers, and painkillers, and non-urban middle school students in another site indicated they used Ritalin without a prescription. Middle school students said that drug use begins early, by the fifth or sixth grade. Non-urban middle school students in focus groups at a few of the sites mentioned that students often talk to one another about drugs-about the specific drugs they should try and their effects. Mention was made of "druggie" and "non-druggie" crowds.
- Youth views on drugs -- In one site, 4th-6th grade students expressed strong opinions against food stores selling tobacco products. Some youth wanted to see more smoke-free zones, and they recommended that parents not smoke in the presence of their children. Non-urban middle school students at another site were angry that youth under 21 were allowed entry into local bars, even though they cannot purchase alcohol. Marijuana was the one drug for which students, particularly high-school-age students, consistently expressed their views. Some felt that it was not as harmful and was more acceptable than other drugs. They said they liked it because it was accessible, cheap, and transportable; it was easier to cover up its use or effects; and it helped them to focus and to relax. For example, one high school student said, "Smoking pot is a different kind of intoxication [compared to alcohol or other drugs]. I'm safer when I drive [a car] high than when I'm sober. I mean I am actually more focused. I mean more than I normally would be."
- Reasons for use --
Youth in the Atlanta urban 10th-12th grade group offered the following reasons for young people starting to use drugs: "they think it's cool," "they don't care about anybody," "they see what people on the street have, and they want the money to buy that," and "kids look up to people who sell drugs." Youth from focus groups conducted at other sites gave the following reasons: to be different from their parents who were seen as "too good"; to be like other members of a sports team (urban 10th-12th graders); because they see friends do it and want to try; out of curiosity; to feel good, and to relieve stress (urban 10th-12th graders); "only a little, every day, to keep calm-not to get crazy" (urban 10th-12th graders); and because it "looked cool and everyone in my family smoked [cigarettes], except my mother; she grounded me" (non-urban 4th-6th grader). Other reasons for using drugs were that there was "nothing else to do" or that drug use "makes everything, even the ordinary things, seem fun."
Some students perceived that the way children were raised or the environment they were raised in offer explanations for drug use. Many young people believed that society's values have changed since their parents were raised (e.g., they perceived that people no longer care about or show respect to one another). They also felt that youth lack role models. Some students reported that attitudes about drugs and violence have worsened in the past 5 years and cited examples of people using drugs "right out on the street."
Peer pressure often was cited by high school and middle school students as the reason for drug use. A Portland high school youth said, "They think bad things will happen to other kids, not themselves. Kids want to be cool and fit in, no matter what the risk." An urban high school student in another site said that it was a status symbol to have the smell of drugs on one's clothing, that it resulted in peer approval. However, a middle school student from another site reported that more youth claim to use drugs than actually do because they are trying "to be cool." An urban high school student spoke against peer pressure as a reason for drug use, stating "it's basically a mind thing. People do what they want. It has more to do with what they want to do themselves than with what other people say."
- Dangers of drug use --
Youth of all age groups in both target and comparison sites were fully aware of the dangers of drug use. One of the youngest groups offered a page-long list of dangers (San Diego non-urban 4th-6th graders). Middle school students in other sites recognized that drug use can kill brain cells, ruin one's ability to participate in sports, and lead to patterns of addiction and stealing. Youth also cited tragedies that resulted from drug use, such as deaths in car crashes. However, one urban high school student perceived that youth of all ages lack awareness about the consequences of drug use and alternative ways to ease stress and pain.
Youth offered several reasons why `some people' (never themselves) use drugs despite the risks: "they try it once, suffer no consequences, and then think it can't hurt" (San Diego urban 7th-9th graders) and, because "it [severe consequence of drug use] doesn't happen to everyone, they think it can't happen to them." They think, "I am invincible-bad things won't happen to me."
- Why some do not use drugs -- At one site 10th-12th grade students offered several reasons why some youth do not use drugs: they're smart; they could get in big trouble with their parents; and they see other youth on drugs doing "really stupid stuff." Students at several sites said that interest in participating in sports keeps some students from using drugs. One member of an urban 7th-9th grade group admitted that he would like to receive what he sees as a positive consequence of using drugs: "I want the attention-but I have a chance to be somebody [so I don't use drugs]."
- The role of stress in drug use -- High school focus group participants were asked questions that revolved around sources of stress, coping strategies, and connections between stress and drug use. Young people disagreed on whether stress leads to drug use: some said `no' quite adamantly, and several thought it could lead to smoking if not to other drug use. Some youth said stress led others to "smoke weed" or drink. And some said openly that alcohol, tobacco, and drugs help some youth to cope with the stress in their lives.
- Drug-related behaviors -- Youth who reported drug-related behaviors typically referred to people other than themselves-schoolmates, people in their neighborhood, cousins, "crackheads at school," and "everybody." Members of only one of the sampled groups self-referenced their own behavior: an urban 10th-12th grade focus group talked about the football team on which they played "getting bombed" and the coaches knew about it; the band members behaved similarly; students learned to "hot knife," and they made "pot brownies" in a class on food preparation. Apart from observing drug use, youth from many focus groups reported seeing the associated behaviors and consequences: people being incarcerated; students being killed in alcohol- and drug-related auto accidents; youth being paralyzed from a cocaine mixture heated too high; youth shooting someone with a gun while under the influence of drugs; bringing weapons to school; and selling drugs in school. Reports of these behaviors came from all age groups, in both urban and non-urban focus groups, across target and comparison sites. However, there are regional and city differences; a student in a non-urban 10th-12th grade focus group said he had moved from a certain location in Florida and had never heard of drug use there. "Here," he said, "it's everywhere-people smoking weed. It's horrible."
Students in middle and high schools in some of the Southwestern sites described a gang culture characterized by violence and drugs. There is pressure to join these gangs "to be cool and to have people to help in a fight." Middle school students at one site talked, with an air of resignation, about being "jumped" --
implying that being physically assaulted in school was just one of the things that they had to live with.
An urban middle school student noted that students could bring guns into the school at any time because the metal detectors were not in use. He believed that some students view carrying a weapon as necessary to protect them against unwanted pressure to use or sell drugs or to be involved in other illegal activities.
Some middle school students were concerned about the transition to high school because of the peer pressure and gang activity they would have to face. Some Milwaukee middle school students described being truant or "ditching." Although students enrolled in classes, they did not always attend school. Instead, some of them loiter on the streets or in the neighborhoods smoke marijuana, or simply go home.
Behaviors that were more risky also were mentioned: high school students in one site reported that many young people they know smoke marijuana and drive, knowing that if they get stopped by the police they will have to pass only an alcohol sobriety test, not a drug test. Non-urban high school students at another site said, "Driving drunk is big," meaning that teenagers frequently drive while intoxicated. Although there is police deterrence, "this does not stop the drinking and driving."
