Serving Substance Abuse Professionals Since 1993

Last Update: 08.09.11

C O R K O N L I N E

powerpoint presentations
CORK database search
resource materials
bibliographies
clinical tools
user services
newsletters
about cork
home

CORK Bibliography: Parenting

70 citations. October 2010 to present

Prepared: September 2011

Ager RD; Parquet R. Public housing residents making their courtyard safe from drugs. Journal of Social Work Practice in the Addictions 8(1): 95-115, 2009

This pilot study examines how children and their caretakers who live in public housing experience and manage drug activities that surround them. Consistent with social disorganization/collective efficacy models and defensible space theory, findings from 2 focus groups suggest that monitoring children, shared values about parenting, and screening strangers entering the community helped residents establish a safe environment with healthy principles. Residents insulated their courtyard neighborhood from outside public housing residents, presumably to minimize competition over resources and restrict what they see as negative influences. Social work community practitioners need to tap into the collective efficacy of these vital neighborhoods to help the broader public housing community.

Alio AP; Salihu HM; Kornosky JL; Richman AM; Marty PJ. Feto-infant health and survival: Does paternal involvement matter? Maternal and Child Health Journal 14(6): 931-937, 2010. (39 refs.)

Lack of paternal involvement during pregnancy and infancy may account for a significant burden of the adverse pregnancy outcomes among black women and could therefore, represent an important avenue providing the opportunity to improve feto-infant health and survival. This study aimed to review the literature on paternal involvement during the perinatal period and its influence on feto-infant health and survival. Literature for this review was identified by searching the PubMed database from the National Center for Biotechnology Information at the US National Library of Medicine as well as the ISI Web of Knowledge Databases, OVID, and CINAHL. A total of seven papers were identified and included in this review. There is paucity of data in this domain. Overall findings suggest that paternal involvement during pregnancy may have important implications for maternal prenatal health behaviors and feto-infant health. Although results are limited, results suggest that paternal involvement has a positive influence on prenatal care usage, abstinence from alcohol and smoking, and a reduction in low birth weight and small for gestational age infants. None of the papers examined the relationship between stillbirth and paternal involvement. Additional studies with enhanced measures of paternal involvement are needed to better assess the role of fathers in enhancing prenatal health behaviors and pregnancy outcomes. Efforts should be made to include fathers in future studies and reduce reliance on maternal report and to investigate paternal roles across different racial groups so that appropriate interventions can be developed.

Appleyard K; Berlin LJ; Rosanbalm KD; Dodge KA. Preventing early child maltreatment: Implications from a longitudinal study of maternal abuse history, substance use problems, and offspring victimization. Prevention Science 12(2): 139-149, 2011. (51 refs.)

In the interest of improving child maltreatment prevention science, this longitudinal, community based study of 499 mothers and their infants tested the hypothesis that mothers' childhood history of maltreatment would predict maternal substance use problems, which in turn would predict offspring victimization. Mothers (35% White/non-Latina, 34% Black/non-Latina, 23% Latina, 7% other) were recruited and interviewed during pregnancy, and child protective services records were reviewed for the presence of the participants' target infants between birth and age 26 months. Mediating pathways were examined through structural equation modeling and tested using the products of the coefficients approach. The mediated pathway from maternal history of sexual abuse to substance use problems to offspring victimization was significant (standardized mediated path [ab] = .07, 95% CI [.02, .14]; effect size = .26), as was the mediated pathway from maternal history of physical abuse to substance use problems to offspring victimization (standardized mediated path [ab] = .05, 95% CI [.01, .11]; effect size = .19). There was no significant mediated pathway from maternal history of neglect. Findings are discussed in terms of specific implications for child maltreatment prevention, including the importance of assessment and early intervention for maternal history of maltreatment and substance use problems, targeting women with maltreatment histories for substance use services, and integrating child welfare and parenting programs with substance use treatment.

Arpawong TE; Sun P; Chang MCC; Gallaher P; Pang ZC; Guo QA et al. Family and personal protective factors moderate the effects of adversity and negative disposition on smoking among Chinese adolescents. Substance Use & Misuse 45(9): 1367-1389, 2010. (60 refs.)

Tobacco use among Chinese adolescents is increasing at approximately 80,000 new smokers per day. Assessing the causes for initiating tobacco use in China will be important in developing effective interventions and policies to stem rising prevalence rates. This study tested predictors of Resilience Theory in a sample of 602 Chinese adolescents. Results revealed that prior adversity, measured through school and family-related events, was significantly associated with increased smoking in females. Family factors (i.e., family cohesion, family adaptability, parental monitoring) and one personal factor (i.e., academic score) were associated with lower odds for smoking due to prior adversity and negative disposition.

Becerra D; Castillo J. Culturally protective parenting practices against substance use among adolescents in Mexico. Journal of Substance Use 16(2): 136-149, 2011. (59 refs.)

The results of this study indicated that parental support and parental monitoring were significant predictors of lower lifetime and recent substance use for males and females. Parental support significantly predicted lower lifetime and recent cigarette use among males and lower recent marijuana use among females. Parental monitoring, however, was a stronger predictor of lower recent alcohol, cigarette and marijuana use among adolescent females in the study. Because substance use in Mexico tends to be higher in cities that border the United States, understanding protective factors against adolescent substance use is important in the development of culturally appropriate substance abuse prevention programmes in Mexico. Implications for research and practice are discussed.

Benchaya MC; Bisch NK; Moreira TC; Ferigolo M; Barros HMT. Non-authoritative parents and impact on drug use: The perception of adolescent children. Jornal de Pediatria 87(3): 238-244, 2011. (29 refs.)

Objective: To evaluate the association between drug use and parenting styles perceived by Brazilian adolescent children. Methods: This cross-sectional study enrolled adolescents aged 14 to 19 years that used the Servico Nacional de Orientacoes e Informacoes sobre a Prevencao do Uso Indevido de Drogas (VIVAVOZ). A total of 232 adolescents participated in the study. Phone interviews were conducted using the Parental Responsiveness and Demandingness Scale, which classifies maternal and paternal styles perceived by adolescent children as authoritative, neglectful, indulgent or authoritarian. Sociodemographic variables were collected and an instrument was used to assess monthly drug use and abuse. Results: Maternal and paternal parenting styles perceived as neglectful, indulgent or authoritarian (non-authoritative) were significantly associated with drug use (odds ratio [OR] = 2.8; 95% confidence interval [95%CI], 1.3-5.7 for mothers and OR = 2.8; 95%CI, 1.3-6.3 for fathers). Non-authoritative styles also had a significant association with tobacco use in the previous month in the analysis of maternal (OR = 2.7; 95%CI, 1.2-6.5) and paternal (OR = 3.9; 95%CI, 1.4-10.7) styles, and use of cocaine/crack in the previous month (OR = 3.9; 95%CI, 1.1-13.8) and abuse of any drug (OR = 2.2; 95%CI, 1.0-5.1) only for the paternal style. Logistic regression revealed that maternal style (OR = 3.3; 95%CI, 1.1-9.8), adolescent sex (OR = 3.2; 95%CI, 1.5-7.2) and age (OR = 2.8; 95%CI, 1.2-6.2) were associated with drug use. Conclusions: Adolescents that perceived their mothers as non-authoritative had greater chances of using drugs. There was a strong association between non-authoritative paternal styles and adolescent drug abuse.

Bergh D; Hagquist C; Starrin B. Parental monitoring, peer activities and alcohol use: A study based on data on Swedish adolescents. Drugs: Education, Prevention and Policy 18(2): 100-107, 2011. (31 refs.)

Aim: This study investigates the association between two types of social relations during leisure time (to parents and peers) and the frequency of alcohol use among Swedish adolescents, taking possible interaction effects into account. Methods: The data were collected during the 1995-2005 time period by using a questionnaire handed out in the class room. The study includes about 10,000 Swedish adolescents aged 15-16 years. Results: The results show that there are strong associations between the social relations adolescents have during leisure time (both to parents and peers) and the frequency of alcohol use. High levels of peer activity were associated with higher frequencies of alcohol use. Although the effects of relations with parents were modified by peer activity frequencies, high levels of parental monitoring were significantly associated with lower frequencies of alcohol use, regardless of the peer activity frequencies. Conclusions: Parental monitoring is an efficient way to prevent or reduce adolescents' alcohol use, although its importance may vary due to peer activity frequency.

Branstetter SA; Low S; Furman W. The influence of parents and friends on adolescent substance use: A multidimensional approach. Journal of Substance Use 16(2): 150-160, 2011. (31 refs.)

Objective: The current study examined longitudinal associations between friend's substance use, friendship quality, parent-adolescent relationship quality, and subsequent substance use among an adult population. Design: Participants were 166 adolescents, their parents, and their close same-sex friends recruited from both urban and suburban high schools surrounding a large metropolitan area. Measures of relationship characteristics in the10th grade were used to predict concurrent substance use and changes in substance use over a 1-year period. Results: The most consistent predictor of the use of different substances and changes in substance use over time was the friend's substance-using behavior. Negative interpersonal interactions with a friend were related only to tobacco use, and friendship support neither contributed to nor protected against substance use. Mother-adolescent relationship support was associated with lower levels of concurrent substance use, as well as lower levels of hard drug use over time. Conclusions: Findings highlight the need to examine parents and peers simultaneously and the importance of parental relationships and peer behavior on adolescent substance use. Limitations and future directions are discussed.

Cartmell KB; Miner C; Carpenter MJ; Vitoc CS; Biggers S; Onicescu G et al. Secondhand smoke exposure in young people and parental rules against smoking at home and in the car. Public Health Reports 126(4): 575-582, 2011. (24 refs.)

Objectives. Secondhand smoke (SHS) exposure is an important cause of morbidity in children. We assessed the impact of family rules about smoking in the home and car on SHS exposure prevalence in students in grades six to 12. Methods. We studied never-smoking young people (n=1,698) in the random sample cross-sectional South Carolina Youth Tobacco Survey, a 2006 survey of middle and high school students in South Carolina. Results. Overall, 40% of the students reported SHS exposure in either the home or car in the past week; among these, 85% reported exposure in cars. Subsequent analyses focused on students who lived with a smoker (n=602). Compared with those whose families prohibited smoking in the home or car, SHS exposure prevalence was 30% (p<0.0001) higher for households with smoke-free rules for only one place (home or car) and 36% (p<0.0001) higher for households with no rules. Compared with students from households with strict rules, SHS exposure prevalence was 48% greater (p<0.0001) among those with only partial rules against smoking in the home or car, and 55% (p<0.0001) greater among those from households with no rules. Similarly, compared with students with strict family rules for home and car that were adhered to, SHS exposure prevalence was significantly higher (p<0.0001) among students when only one or no rules were followed. Conclusions. Young people from families that made and enforced strong rules against smoking in homes and cars were much less likely to report SHS exposure. Parents would be wise to endorse and enforce strong smoke-free policies for both homes and cars.

Cheng HG; Huang YQ; Anthony JC. Childhood physical punishment and later alcohol drinking consequences: Evidence from a Chinese context. Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs 72(1): 24-33, 2011. (78 refs.)

Objective: The aim of the current study is to estimate a link between early physical punishment in childhood and later alcohol outcomes, taking family history of drinking problems into account, with epidemiological data from China. The yield from previous studies on this relationship is mixed evidence, largely traceable to research design variations, including model specifications that concern parental alcohol or other drug problems (AODPs) that might account for both earlier discipline practices and later drinking problems in the offspring. Method: Data are from the World Mental Health Surveys metropolitan China study, with cross-sectional representative sample surveys of adult household residents living in two metropolitan cities, Beijing and Shanghai. Participants in this general mental health survey were asked about early life experiences (e.g., parental AODP, childhood misbehavior), as well as their own drinking outcomes. Stratification was used to control for parental AODP. Results: Logistic regressions found robust associations linking childhood physical punishment with drinking outcomes, even with stratification for parental AODP and childhood misbehavior. Conclusions: These results from a cross-sectional survey lay a foundation for future prospective and longitudinal research on possible causal relationships that link childhood physical punishment with later drinking outcomes in China.

Creemers HE; Harakeh Z; Dick DM; Meyers J; Vollebergh WAM; Ormel J et al. DRD2 and DRD4 in relation to regular alcohol and cannabis use among adolescents: Does parenting modify the impact of genetic vulnerability? The TRAILS study. Drug and Alcohol Dependence 115(1-2): 35- 42, 2011. (70 refs.)

Aims: The aims of the present study were to determine the direct effect of DRD2 and DRD4, as well as their interaction with parenting (i.e. rejection, overprotection and emotional warmth), on the development of regular alcohol and cannabis use in 1192 Dutch adolescents from the general population. Methods: Information was obtained by self-report questionnaires. Perceived rejection, overprotection and emotional warmth were assessed at age 10-12. Regular alcohol and cannabis use were determined at age 15-18 and defined as the consumption of alcohol on 10 or more occasions in the past four weeks, and the use of cannabis on 4 or more occasions in the past four weeks. Models were adjusted for age, sex, parental alcohol or cannabis use, and externalizing behavior. Results: Carrying the A1 allele of the DRD2 TaqIA polymorphism, or the 7 repeat DRD4, was not directly related to regular alcohol or cannabis use. In addition, adolescent carriers of these genetic risk markers were not more susceptible to the influence of less optimal parenting. Main effects for parenting indicated that overprotection increased the risk of regular alcohol use, whereas the risk of cannabis use was enhanced by parental rejection and buffered by emotional warmth. Conclusions: Our findings do not support an association between DRD2/DRD4 and regular alcohol and cannabis use in adolescents. Given the substance-specific influences of rejection, overprotection and emotional warmth, these parenting factors might be promising candidates for prevention work.

Danielsson AK; Romelsjo A; Tengstrom A. Heavy episodic drinking in early adolescence: Gender-specific risk and protective factors. Substance Use & Misuse 46(5): 633-643, 2011. (54 refs.)

This longitudinal study examined possible gender differences regarding risk and protective factors for heavy episodic drinking among 1,222 seventh-grade students (aged 13) in the City of Stockholm, Sweden, with follow-up 2 years later. Logistic regression analyses showed that several factors predicted heavy episodic drinking. The strongest predictors for boys' heavy episodic drinking in the ninth grade were heavy episodic drinking (odds ratio [OR] = 5.30) and smoking in the seventh grade (OR = 5.80). Drinking peers (OR = 2.47) and smoking (OR = 2.44) in the seventh grade showed the strongest association for girls. Furthermore, high parental monitoring and having a secure attachment to parents may have a protective effect when risk factors are present. Our results lend support to prevention initiatives to strengthen the parent-child relation and focus on adolescents' ability to resist peer pressure and of limiting parental provision of alcohol. The study's limitations are noted.

De Haan L; Boljevac T; Schaefer K. Rural community characteristics, economic hardship, and peer and parental influences in early adolescent alcohol use. Journal of Early Adolescence 30(5): 629-650, 2010. (51 refs.)

The study explores how differences in rural community contexts relate to early adolescent alcohol use. Data were gathered from 1,424 adolescents in the sixth through eighth grades in 22 rural Northern Plains communities, as well as 790 adults, parents, teachers, and community leaders. Multilevel modeling analyses revealed that community supportiveness, as perceived by adolescents, but not adults, was associated with less lifetime and past month alcohol use, and for past month use, this relationship was stronger than perceived peer drinking or parental closeness. Perceived peer drinking and parental closeness were not associated with past month use. Adolescents experiencing family economic strain did not report greater lifetime or past month use, but living in a disadvantaged community was associated with greater past month use. Relatively affluent adolescents reported greater past month use when living in a poor community than did poorer adolescents, highlighting relationship complexity between economic disadvantage and alcohol use.

De La Rosa M; Dillon FR; Ganapati NE; Rojas P; Pinto E; Prado G. Mother-daughter attachment and drug abuse among Latinas in the United States. Journal of Drug Issues 40(2): 379-404, 2010. (83 refs.)

Although the risks and protective processes influencing substance use behaviors of adult Latinos have been increasingly examined in the literature, substance abuse among adult Latinas remains a relatively understudied area. This study examined associations between mother-daughter attachment and substance abuse among 158 Latina mothers and their adult daughters (N = 316). Dyads of mothers and daughters were categorized into four groups: (a) mother/daughter both drug or alcohol abusers (Dyad 1), (b) mother abuser and daughter non-abuser (Dyad 2), (c) mother non-abuser and daughter abuser (Dyad 3), and (d) mother/daughter both non-abusers (Dyad 4). Dyad 1 participants reported lower levels of attachment to each other than all other types of dyads. Participants born in the U.S. reported more substance abuse than their non-U.S. born counterparts. Future longitudinal research is recommended to determine the presence of a mother-daughter attachment threshold that, if established early and maintained, may act as a protective mechanism against the intergenerational co-occurrence of substance abuse among adult Latinas.

de Leeuw R; Scholte R; Vermulst A; Engels R. The relation between smoking-specific parenting and smoking trajectories of adolescents: How are changes in parenting related to changes in smoking? Psychology & Health 25(8): 999-1021, 2010. (62 refs.)

In this study, we tested to what extent smoking-specific parenting and changes in parenting are related to adolescents' smoking trajectories. Data were used from a four-wave prospective study including 428 adolescents (aged M = 15.2; SD = 0.60). Latent Class Growth Analyses were conducted to identify trajectories. Multinomial Logistic Regression Analyses were executed to examine the relations between parenting and class membership. Longitudinal cross-lagged models were tested to examine causal predominance between parenting and smoking. Four trajectories were found, consisting of Non-smokers, Increasers, Stable smokers and Decreasers. Quality of parental smoking-specific communication was strongly related to the membership in different trajectories. Along with the cross-lagged associations demonstrating that the quality of communication was predominantly related to future smoking rather than vice versa, these findings indicate that parents who talked about smoking in a constructive and respectful manner were more likely to have non-smoking children. In contrast, parents who talked often about smoking-related issues and increased these discussions over time were more likely to have smoking children; cross-lagged associations indicated that these findings could be best explained by children changing their parents. Having a non-smoking agreement was related to a lower risk in becoming a regular smoker.

Decker SA; Flinn MV. Parenting styles and gender-linked drinking behaviors in Dominica. Ethos 39(2): 189- 210, 2011. (50 refs.)

We explored links among adult alcohol consumption, personality, and retrospective childhood relationships with parents using psychometric instruments adapted for use among Dominicans (n=58; 25 men and 33 women). Compared to women, men consumed more alcohol and cigarettes, reported lower behavioral inhibition, and lower maternal "caringness" (all p <.05). Results suggest that, with respect to drinking, parenting styles predispose opposite developmental trends for men and women. Women who recalled their mothers as more caring tended to have higher behavioral activation seeking (BAS) scores and also to drink more. For men BAS was negatively correlated with maternal caring, but did not significantly correlate with alcohol consumption. Women who recalled their fathers as more controlling tended to drink less (p=.026), but men who recalled their fathers as more controlling tended to drink more (p=.0002). Maternal controllingness was also positively associated with alcohol consumption in men (p=.002), but showed no association with drinking in women.

Eiden RD; Granger DA; Schuetze P; Veira Y. Child behavior problems among cocaine-exposed toddlers: Indirect and interactive effects. Development and Psychopathology 23(2): 539- 550, 2011. (71 refs.)

This study examined the role of maternal psychopathology and maternal warmth as mediators of the association between prenatal cocaine and other substance exposure and toddler behavior problems. It was also hypothesized that infant cortisol reactivity and environmental risk may moderate these associations. Participants were 220 caregiver-infant dyads (119 cocaine exposed, 101 not cocaine exposed; 49% boys). Mother-infant dyads were recruited at delivery with assessments at 4-8 weeks and 7, 13, and 18 months of child ages. Results yielded no direct associations between prenatal cocaine/other substance exposure and toddler behavior problems, but significant indirect associations between prenatal cigarette/alcohol exposure and toddler behavior problems at 18 months. With regard to moderation, results indicated an indirect association between prenatal cocaine exposure and toddler behavior problems via lower maternal warmth for children with higher, but not lower, cortisol reactivity at 7 months. Results suggest potential pathways to toddler behavior problems among children at high biological risk.

Fallu JS; Janosz M; Briere FN; Descheneaux A; Vitaro F; Tremblay RE. Preventing disruptive boys from becoming heavy substance users during adolescence: A longitudinal study of familial and peer-related protective factors. Addictive Behaviors 35(12): 1074-1082, 2010. (76 refs.)

Childhood disruptiveness is one of the most important antecedents of heavy substance use in adolescence, especially among boys. The first aim of the present study is to verify whether parental monitoring and friend conventionality protect disruptive boys from engaging in heavy substance-use in adolescence. The second purpose is to examine whether these protective effects are strengthened by attachment to parents or friends respectively. Finally, the third objective is to verify whether the expected protective effect of parental monitoring could be mediated through exposure to conventional friends. A sample of 1037 boys from low socioeconomic neighbourhoods was followed from childhood (age 6) to adolescence (age 15). Parent, teacher, and self-reported measures were used to measure disruptiveness, parental monitoring, family attachment, friend conventionality, and attachment to friends. Results suggest that parental monitoring and friends' conventionality mitigated the relationship between childhood disruptiveness and adolescence heavy substance use. Exposure to conventional friends further mediated the protective effect of parent monitoring. The postulated enhancement of attachment quality on the protective effect of parents or peer behaviors was not confirmed, but low attachment was related to heavier substance use in highly monitored disruptive boys. Parental monitoring, family attachment, and peer conventionality are factors amenable to intervention, and thus represent promising targets for future prevention strategies aimed at-risk boys. Our results underscore the importance of simultaneously addressing the behavioral and the affective dimensions in interventions with parents.

Fang L; Schinke SP; Cole KCA. Preventing substance use among early Asian-American adolescent girls: Initial evaluation of a web-based, mother-daughter program. Journal of Adolescent Health 47(5): 529-532, 2010. (10 refs.)

Purpose: This study examined the efficacy and generalizability of a family-oriented, web-based substance use prevention program to young Asian-American adolescent girls. Methods: Between September and December 2007, a total of 108 Asian-American girls aged 10-14 years and their mothers were recruited through online advertisements and from community service agencies. Mother-daughter dyads were randomly assigned to an intervention arm or to a test-only control arm. After pretest measurement, intervention-arm dyads completed a 9-session web-based substance use prevention program. Guided by family interaction theory, the program aimed to improve girls' psychological states, strengthen substance use prevention skills, increase mother-daughter interactions, enhance maternal monitoring, and prevent girls' substance use. Study outcomes were assessed using generalized estimating equations. Results: At posttest, relative to control-arm girls, intervention-arm girls showed less depressed mood; reported improved self-efficacy and refusal skills; had higher levels of mother-daughter closeness, mother-daughter communication, and maternal monitoring; and reported more family rules against substance use. Intervention-arm girls also reported fewer instances of alcohol, marijuana, and illicit prescription drug use, and expressed lower intentions to use substances in the future. Conclusions: A family-oriented, web-based substance use prevention program was efficacious in preventing substance use behavior among early Asian-American adolescent girls.

Fasting MH; Nilsen TIL; Holmen TL; Vik T. Changes in parental weight and smoking habits and offspring adiposity: Data from the HUNT-study. International Journal of Pediatric Obesity 6(2-2): E399-E407, 2011. (38 refs.)

Objective. Adverse parental life-style habits are associated with offspring adiposity, but it is unclear how changes in these habits affect offspring adiposity. Thus, the aim of this study was to assess how parental change in body weight, smoking habits and levels of physical activity were associated with adiposity in their children. Methods. The study population consisted of 3 681 adolescents and their parents from the Nord-Trondelag-Health-Study (HUNT). The parents participated in the two first waves of HUNT (HUNT-1: 1984-86, HUNT-2: 1995-97), where information on anthropometry, smoking habits and physical activity were obtained. The adolescents participated in the Youth-Part of HUNT-2. We used logistic regression to calculate odds-ratios (ORs) for adolescent offspring overweight according to parental change in body-weight, smoking habits and physical activity, adjusting for these factors in both parents, as well as for socioeconomic status and adolescent age and sex. Results. Children of parents who changed weight from normal weight to overweight from HUNT-1 to HUNT-2 had higher OR for overweight in adolescence than children of parents who remained normal weight (mothers: 1.9 [95% CI: 1.4,2.5], fathers: 2.2 [95% CI: 1.5,3.0]). Children of mothers who reduced their weight from overweight to normal weight had no higher OR for overweight in adolescence than mothers who remained normal weight (OR: 1.0; 95% CI: 0.2, 4.7). Children of mothers who quit smoking (OR: 0.5; 95% CI: 0.3, 0.8) had lower OR for overweight in adolescence than children of mothers who persisted in smoking. Conclusions. Healthy changes in parental life-style during childhood are associated with lower occurrence of offspring overweight in adolescence.

Green AE; Bekman NM; Miller EA; Perrott JA; Brown SA; Aarons GA. Parental awareness of substance use among youths in public service sectors. Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs 72(1): 44-52, 2011. (41 refs.)

Objective: When asked about substance use, youths typically endorse higher levels of use than parents, suggesting that parents are often unaware of their child's drug and alcohol use. This study sought to examine the level of concordance between reports of youths enrolled in public sectors of care and their parents, and identify potential predictors of parental awareness of substance use and related problems. Method: Youths receiving services in one or more public sectors of care (N = 985; 67% male) and their parents were interviewed about the youths' substance use and substance use problems, as well as associated demographic, parental, and youth factors. Results: As has been found in other studies, youths generally reported higher rates of substance use and substance use problems compared with parents. Rates of agreement ranged from kappa = .24 (sedatives) to kappa = .67 (marijuana) and were higher for drug problems (kappa = .47) than for alcohol problems (kappa = .34). Predictors of parental awareness of drug problems included youth gender (male), race (White compared with Hispanic), and higher ratings of youth's functional impairment. Predictors of parental awareness of alcohol problems included race (White compared with Hispanic), lower levels of youth-reported parental monitoring, lower levels of parental depression, and higher ratings of youth functional impairment. Conclusions: In this high-risk population, a significant proportion of parents are unaware of their child's alcohol (30%) and substance use (50%) problems. Services geared toward enhancing parental awareness, especially for parents of Hispanic and female youths, may increase communication and treatment seeking.

Guilamo-Ramos V; Jaccard J; Dittus P; Gonzalez B; Bouris A; Banspach S. The Linking Lives Health Education Program: A randomized clinical trial of a parent-based tobacco use prevention program for African American and Latino youths. American Journal of Public Health 100(9): 1641-1647, 2010. (29 refs.)

Objectives. We evaluated the effectiveness of a parent-based add-on component to a school-based intervention to prevent cigarette smoking among African American and Latino middle school youths. Methods. Mother-adolescent dyads (n=1386) were randomly assigned to 2 groups: (1) a school-based smoking-prevention intervention or (2) the same intervention with a parent-based add-on component called Raising Smoke-Free Kids. Mothers in the experimental condition received the parent add-on component. Mothers in the control condition received information on selecting a high school. All adolescents received a version of Project Towards No Tobacco Use (TNT). The primary outcome was a reduction in adolescent cigarette smoking. Follow-up data were obtained from 1096 mother-adolescent dyads at 15 months postintervention. Results. At follow-up, the odds of smoking cigarettes were reduced by 42% for adolescents in the parent add-on condition versus the TNT-only condition. Mothers in the parent add-on condition were more likely than were mothers in the TNT-only condition to set rules about risk-sensitive social activities and to be perceived as trustworthy by their child. Group differences also were found in the frequency and quality of mother-adolescent communication. Conclusions. Including parent add-on components in school-based smoking prevention programs can reduce smoking behavior on the part of inner-city middle school youths.

Guo H; Reeder AI; McGee R; Darling H. Adolescents' leisure activities, parental monitoring and cigarette smoking: A cross-sectional study. Substance Abuse Treatment, Prevention and Policy 6(e-article 12), 2011. (30 refs.)

Background: Adolescent participation in leisure activities is developmentally beneficial, but certain activities may increase health compromising behaviours, such as tobacco smoking. A limited range of leisure activities has been studied, with little research on out-of-school settings where parental supervision is a potential protective factor. Tobacco smoking is an important, potentially modifiable health determinant, so understanding associations between adolescent leisure activities, parental monitoring, demographic factors and daily smoking may inform preventive strategies. These associations are reported for a New Zealand adolescent sample. Methods: Randomly selected schools (n = 145) participated in the 2006 Youth In-depth Survey, a national, biennial study of Year 10 students (predominantly 14-15 years). School classes were randomly selected and students completed a self-report questionnaire in class time. Adjustment for clustering at the school level was included in all analyses. Since parental monitoring and demographic variables potentially confound relations between adolescent leisure activities and smoking, variables were screened before multivariable modelling. Given prior indications of demographic differences, gender and ethnic specific regression models were built. Results. and Discussion: Overall, 8.5% of the 3,161 students were daily smokers, including more females (10.5%) than males (6.5%). In gender and ethnic specific multivariate analysis of associations with daily smoking (adjusted for age, school socioeconomic decile rating, leisure activities and ethnicity or gender, respectively), parental monitoring exhibited a consistently protective, dose response effect, although less strongly among Maori. Attending a place of worship and going to the movies were protective for non-Maori, as was watching sports, whereas playing team sport was protective for all, except males. Attending a skate park was a risk factor for females and Maori which demonstrated a strong dose response effect. Conclusions: There were significant differences in the risk of daily smoking across leisure activities by gender and ethnicity. This reinforces the need to be alert for, and respond to, gender and ethnic differences in the pattern of risk and protective factors. However, given the consistently protective, dose response effect of parental monitoring, our findings confirm that assisting oversight of adolescent leisure activities may be a key component in public health policy and prevention programmes.

Herbert RJ; Gagnon AJ; O'Loughlin JL; Rennick JE. Testing an empowerment intervention to help parents make homes smoke-free: A randomized controlled trial. Journal of Community Health 36(4): 650-657, 2011. (54 refs.)

The objective of this randomized controlled trial was to test if parents' participation in an intervention based on an empowerment ideology and participatory experiences decreased the number of cigarettes smoked in homes. Sixty families were randomized to the intervention (n = 30) or control (n = 30) group. The intervention included three weekly group sessions followed by three weekly follow-up telephone calls over six consecutive weeks. During group sessions, parents shared experiences about environmental tobacco smoke, identified personal strengths and resources, and developed action plans. Data were collected in interviewer-administered questionnaires at baseline and 6 months follow-up. Ninety-three percent of the sample consisted of mothers, 77% of whom smoked during pregnancy. Forty-two percent of the total sample reported a household income of <$15,000. The median number of cigarettes smoked in the home daily decreased from 18 to 4 in the total sample however no statistically significant difference was detected between groups at 6 months follow-up. Participation in the study, independent of group, may have resulted in parents decreasing the number of cigarettes smoked in the home. Valuable lessons were learned about recruiting and working with this group of parents, all of whom faced the challenges of tobacco and almost half of whom lived in poverty.

Huang XQ; Zhang HM; Li MC; Wang JA; Zhang Y; Tao R. Mental health, personality, and parental rearing styles of adolescents with internet addiction disorder. Cyberpsychology, Behavior and Social Networking 13(4): 401-406, 2010. (38 refs.)

The objectives of this study were to compare the personality profiles of adolescent males with and without Internet addiction disorder (IAD), and to determine if IAD is associated with specific parental rearing behaviors. A total of 304 subjects (204 IAD positive and 100 IAD negative controls) completed three instruments: Symptom Checklist-90-revision (SCL-90-R), Eysenck Personality Questionnaire Revised (EPQ-R), and Egna Minnen av Barndoms Uppfostran-My Memories of Upbringing (EMBU). SCL-90-R profiles of adolescents with IAD revealed comparatively higher mean scores for all of the nine domains, and significantly higher scores for obsessive-compulsive, interpersonal sensitivity, depression, anxiety, hostility, and paranoid ideation; the mean global symptom index of adolescents with IAD was also significantly higher by approximately 10%. EPQ profiles of adolescents with IAD showed that Internet-dependent individuals tended to exhibit a significantly lower degree of extraversion and a significantly higher degree of psychoticism when compared with the control group. EMBU profiles revealed that adolescents with IAD generally rated both maternal and paternal rearing practices as lacking in emotional warmth, being over-involved, rejecting, and punitive (mothers only). The results of this study confirm that IAD often occurs concurrently with mental symptoms and personality traits such as introversion and psychoticism. Adolescents with IAD consistently rated parental rearing behaviors as being over-intrusive, punitive, and lacking in responsiveness. These findings suggest that the influences of parenting style and family function are important factors in the development of Internet dependency.

Iusitini L; Gao WZ; Sundborn G; Paterson J. Parenting practices among fathers of a cohort of Pacific infants in New Zealand. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology 42(1): 39-55, 2011. (63 refs.)

This study examined the nurturing and harsh disciplinary parenting practices of fathers of a cohort of Pacific children born in New Zealand. At the 12-month measurement point, 823 fathers completed a modified version of the Parent Behavior Checklist comprising 15 items, 10 forming a Nurturing subscale and 5 forming a Harsh Discipline subscale. Findings revealed that a majority of Pacific fathers never or rarely used harsh discipline with their 12-month-old child, and hitting with an object was extremely rare. Levels of nurturance were more mixed, with playing and praise being common, but provision and reading of books being relatively uncommon. Multivariate logistic regression showed that relatively low Nurturance scores were associated with cultural separation, lower formal education, and nonpartnered marital status. Relatively high Harsh Discipline scores were associated with partnered marital status, gambling, and harmful alcohol consumption. Relatively low Harsh Discipline scores were associated with Tongan ethnicity and cultural maintenance.

Kahn JA; Huang B; Ding LL; Geller A; Frazier AL. Impact of maternal communication about skin, cervical, and lung cancer prevention on adolescent prevention behaviors. Journal of Adolescent Health 49(1): 93-96, 2011. (10 refs.)

Purpose: To explore whether maternal communication about behaviors that prevent skin, cervical, and lung cancer is associated with adolescent cancer prevention behaviors. Methods: The study sample consisted of 10,409 girls and boys (14-21 years) who participated in a longitudinal survey study of U. S. adolescents. The independent variables were adolescent report of how often mothers had spoken with them (never, once, occasionally, sometimes, often) about sunscreen use, Pap screening, and quitting smoking. Outcome variables included adolescent self-report of sunscreen use, Pap screening, and quitting smoking (among past-year smokers). We used multivariate logistic regression models to determine whether maternal communication in 2001 was associated independently with the three adolescent cancer prevention behaviors in 2001 and 2003. Results: In adjusted logistic regression models, maternal communication about sunscreen use and Pap screening was positively associated with adolescent behaviors in 2001 and 2003, and maternal communication about quitting smoking was positively associated with adolescent behavior in 2001. Conclusions: In a national sample, maternal communication encouraging sunscreen use, Pap screening, and quitting smoking was associated with the corresponding behaviors in their adolescent children. The findings suggest that intergenerational interventions could enhance adolescent practice of cancer prevention behaviors.

Kelly AB; O'Flaherty M; Connor JP; Homel R; Toumbourou JW; Patton GC; Williams J. The influence of parents, siblings and peers on pre- and early-teen smoking: A multilevel model. Drug and Alcohol Review 30(4): 381-387, 2011. (45 refs.)

Introduction and Aims. Despite considerable success in tobacco control, many teenagers in Australia and other industrialised countries still smoke tobacco. There is mixed evidence on the relative influence of proximal social networks (parents/siblings/peers) on pre- and early-teen smoking, and no research has examined how these influences compare after accounting for school-and community-level effects. The aim of this study was to compare the relative influences of parents, siblings and peers, after accounting for school-and community-level variation in smoking. Design and Methods. A cross-sectional fixed and random effects model of smoking prevalence was used, with individuals (n = 7314) nested within schools (n = 231) nested within communities (n = 30). Grade 6 and 8 students (modal ages 11 and 13 years) completed an on-line survey. Key variables included parent/sibling/peer use. Controls included alcohol involvement, sensation seeking, pro-social beliefs, laws/norms about substance use and school commitment. Results. There was significant variation in smoking at both the school and community levels, supporting the need for a multilevel model. Individual-level predictors accounted for much of the variance at higher levels. The strongest effects were for number of friends who smoke, sibling smoking and alcohol involvement. Smaller significant effects were found for parent smoking. At the community level, socioeconomic disadvantage was significant, but community-level variance in pro-social and drug-related laws/norms was not related to smoking. Discussion and Conclusions. Cross-level interactions were generally non-significant. Early teenage smoking was best explained by sibling and peer smoking, and individual risks largely accounted for the substantial variation observed across schools and communities. In terms of future tobacco control, findings point to the utility of targeting families in disadvantaged communities.

Koning IM; van den Eijnden RJJM; Engels RCME; Verdurmen JEE; Vollebergh WAM. Why target early adolescents and parents in alcohol prevention? The mediating effects of self-control, rules and attitudes about alcohol use. Addiction 106(3): 538-546, 2011. (43 refs.)

Aims: To examine the effects of a parent and student intervention offered separately and simultaneously (PAS) on onset of weekly drinking via its putative mediators. Design: A randomized trial with four conditions; (1) parent intervention, (2) student intervention, (3) combined parent-student intervention and (4) control group. Setting: High schools selected randomly, located in different areas. Participants: A total of 2937 early adolescents (mean age = 12.6, standard deviation = 0.49) and their parents. Measurements: Mediation effects were analysed using pretest data and two follow-up measurements (10 and 22 months after baseline). A path model was estimated (Mplus) to examine the effect of the interventions on adolescent-reported mediators (self-control, perceived parental rules and attitudes about alcohol) and parent-reported mediators (parental rules and attitudes about alcohol). Outcome was onset of weekly drinking. Findings: The parent intervention modified rules and attitudes about alcohol as reported by parents. An indirect effect of the parent intervention via parental rules was found. The combined intervention affected both adolescent-reported and parent-reported rules and attitudes about alcohol and adolescents' perceived self-control, yet only perceived rules and self-efficacy, as reported by adolescents, and parental attitudes mediated the association between the combined intervention and onset of weekly drinking. No significant effects were found of the separate student intervention on the mediating factors. Conclusions: The PAS programme proved to be effective as predicted by the theoretical assumptions underlying the interventions. Interventions with parents and adolescents to prevent adolescent alcohol consumption may usefully target parental rules about alcohol and adolescents' self-confidence.

Kristjansson AL; James JE; Allegrante JP; Sigfusdottir ID; Helgason AR. Adolescent substance use, parental monitoring, and leisure-time activities: 12-year outcomes of primary prevention in Iceland. Preventive Medicine 51(2): 168-171, 2010. (13 refs.)

Objective. To examine 12-year changes in alcohol use and cigarette smoking in response to community-based prevention activities among Icelandic adolescents. Methods. This study used a quasi-experimental, non-randomized control group design to compare outcomes in 4 Icelandic communities (n=3117) that participated in community-based substance use prevention activities designed to increase levels of parental monitoring and adolescent engagement in healthy leisure-time activities and a matched group of 7 comparison communities (n = 1,907). Annual, nationwide, population-based cross-sectional surveys of the prevalence of adolescent substance use were conducted among cohorts of Icelandic adolescents, aged 14-15 years (N = 5,024), in all communities from 1997 to 2009. Results. Parental monitoring and adolescent participation in organized sports increased in communities that adopted the intervention program compared to communities that did not, whereas unmonitored idle hours and attendance at unsupervised parties decreased. Over time, alcohol use (OR = 0.89,95% CI 0.82, 0.98, p = 0.012) and being intoxicated during the last 30 days (OR = 0.86, 95% CI 0.78, 0.96, p = 0.004) decreased more in the intervention than control communities. Conclusion. Community-based prevention designed to strengthen parental monitoring and participation in organized sports may confer some protection against adolescent substance use.

Kulbok PA; Bovbjerg V; Meszaros PS; Botchwey N; Hinton I; Anderson NLR et al. Mother-daughter communication: A protective factor for nonsmoking among rural adolescents. Journal of Addictions Nursing 21(2-3): 69-78, 2010. (51 refs.)

Rural adolescent females are at-risk for smoking at rates nearly equal to those of boys, and girls are at increased risk for smoking related diseases, reproductive, and pregnancy problems. The purpose of this study was to investigate protective factors related to nonsmoking in African American (AA) and Caucasian American (CA) female adolescents residing in rural tobacco-producing counties in Virginia. This qualitative study targeted rural female adolescent nonsmokers and their parents because of the importance of promoting tobacco-free, healthy lifestyles into adulthood. Participants were 18 adolescent female nonsmokers 16-17 years of age (6 AA and 12 CA) and 10 mothers (5 AA and 5 CA). Semi-structured questionnaires based on a health behavior framework and communication theory guided four in-depth group interviews of female adolescents and two group interviews of mothers. Protective factors identified by youth and parent groups were: frequent and open communication about smoking dangers and risks, mothers' intentionality in messages about nonsmoking; repeated patterns of oversight of daughter's activities and friends; mothers' pride in their daughters; close knit family of support; and daughter's explicit desire not to disappoint their parents. Directions for future research include the nature and type of female adolescents' communication with parents and a parallel study of protective factors of tobacco-free rural male adolescents to design parent-child communication interventions for tobacco prevention.

Kumpfer KL; Whiteside HO; Greene JA; Allen KC. Effectiveness outcomes of four age versions of the Strengthening Families Program in statewide field sites. Group Dynamics 14(3, Special Issue): 211-229, 2010. (52 refs.)

Family dysfunction is unacceptably high nationally and internationally with high costs to society in adolescent problems. A number of evidence-based (EB) parenting and family interventions have been proven in research to improve children's outcome. The question remains whether these EB family programs are as effective in practice. This article summarizes research outcomes from a quasi-experimental, 5-year statewide study of the 14-session Strengthening Families Program (SFP) with over 1,600 high-risk families. The study compared outcomes including effect sizes for the four different age versions of SFP (SFP 3-5, 6-11, 10-14, and 12-16 years). Quality assurance and program fidelity were enhanced by standardized training workshops, site visits by evaluators, and online supervision. Outcomes were measured using the SFP Parent Retrospective testing battery containing self-report standardized clinical measures of 18 parent, family, and child outcomes. The 2 repeated measures by 4 group ANOVA compared the four different age versions of SFP. All of the outcome variables for the four programs were statistically significant at less than the p < .05 level except for reductions in Criminal Behavior and Hyperactivity in the older 10 to 16 year-olds. The effect sizes were larger than in prior randomized control design of SFP. The average effect sizes for both the Parenting and Family Cluster scores range from a high Cohen's d = .77 for SFP 6-11 years to effect size of d = .67 for SFP 3-5 and 10-14. The largest effect sizes were for improvements for the SFP 6-11 condition in Family Communication and Family Strengths and Resilience (d = .76 for both), Family Organization (d = .75), Parental Supervision (d = .73), Parenting Efficacy (d = .70), and Positive Parenting (d = .67). Parental alcohol and drug use was reduced most in the SFP 12-16 year version (d = .43).

LaBrie JW; Hummer JF; Lac A; Ehret PJ; Kenney SR. Parents know best, but are they accurate? Parental normative misperceptions and their relationship to students' alcohol-related outcomes. Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs 72(4): 521-529, 2011. (69 refs.)

Objective: Parents often look to other parents for guidance, but how accurate are their perceptions? Expanding on existing normative literature to include parents of college students, this study first sought to determine whether parents accurately estimated the attitudes of other parents concerning their college student's alcohol-related behaviors. The effect of these (mis)perceived injunctive norms on the alcohol-related attitudes and behaviors of the parents' own children was then examined. Method: Participants were 270 college student parent dyadic pairs who completed independent online surveys. The student sample was 59% female; the parent sample was 78% female. Results: A structural equation model demonstrated that parents significantly overestimated other parents' approval of alcohol use by their respective child and, further, that these misperceptions strongly influenced parental attitudes toward their own child's drinking. Parental attitudes were subsequently found to be significantly associated with their child's attitudes toward drinking but were only marginally associated with the child's actual drinking, thereby underscoring the mediational effect of the child's attitudes. Conclusions: This is the first study to document the influence of parental normative misperceptions regarding alcohol use by their college-age children, reinforcing the importance of parental attitudes on children's alcohol-related attitudes and behaviors in college. These findings support the need to complement student-based interventions with parent-based interventions aimed at increasing parental awareness and involvement. Further, the current findings indicate that normative interventions targeting parents offer a promising avenue by which to indirectly and positively influence college students' alcohol use.

Lee E; Esaki N; Greene R. Collocation: Integrating child welfare and substance abuse services. Journal of Social Work Practice in the Addictions 9(1): 55-70, 2009

This article presents findings from a process evaluation of a pilot program to address parental substance abuse in the child welfare system. By placing substance abuse counselors in a local child welfare office, the collocation program was designed to facilitate early identification, timely referral to treatment, and improved treatment engagement of substance-abusing parents. Frontline child welfare workers in 6 of the 7 pilot sites endorsed the program as they found that the collocated substance abuse counselors provided additional resources and facilitated case processing. Findings suggest that clearly defined procedures and sufficient staffing of qualified substance abuse counselors could lead to better programs.

Lopez B; Wang W; Schwartz SJ; Prado G; Huang S; Brown CH; Pantin H et al. School, family, and peer factors and their association with substance use in Hispanic adolescents. Journal of Primary Prevention 30(6): 622-641, 2009. (78 refs.)

The purpose of the present study was to examine how relationships among family, school, and peer factors relate to likelihood of substance use in Hispanic adolescents. Results indicated that only perceived peer substance use was directly related to adolescents' own substance use. A significant interaction was found between parental monitoring and peer use vis-a-vis substance use, which suggests that the relationship between parental monitoring and the adolescents' own use was significantly stronger among youth who reported that more of their friends used substances. Implications of these results for the design of substance use preventive interventions are discussed. Editors' Strategic Implications: This research is promising both in terms of the implications for targets of prevention programming and for the application of ecodevelopmental theory, which might guide similar efforts with different cultural groups.

Lynch ME; Johnson KC; Kable JA; Carroll J; Coles CD. Smoking in pregnancy and parenting stress: Maternal psychological symptoms and socioeconomic status as potential mediating variables. Nicotine & Tobacco Research 13(7): 532-539, 2011. (26 refs.)

The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of smoking in pregnancy on parenting stress. Maternal psychological symptoms and socioeconomic status (SES) were evaluated as potential mediating factors between prenatal cigarette use and later parenting stress. The sample included 218 mothers who were recruited at the hospital after birth and completed a 6-month visit with their infants at a university laboratory. Based on the mothers' responses to interviews at the hospital on tobacco use during pregnancy, the sample included 77 nonsmokers and 141 smokers. Information on sociodemographic variables, prenatal care, and other substance use during pregnancy was collected at the hospital interview. At the 6-month visit, the mothers completed measures of parenting stress and psychological symptoms. Cotinine levels were assessed at both timepoints. Regression analysis showed that maternal smoking during pregnancy predicted parenting stress in infancy. Maternal symptoms of psychological distress and SES were evaluated simultaneously to determine whether they functioned as mediating variables between smoking in pregnancy and parenting stress. A multiple mediation analysis (Preacher & Hayes, 2008a) showed that maternal psychological symptoms functioned as a mediating variable but that SES did not. Results. suggest that mothers who smoke in pregnancy are likely to experience higher levels of psychological symptoms, which, in turn, predict higher levels of parenting stress. Smoking in pregnancy may be a marker for symptoms of psychological distress in mothers.

Mak KK; Ho SY; Thomas GN; Schooling CM; McGhee SM; Lam TH. Family structure, parent-child conversation time and substance use among Chinese adolescents. BMC Public Health 10: 503, 2010. (55 refs.)

Background: The family plays a vital role in shaping adolescent behaviours. The present study investigated the associations between family structure and substance use among Hong Kong Chinese adolescents. Methods: A total of 32,961 Form 1 to 5 (grade 7-12 in the US) Hong Kong students participated in the Youth Smoking Survey in 2003-4. An anonymous questionnaire was used to obtain information about family structure, daily duration of parent-child conversation, smoking, alcohol drinking and drug use. Logistic regression was used to calculate the adjusted odds ratios (OR) for each substance use by family structure. Results: Adjusting for sex, age, type of housing, parental smoking and school, adolescents from non-intact families were significantly more likely to be current smokers (OR = 1.62), weekly drinkers (OR = 1.72) and ever drug users (OR = 1.72), with significant linear increases in ORs from maternal, paternal to no-parent families compared with intact families. Furthermore, current smoking (OR = 1.41) and weekly drinking (OR = 1.46) were significantly more common among adolescents from paternal than maternal families. After adjusting for parent-child conversation time, the ORs for non-intact families remained significant compared with intact families, but the paternal-maternal differences were no longer significant. Conclusions: Non-intact families were associated with substance use among Hong Kong Chinese adolescents. The apparently stronger associations with substance use in paternal than maternal families were probably mediated by the poorer communication with the father.

McCool J; Cameron LD; Robinson E. Do parents have any influence over how young people appraise tobacco images in the media? Journal of Adolescent Health 48(2): 170-175, 2011. (23 refs.)

Background: Socio-cultural factors, including media and family, play an important role in introducing and reinforcing pro-smoking intentions. Tendencies to appraise smokers in media in positive, negative, and empathic ways may play a role in the social and familial dynamics influencing smoking intentions. Objective: This study assessed: (1) social group differences in appraisals of pro-and antismoking imagery in media; (2) whether parental antismoking expectations are associated with less positive appraisals; and (3) whether these appraisal tendencies mediate the relationship between parental antismoking expectations and smoking intentions. Methods and Materials: Adolescents (N = 515, ages 11-13, M = 11.5 years) from Auckland, New Zealand completed a multimedia, computer-based questionnaire assessing media exposure of smoking imagery in four media clips as well as media exposure, parental attitudes toward smoking, and smoking intentions. Results: Appraisals of smoking imagery in the media clips and media consumption were patterned on the basis of gender, ethnic group, school economic status, and peer and parent smoking behaviors. Positive appraisals of the smoking images were found to mediate the relationship between weaker parental antismoking expectations and greater smoking intentions. Conclusion: Parents may have significant influence over how adolescents perceive smoking imagery in media by presenting clear and unambiguous expectations about tobacco use at home. These expectations may shape how adolescents respond to smoking images by effectively "tainting" the image.

McKay MT; Sumnall H; Goudie AJ; Field M; Cole JC. What differentiates adolescent problematic drinkers from their peers? Results. from a cross-sectional study in Northern Irish school children. Drugs: Education, Prevention and Policy 18(3): 187-199, 2011. (96 refs.)

Aim: To investigate whether or not a range of factors were associated with problematic drinking, as assessed using the Adolescent Alcohol Involvement Scale (AAIS) in a sample of 11-16-year olds in Northern Ireland. Methods: The study used a cross-sectional experimental design. Post-primary schools in the Eastern Health Board Area of Northern Ireland were targeted and 1137 participants were recruited of whom 1057 (93%%) successfully completed a battery of questionnaires. These measured parent and peer attachment, self-efficacy, self-esteem, academic motivation, alcohol outcome expectancies, parental rules on alcohol use and alcohol use (if any). Findings: Multinomial logistic regression revealed that more problematic alcohol use was predicted by being in higher school year, higher reported positive outcome expectancies and lower negative outcome expectancies, less strict and/or clear parental rules on alcohol consumption, lower academic self-efficacy, higher social self-efficacy and less trust of parents. Conclusions: Preventative and/or harm reduction initiatives with this age group need to be aware of these as factors which differentiate adolescent drinkers. In particular, the findings suggest the potential need for age and gender specific interventions which challenge social norms about alcohol consumption, and the potential viability of family/school relationship-building interventions.

Milligan K; Niccols A; Sword W; Thabane L; Henderson J; Smith A. Length of stay and treatment completion for mothers with substance abuse issues in integrated treatment programmes. Drugs: Education, Prevention and Policy 18(3): 219-227, 2011. (33 refs.)

Aim: To examine the effects of integrated treatment programmes (those with addiction services and pregnancy-, parenting- or child-related services) on length of stay and treatment completion. Methods: We systematically reviewed studies published between 1990 and 2008 comparing integrated programmes with non-integrated programmes on length of stay (number of studies [K] = 3, number of participants [n] = 1910) and treatment completion (K = 6, n = 2556). We performed meta-analyses using standardized mean differences (d) of effect size estimates. Findings: There was a significant advantage of integrated treatment programmes over non-integrated treatment in the number of days women spent in treatment (d = 0.35, p < 0.0001) but not treatment completion (d = 0.38, p = 0.09). Conclusions: This meta-analysis is the first systematic quantitative review of studies evaluating the impact of integrated programmes. Findings suggest that integrated programmes may be associated with a small advantage over non-integrated programmes in length of stay. This review highlights the need for further research with improved methodology, quality, and reporting to improve our understanding of how best to engage, retain and support mothers with substance abuse issues in treatment.

Moore GF; Rothwell H; Segrott J. An exploratory study of the relationship between parental attitudes and behaviour and young people's consumption of alcohol. Substance Abuse Treatment, Prevention and Policy 5(e-journal 6), 2010. (56 refs.)

Concern is growing regarding frequent and excessive misuse of alcohol by young people. The average age at which young people in Europe start to drink is twelve and a half, and during the last decade, the quantity of alcohol consumed by younger adolescents in the UK has increased. Families are known to play an important role in shaping young people's alcohol misuse, although family risk and protective factors associated with misuse in a UK context are in need of further investigation. Methods: The study used a cross-sectional design, involving secondary analyses of self-completion questionnaire responses from 6,628 secondary school children (i.e. aged 11-16 years), from 12 schools within an urban location in Wales. Items relating to family functioning and perceived parental attitudes were first subjected to factor analysis. Associations of family closeness and conflict, parental monitoring and attitudes and family history of substance misuse with children's self reported alcohol consumption were examined using logistic regression analyses. Results: Approximately three quarters of respondents reported having tried alcohol, most of whom had first tried alcohol aged 12 or under. Parental monitoring and family closeness were positively correlated with one another and were both associated with significantly lower levels of drinking behaviours. Family violence and conflict, more liberal parental attitudes towards substance use and towards alcohol and petty crime, and family history of substance misuse were positively correlated with one another and with higher levels of drinking behaviours. Parental monitoring was identified as the family functioning factor most consistently associated with drinking behaviour in multivariate analyses. Conclusions: Significant relationships were found between young people's drinking behaviours and perceptions of risk and protective factors in the family environment. Parental monitoring was strongly associated with family closeness and appeared to form one part of a parenting style of more general communication and regulation of children's behaviour. Findings support the need for alcohol misuse prevention interventions which address risk and protective factors within the family setting. Timing of such prevention work should be related both to the development of family relationships and the age at which young people begin drinking alcohol.

Moraes CL; da Silva TDT; Reichenheim ME; Azevedo GL; Oliveira ASD; Braga JU. Physical violence between intimate partners during pregnancy and postpartum: A prediction model for use in primary health care facilities. Paediatric and Perinatal Epidemiology 25(5): 478-486, 2011. (50 refs.)

This article offers a simple predictive model of physical intimate partner violence (PIPV) to be used by primary health care (PHC) professionals. The sample comprised 811 mothers of children <5 months old attending PHC facilities in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. A multinomial logit model was used. Measured by the Revised Conflict Tactics Scales, PIPV was classified in three levels (absence, at least one episode during pregnancy or postpartum, and presence in both periods). Socio-economic, demographic and life style variables were considered as potential predictors. Maternal age <20 years, an education of <8 years of schooling, raising >2 children under 5, tobacco smoking, alcohol misuse and illicit drug use by the mother and/or partner, and perception of baby's ill-health were identified as predictors of PIPV. The model-projected prevalence of PIPV for pregnancy and/or postpartum was just 10.1% in the absence of these characteristics, whereas this increased to 96.4% when all the seven characteristics were present. Child, maternal and family characteristics greatly increase the likelihood of PIPV and could be used together as screening indicators.

Muenster E; Zier U; Letzel S; Ochsmann E; Weirich HH; Toschke AM. Low social support and further risk factors for nicotine abuse in childhood and adolescence in Germany. Social Work in Health Care 50(3): 230-241, 2011. (46 refs.)

The health hazards of tobacco consumption are well known; numerous prevention programs exist, but knowledge of risk factors for starting to smoke is scarce. This study addressed the question if school-related factors influence smoking behavior in 7-17-year-old pupils. A cross-sectional study including 2459 pupils of schools in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, was conducted. Roughly every twentieth child (n = 135, 4.5%) had smoked at least once. In the multivariate model the probability of smoking was associated with older age, being male, not being content, and having inadequate family support, as well as with feeling unfairly treated at school. These findings suggest the imposition of gender- and age-adequate prevention with a focus on social support from school and parents to decrease the number of juvenile smokers.

Nagoshi JL; Marsiglia FF; Parsai M; Castro FG. The moderating effects of ethnic identification on the relationship between parental monitoring and substance use in Mexican heritage adolescents in the southwest united states. Journal of Community Psychology 39(5): 520-533, 2011. (48 refs.)

The purpose of this study was to assess the combined effects of ethnic identification and perceived parental monitoring on the substance use of a sample of 162 male and 192 female Mexican heritage seventh grade adolescents. Parental monitoring predicted lower risk for substance use. An interaction of ethnic identification by parental monitoring was observed with parental monitoring exhibiting stronger effects in decreasing use of alcohol use among boys who scored low on ethnic identification. For girls, decreased substance use was predicted by stronger parental monitoring coupled with high ethnic identification. Results. are discussed in terms of how the youth's ethnic identification is a distinct process from acculturation, and how ethnic identification may operate as an added protective factor in conjunction with parental monitoring, as protective factors against adolescent substance abuse.

Okulicz-Kozaryn K. Gender and family differences in adolescent's heavy alcohol use: The power-control theory perspective. Health Education Research 25(5): 780-791, 2010. (52 refs.)

According to the power-control theory, growing independence of adolescent girls, manifest in more prevalent problem behaviors, may be explained by changes in family structure (increasing level of authority gained in the workplace by mothers). To verify this hypothesis, self-report data from Warsaw adolescents (N = 3087, age 14-15 years, 50% boys) were used. Results indicate that parenting practices differ across child gender and structure of parents' work authority. Girls, especially in patriarchal households, spend more time with mothers and perceive stronger maternal control. In egalitarian families, fathers tend to be more involved with sons than with daughters. When parental control, support and adolescents' risk preferences are controlled, the gender-by-household type interaction effect is observed girls in patriarchal families have the lowest risk of getting drunk. Study results provide support for power-control theory showing the relationship between parental work authority and adolescent's heavy alcohol use.

Paradis C; Demers A; Nadeau L; Picard E. Parenthood, alcohol intake, and drinking contexts: Occasio furem facit. Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs 72(2): 259-269, 2011. (71 refs.)

Objective: The aim of this study was to assess whether the effect of parenthood on alcohol intake varies according to the context in which the drinking act occurs. Method: The data were drawn from the Canadian Addiction Survey, a national telephone survey conducted in 2004. The analytical sample included 1,079 drinking occasions nested in 498 female drinkers and 926 drinking occasions nested in 403 male drinkers between 18 and 55 years of age. A multilevel linear statistical model was used to estimate the variance related to the drinking occasion (Level 1) and to the parental role (Level 2). Results: Parenthood was not associated with alcohol intake per occasion. Drinking context variables brought great explanatory power to the study of alcohol intake, but, overall, the effect of parenthood on alcohol intake did not vary according to the context in which drinking occurs. Only one interaction between the parental role and contextual characteristics was found. Conclusions: Men's and women's alcohol intake within drinking contexts is more likely to be influenced by the immediate context in which drinking occurs than by their parental role. The explanation for alcohol behaviors within the general Canadian population may lie as much in the situation as in the person.

Parsai MB; Castro FG; Marsiglia FF; Harthun ML; Valdez H. Using community based participatory research to create a culturally grounded intervention for parents and youth to prevent risky behaviors. Prevention Science 12(1): 34-47, 2011. (58 refs.)

The principal goal of this article is to contribute to the field of prevention science by providing a sequential description of how Community Based Participatory Research (CBPR) was used to develop a parent education curriculum aimed at preventing and decreasing adolescent drug use and risky sexual behaviors. CBPR principles are outlined, and information is provided on the unique contributions of researchers and community members who came together to develop this parent education program. Focus group information is presented as an exemplar to illustrate how thematic content from focus groups was used to inform the development of this parent education curriculum. A step by step description is given to facilitate replication of this process by other prevention researchers who are interested in applying this CBPR approach to develop a culturally responsive parent education intervention.

Patock-Peckham JA; King KM; Morgan-Lopez AA; Ulloa EC; Moses JMF. Gender-specific mediational links between parenting styles, parental monitoring, impulsiveness, drinking control, and alcohol-related problems. Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs 72(2): 247-258, 2011. (73 refs.)

Objective: Recently, it has been suggested that traits may dynamically change as conditions change. One possible mechanism that may influence impulsiveness is parental monitoring. Parental monitoring reflects a knowledge regarding one's offspring's whereabouts and social connections. The aim of this investigation was to examine potential gender-specific parental influences to impulsiveness (general behavioral control), control over one's own drinking (specific behavioral control), and alcohol-related problems among individuals in a period of emerging adulthood. Method: Direct and mediational links between parenting styles (permissive, authoritarian, and authoritative), parental monitoring, impulsiveness, drinking control, and alcohol-related problems were investigated. A multiple-group, SEM model with (316 women, 265 men) university students was examined. Results: In general, the overall pattern among male and female respondents was distinct. For daughters, perceptions of a permissive father were indirectly linked to more alcohol-related problems through lower levels of monitoring by fathers and more impulsive symptoms. Perceptions of an authoritative father were also indirectly linked to fewer impulsive symptoms through higher levels of monitoring by fathers among daughters. For men, perceptions of a permissive mother were indirectly linked to more alcohol-related problems through lower levels of monitoring by mothers and more impulsive symptoms. For sons, perceptions of mother authoritativeness were indirectly linked to fewer alcohol-related problems through more monitoring by mothers and fewer impulsive symptoms. Conclusions: Monitoring by an opposite-gender parent mediated the link between parenting styles (i.e., permissive, authoritative) on impulsiveness.

Quinn PD; Fromme K. The role of person-environment interactions in increased alcohol use in the transition to college. Addiction 106(6): 1104- 1113, 2011. (62 refs.)

Aims: Even among those at risk for problematic alcohol use, there is variability in developmental trajectories of drinking and related problems. This prospective study examined the role of person-environment interactions in increased drinking during the transition to college. Design: The authors followed a sample of recent high school graduates to test whether protective environmental factors could delay increases in drinking among those high in trait-level risk factors. Setting: Participants completed web-based surveys. Participants: A sample of 1784 students in the incoming class of 2004 at a large public United States university completed high school and first-semester-of-college assessments. Measurements: Participants completed self-report measures of alcohol use, alcohol-related problems, perceived awareness and caring from parents and other adults, sensation seeking and impulsivity. Findings: In the transition to college, high sensation seekers from more protective high school parental environments increased their alcohol use and problems more than did other students. Increases in alcohol problems were also high among more impulsive students from less protective environments. Whereas high sensation seekers drank equivalently in college regardless of high school-perceived awareness and caring, those who had greater high school-perceived awareness and caring did not experience as many alcohol-related problems in college. Conclusions: Differences in drinking trajectories may be a function of person-environment interactions. Risk associated with high sensation seeking may be masked among adolescents in protective environments, but its emergence in the college transition predicts increases in alcohol use and related problems.

Radcliffe P. Motherhood, pregnancy, and the negotiation of identity: The moral career of drug treatment. Social Science & Medicine 72(6): 984- 991, 2011. (50 refs.)

In this paper I seek to engage with literature on recovery by focusing on gendered identity and motherhood in accounts of pregnant and postpartum women. Interview accounts are analysed as the site of moral work where women use discursive strategies to present themselves as plausible mothers and locate themselves in relation to a moral career of drug treatment and motherhood. I make the case that this performative work entails the representation of lived practices as well as the presentation of self. I argue that opportunities need to be provided for pregnant and postpartum drug users to engage with services and that their performative work needs to be acknowledged by professionals in order that non-stigmatising identities can be endorsed.

Rhodes T; Bernays S; Houmoller K. Parents who use drugs: Accounting for damage and its limitation. Social Science & Medicine 71(8): 1489-1497, 2010. (45 refs.)

Parents who use drugs parent in a context of heightened concern regarding the damaging effects of parental drug use on child welfare and family life. Yet there is little research exploring how parents who use drugs account for such damage and its limitation. We draw here upon analyses of audio-recorded depth qualitative interviews, conducted in south-east England between 2008 and 2009, with 29 parents who use drugs. Our approach to thematic analysis treated accounts as co-produced and socially situated. An over-arching theme of accounts was 'damage limitation'. Most damage limitation work centred on efforts to create a sense of normalcy of family life, involving keeping drug use secret from children, and investing heavily in strategies to maintain ambiguity regarding children's awareness. Our analysis highlights that damage limitation strategies double-up in accounts as resources of child protection as well as self protection. This illuminates tensions in the multiple functions that accounts of damage limitation can serve. We draw a distinction between accounts in which damage is qualified and those in which damage is accepted. Accounts of damage qualification highlight a theme of 'good enough' parenting. Accounts of damage acceptance highlight a theme of 'recovery'. We find that the interview accounts operate in response to a regulative norm of 'good parenting' in which one strives to deflect damaged identity through narratives of damage qualification and to seek understanding and acceptance through narratives of recovery. Noting the absence of space for parents who use drugs to openly reflect or talk about the challenges they face, we identify the need for social change interventions to create enabling environments for earlier help seeking and talking.

Ringlever L; Otten R; de Leeuw RNH; Engels RCME. Effects of parents' education and occupation on adolescent smoking and the mediating role of smoking-specific parenting and parent smoking. European Addiction Research 17(2): 55-63, 2011. (40 refs.)

The current study examined the independent effects of parents' educational attainment and occupational status on adolescent smoking and mediation of smoking-specific communication and parents' smoking behaviours on this link. Data were collected in a multi-informant, full-family design in two sampling waves separated by 3 years (n = 358). Education, occupational status, communication, and smoking were assessed via parent and child report. Different effects were found for the indicators of father and mother's socioeconomic status (education and occupation) for three study outcomes (adolescent lifetime smoking, smoking onset, and smoking continuation). Bootstrapping procedures revealed no mediation in any of the socioeconomic status adolescent smoking associations. Study limitations and implications are discussed.

Roettger ME; Swisher RR; Kuhl DC; Chavez J. Paternal incarceration and trajectories of marijuana and other illegal drug use from adolescence into young adulthood: Evidence from longitudinal panels of males and females in the United States. Addiction 106(1): 121-132, 2011. (52 refs.)

Aims: One-eighth of young adults in the United States report that their biological father has ever been incarcerated (FEI). This study is the first to examine associations between FEI and trajectories of substance use during the transition from adolescence into young adulthood for the US population. Design: Using multi-level modeling techniques, trajectories of marijuana and other illegal drug use are examined, with FEI as the primary independent variable. Setting: Data are from the first three waves of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, a nationally representative sample of US adolescents beginning in 1995. Participants: Panels of 7157 males and 7997 females followed from adolescence (7th-12th grades) into early adulthood (ages 18-27 years). Measurements: Dependent variables included an ordinal measure of marijuana frequency of use in last thirty days, and a dichotomous measure for whether respondent had any use in the last thirty days of illegal drugs such crystal meth, cocaine, heroin, hallucinogens, PCP, LSD, speed, and ecstasy. Findings: Among males and females, respectively, FEI is associated with an increased frequency of marijuana use, and increased odds of any other illegal drug use. Interactions between FEI and age further reveal that FEI is associated with an accentuated trajectory (i.e. a steeper slope) of marijuana use, and an elevated risk (i.e. higher mean level) of other illegal drug use. Conclusions: Analysis provides some of the first evidence that paternal incarceration is significantly associated with drug use among U.S. males and females, even after controlling for a number of family background, parental, and individual characteristics.

Ryan SM; Jorm AF; Kelly CM; Hart LM; Morgan AJ; Lubman DI. Parenting strategies for reducing adolescent alcohol use: A Delphi consensus study. BMC Public Health 11: e-article 13, 2011. (21 refs.)

Background: International concern regarding the increase in preventable harms attributed to adolescent alcohol consumption has led to growing political and medical consensus that adolescents should avoid drinking for as long as possible. For this recommendation to be adopted, parents and guardians of adolescents require information about strategies that they can employ to prevent or reduce their adolescent's alcohol use that are supported by evidence. Methods: The Delphi method was used to obtain expert consensus on parenting strategies effective in preventing and reducing adolescent alcohol consumption. A literature search identified 457 recommendations for parents to reduce their adolescent child's alcohol use. These recommendations were presented to a panel of 38 Australian experts who were asked to rate their importance over three survey rounds. Results: There were 289 parenting strategies that were endorsed as important or essential in reducing adolescent alcohol use by >= 90% of the panel. These strategies were categorised into 11 sub-headings: things parents should know about adolescent alcohol use, delaying adolescent's introduction to alcohol, modelling responsible drinking and attitudes towards alcohol, talking to adolescents about alcohol, establishing family rules, monitoring adolescents when unsupervised, preparing adolescents for peer pressure, unsupervised adolescent drinking, what to do when an adolescent has been drinking without parental permission, hosting adolescent parties, and establishing and maintaining a good parent-child relationship. The endorsed strategies were written into a document suitable for parents. Conclusions: A comprehensive set of parenting strategies for preventing or reducing adolescent alcohol consumption were identified. These strategies can be promoted to parents to help them implement national recommendations for use of alcohol by young people.

Ryan SM; Jorm AF; Lubman DI. Parenting factors associated with reduced adolescent alcohol use: A systematic review of longitudinal studies. (review). Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry 44(9): 774-783, 2010. (95 refs.)

Objective: To identify parenting strategies associated with adolescent alcohol consumption that parents can use to implement new national guidelines regarding alcohol consumption by people under the age of 18. Methods: A systematic search of academic literature employing the PRISMA method identified 77 relevant articles. Inclusion criteria for the review were (i) longitudinal cohort studies; (ii) measurement of one or more parenting factors during adolescence or pre-adolescence (between the ages of 8 and 17) as a predictor (iii) outcome measurement of any alcohol use and/or alcohol related problems during adolescence at least one time point after the initial parenting factor was measured, and/or problem drinking in adulthood. Studies were excluded if alcohol use was combined with other substance use or problem behaviour as an outcome variable, or if different parenting factors were combined as a single predictor variable for analysis. Stouffer's method of combining p values was used to determine whether associations between variables were reliable. Results: Twelve parenting variables were investigated in these studies: parental modelling, provision of alcohol, alcohol-specific communication, disapproval of adolescent drinking, general discipline, rules about alcohol, parental monitoring, parent-child relationship quality, family conflict, parental support, parental involvement, and general communication. We found that delayed alcohol initiation was predicted by: parental modelling, limiting availability of alcohol to the child, parental monitoring, parent-child relationship quality, parental involvement and general communication. Reduced levels of later drinking by adolescents were predicted by: parental modelling, limiting availability of alcohol to the child, disapproval of adolescent drinking, general discipline, parental monitoring, parent-child relationship quality, parental support and general communication. Conclusions: A number of parenting strategies were identified that parents can use to reduce their adolescent's alcohol consumption. These could be promoted to parents to help them implement new national guidelines on alcohol use.

Sellman JD; Connor JL; Joyce PR. How to reduce alcohol-related problems in adolescents: What can parents do and what can the government do? (editorial). Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry 44(9): 771-773, 2010. (10 refs.)

Shook J; Goodkind S; Pohlig RT; Schelbe L; Herring D; Kim KH. Patterns of mental health, substance abuse, and justice system involvement among youth aging out of child welfare. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry 81(3): 420-432, 2011. (49 refs.)

Although research on youth aging out of the child welfare system has increased, there has been limited focus on how their experiences vary. In particular, there is a need to examine patterns in the involvement of these youth in other systems, which indicate constellations of challenges facing these young people as they transition out of care and into adulthood. Using administrative data from a large birth cohort of individuals born between 1985 and 1994 whose families have been involved in the child welfare system, this article presents an analysis of the mental health, substance abuse, juvenile justice, and criminal justice system involvement of youth who have aged out of child welfare. Using a 2-step cluster analysis, we identify 5 subgroups of youth. Two of these groups, accounting for almost half of the youth, have little other system involvement and have child welfare care careers of relative stability. The other 3 groups, consisting of just over half of the youth, have much more extensive other system involvement, as well as care careers marked by instability and a greater proportion of time spent in congregate care.

Silovsky JF; Bard D; Chaffin M; Hecht D; Burris L; Owora A et al. Prevention of child maltreatment in high-risk rural families: A randomized clinical trial with child welfare outcomes. Children and Youth Services Review 33(8, special issue): 1435-1444, 2011. (56 refs.)

Few studies have specifically examined prevention of child maltreatment among higher-risk populations in rural communities. The overarching goal of this study was to conduct a randomized clinical trial of SafeCare augmented for rural high-risk population (SC+) compared to standard home-based mental health services (SAU) to examine reductions in future child maltreatment reports, as well as risk factors and factors proximal to child maltreatment. Parents (N = 105) of young children (5 years or less) who had identifiable risk of depression, intimate partner violence, or substance abuse were randomized to SC+ or SAU. Participants randomized to SC+ were more likely to enroll (83% vs. 35% for SAU) and remain in services (35 h vs. 8 h for SAU). SC+ (for participants who successfully completed services) may have had limited impact on child welfare reports during service provision. Further, SC+ had fewer child welfare reports related to DV than SAU. Parent self-reports of parenting behaviors, risk factors, and protective factors did not demonstrate significant sustained program impact. Limitations include power constraints related to sample size. Promising next steps entail future trials with larger sample sizes examining service compliance and further augmentation of SafeCare to bolster service impact and address risk and protective factors.

Skinner ML; Haggerty KP; Fleming CB; Catalano RF; Gainey RR. Opiate-addicted parents in methadone treatment: Long-term recovery, health, and family relationships. Journal of Addictive Diseases 30(1): 17-26, 2011. (35 refs.)

Few studies follow the lives of opiate-addicted parents. The authors examined a 12-year follow-up of 144 parents in methadone treatment and their 3- to 14-year-old children. Parent mortality was high. Among survivors, drug use and treatment, incarceration, residential and family disruptions, and health problems were common. Moderate and long-term recovery were associated with consistent methadone treatment, further education, employment, and fewer relationship disruptions. Earlier depression, deviant friends, and poor coping skills predicted continued drug problems. Thus, interventions should include treatment for depression and build skills for avoiding and refusing drugs, coping with stress, and maintaining recovery-supportive friendships.

Staton-Tindall M; Frisman L; Lin HJ; Leukefeld C; Oser C; Havens JR et al. Relationship influence and health risk behavior among re-entering women offenders. Womens Health Issues 21(3): 230- 238, 2011. (41 refs.)

Background: Studies have shown that relationships can influence health risk behaviors such as drug use among women offenders. This study takes an exploratory look at the positive and negative influences of parents, peers, and partners for women prisoners to better understand their health risk behavior for HIV, including risky sex and drug use. Methods: The current study includes secondary analysis of cross-sectional data from women offenders enrolled in three protocols of the National Institute on Drug Abuse-funded Criminal Justice Drug Abuse Treatment Studies cooperative agreement. Baseline interviews were completed with incarcerated women preparing for community re-entry and focused on behaviors during the 6 months before incarceration. Relationship influences during the 6 months before prison were categorized as "positive" or "negative" for the women offenders. Findings: Multivariate regression models suggested that positive parental influence was significantly associated with reduced HIV risk and reduced drug use in the 6 months before incarceration. However, negative peer influence increased drug use including both risky needle behavior and any drug use in the 6 months before incarceration. Conclusion: These data suggest that, although relationships are generally important to women, particular types of relationship influences may be related to risky behavior. Implications for targeting re-entry interventions for women offenders are discussed.

Stavrinides P; Georgiou S; Demetriou A. Longitudinal associations between adolescent alcohol use and parents' sources of knowledge. British Journal of Developmental Psychology 28(3): 643-655, 2010. (37 refs.)

The aim of this study was to test the direction of effect in the relationship between parents' sources of knowledge (parental monitoring and child disclosure) and adolescent alcohol use. The participants were 215 adolescents and their mothers, randomly selected from urban and rural areas in Cyprus. A 3-month, two-timepoint longitudinal design was used in which adolescents completed the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test while mothers completed a parental knowledge questionnaire. The results of this study showed that parental monitoring did not predict subsequent adolescent alcohol use. However, child disclosure at Time 1 negatively predicted adolescent alcohol use at Time 2. Moreover, adolescents' alcohol dependence symptoms at Time 1 negatively predicted both sources of parental knowledge at Time 2.

Stover CS; McMahon TJ; Easton C. The impact of fatherhood on treatment response for men with co-occurring alcohol dependence and intimate partner violence. American Journal of Drug and Alcohol Abuse 37(1): 74-78, 2011. (41 refs.)

Objective: The role of fathers in the lives of children has gained increasing attention over the last several decades, however, studies that specifically examine the parenting role among men who are alcohol dependent and have co-occurring intimate partner violence (IPV) have been limited. This brief report is intended to highlight the need to develop and focus interventions for men with co-occurring substance abuse and IPV with an emphasis on their roles as fathers. Method: Sixty-nine men who participated in a randomized comparison study of a coordinated substance abuse and domestic violence treatment program (SADV) and Twelve Step Facilitation (TSF) provided information about whether they were fathers. Analysis of covariance was used to assess the impact of fatherhood on the outcomes of intimate partner violence and alcohol use during the 12 weeks of treatment. Results: There was a significant interaction between type of treatment (SADV vs. TSF) and fatherhood. SADV resulted in significantly less IPV and use of alcohol over the 12 weeks of treatment than TSF for men without children. There were no significant differences between SADV and TSF for men who were fathers. Conclusion and Scientific Significance: Results indicate a need to further explore the role of fatherhood for men with co-occurring substance abuse and IPV and development of specialized treatments that may improve treatment outcomes for fathers.

Suchman NE; DeCoste C; Castiglioni N; McMahon TJ; Rounsaville B; Mayes L. The Mothers and Toddlers Program, an attachment-based parenting intervention for substance using women: Post-treatment results from a randomized clinical pilot. Attachment & Human Development 12(5): 483-504, 2010. (52 refs.)

This is a report of post-treatment findings from a completed randomized pilot study testing the preliminary efficacy of the Mothers and Toddlers Program (MTP), a 12 week attachment-based individual parenting therapy for mothers enrolled in substance abuse treatment and caring for children ages birth to 36 months. Forty-seven mothers were randomized to MTP versus the Parent Education Program (PE), a comparison intervention providing individual case management and child guidance brochures. At post-treatment, MTP mothers demonstrated better reflective functioning in the Parent Development Interview, representational coherence and sensitivity, and caregiving behavior than PE mothers. Partial support was also found for proposed mechanisms of change in the MTP model. Together, preliminary findings suggest that attachment-based interventions may be more effective than traditional parent training for enhancing relationships between substance using women and their young children.

Suchman NE; Decoste C; Mcmahon TJ; Rounsaville B; Mayes L. The mothers and toddlers program, an attachment-based parenting intervention for substance-using women: Results at 6-week follow-up in a randomized clinical pilot. Infant Mental Health Journal 32(4): 427-449, 2011. (48 refs.)

Previously, we reported posttreatment findings from a randomized pilot study testing a new attachment-based parenting intervention for mothers enrolled in substance-use treatment and caring for children ages birth to 3 years (N.E. Suchman, C. DeCoste, N. Castiglioni, T. McMahon, B. Rounsaville, & L. Mayes, 2010). The Mothers and Toddlers Program (MTP) is a 12-session, weekly individual parenting therapy that aims to enhance maternal capacity for reflective functioning and soften harsh and distorted mental representations of parenting. In a randomized pilot study, 47 mothers who were enrolled in outpatient substance-abuse treatment and caring for children between birth and 3 years of age were randomized to the MTP versus the Parent Education Program (PE), a comparison intervention that provided individual case management and developmental guidance. At the end of treatment, mothers in the MTP condition demonstrated better reflective functioning, representation quality, and caregiving behavior than did mothers in the PE condition. In this investigation, we examined whether the benefits of MTP at posttreatment were sustained at the 6-week follow-up. Recently, we also identified two components of parental reflective functioning: (a) a self-focused component representing the parent's capacity to mentalize about strong personal emotions (e. g., anger, guilt, or pain) and their impact on the child and (b) a child-focused component representing the parent's capacity to mentalize about the child's emotions and their impact on the mother (N. Suchman, C. DeCoste, D. Leigh, & J. Borelli, 2010). In this study, we reexamined posttreatment outcomes using these two related, but distinct, constructs.

Vander Weg MW. Adverse childhood experiences and cigarette smoking: The 2009 Arkansas and Louisiana Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance Systems. Nicotine & Tobacco Research 13(7): 616-622, 2011. (25 refs.)

Introduction: Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) such as neglect, verbal, sexual, and physical abuse, household dysfunction, and other childhood stressors are associated with a range of negative health outcomes and risk behaviors. Although there is evidence that ACEs are related to an increased risk for cigarette smoking, additional studies in more diverse samples are needed. Methods: Adults taking part in the 2009 Arkansas (n = 3,125) and Louisiana (n = 7,152) Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance Systems were surveyed regarding their smoking history and exposure to 11 ACEs. Multivariable logistic regression was used to examine independent associations between individual and total number of ACEs and both lifetime and current smoking adjusting for sociodemographic characteristics. Results: Exposure to each type of ACE was associated with a significantly increased risk for both lifetime (odds ratios [ORs]: 1.35-3.65) and current (ORs: 1.31-2.43) cigarette smoking among residents of both states. Total number of ACEs was also related to the odds of smoking in a generally graded fashion such that Arkansas residents reporting 5 or more ACEs were 3.97 (95% CI: 2.46-6.41) and 2.70 (95% CI: 1.64-4.43) times as likely as those reporting no ACEs to be lifetime and current smokers, respectively. Corresponding odds for those living in Louisiana were 3.06 (95% CI: 2.32-4.02) for lifetime smoking and 2.80 (95% CI: 2.07-3.77) for current smoking. Conclusions: ACEs are associated with an increased likelihood of cigarette smoking in adulthood among residents of Arkansas and Louisiana. Efforts to prevent abuse, neglect, and other ACE may include among their benefits reduced risk for later smoking-related illness.

Villanti A; Boulay M; Juon HS. Peer, parent and media influences on adolescent smoking by developmental stage. Addictive Behaviors 36(1-2): 133-136, 2011. (32 refs.)

Previous studies of social influences on adolescent smoking have focused on peers and parents using data collected prior the 1998 Master Settlement Agreement. This study used the 2004 wave of the National Youth Tobacco Survey to examine associations between peer smoking, smoking at home, tobacco related media exposure, and smoking behavior during early and middle adolescence. Findings indicate that peer smoking and smoking at home remain strongly associated with current smoking among early and middle adolescents controlling for gender race/ethnicity and exposure to tobacco industry and anti-tobacco media. The magnitude of the association between peer smoking and current smoking decreases from early adolescence to middle adolescence while the association between smoking at home and current smoking is static across developmental stage. Exposure to tobacco-related media is associated with increased current and former smoking in both early and middle adolescence.

Wakschlag LS; Metzger A; Darfler A; Ho J; Mermelstein R; Rathouz PJ. The Family Talk About Smoking (FTAS) Paradigm: New directions for assessing parent-teen communications about smoking. Nicotine & Tobacco Research 13(2): 103-112, 2011. (29 refs.)

Smoking experimentation represents transient risk taking for some youth, whereas for others, it is the onset of a chronic smoking trajectory. However, distinguishing these groups during the experimentation phase has proved challenging. We theorized that variations in parent and teen discourse about smoking might be informative for characterizing this heterogeneity. However, standardized methods for direct assessments of these family processes have been lacking. We examined the predictive utility of directly observed facets of smoking-specific communication for predicting persistence of teen smoking experimentation using a novel method, the Family Talk About Smoking (FTAS) paradigm. The FTAS was tested in a sample of 344 teens with a history of smoking experimentation during interactions with their mothers and fathers. Level of disapproval, smoking expectancies, elaboration of consequences, and quality of personal disclosure were coded during videotaped parent-teen discussions about smoking. Patterns of observed smoking-specific communication varied by teen and parent smoking status. Predictive validity of the FTAS for teen persistent experimentation was demonstrated, net effects of reported smoking-specific socialization, general quality of communication, and parental smoking status. Teen smoking expectancies, disclosure, and disapproval predicted teen persistent experimentation with some differences based on whether interactions were with mothers or fathers. Prediction of persistent experimentation by observed maternal disclosure and elaboration of consequences was moderated by maternal smoking status. Direct observations show promise for generating detailed characterization of individual differences in patterns of family communication about smoking. Implications for targeted prevention and future research are discussed.

Ward BM; Snow PC. Factors affecting parental supply of alcohol to underage adolescents. Drug and Alcohol Review 30(4): 338-343, 2011. (31 refs.)

Introduction and Aims. The aim of this study was to determine the extent to which parent and adolescent characteristics predict parental supply of full serves of alcohol (i.e. not simply sips) to their adolescent aged 14-16 years. Design and Methods. In 2009, a cross-sectional sample of 388 parents from Victoria, Australia was surveyed. Results. Of the 70% of parents who believed that their adolescent currently drinks, 37% reported supplying their underage adolescent with more than a sip of alcohol in the last 3 months. Alcohol supply was significantly associated with parents' perceptions that their adolescent drinks, odds ratio 1.87 (95% confidence interval 1.38-2.53) and higher levels of parental monitoring, odds ratio 1.44 (95% confidence interval 1.10-1.94) but not significantly associated with parent/adolescent sociodemographic characteristics or parents' drinking patterns. Discussion and Conclusions. Consistent with reports from Australian students, parents are a major source of supply of alcohol to underage adolescents. While there are legislative and policy guidelines regarding the use of alcohol by underage adolescents, parents need support to implement and reinforce alcohol-specific rules for their children.

Wyszynski CM; Bricker JB; Comstock BA. Parental smoking cessation and child daily smoking: A 9-year longitudinal study of mediation by child cognitions about smoking. Health Psychology 30(2): 171-176, 2011. (28 refs.)

Objective: This study investigated to what extent the prospective relationship between parental smoking cessation and child daily smoking is mediated by child cognitions about smoking. Design: The study drew its sample from the 40 Washington State school districts involved in the Hutchinson Smoking Prevention Project. The predictor variable of parental smoking cessation was measured during third grade. The mediator measures, consistent with the Theory of Planned Behavior and Social Cognitive Theory, were measured during ninth grade, and the smoking status outcome was measured during twelfth grade. Main Outcome Measures: Smoking status at twelfth grade. Results: Negative general attitudes toward smoking, attitude that cigarette smoke is bothersome, and tobacco refusal self-efficacy together significantly mediated 49% of the prospective relationship between parental smoking cessation and child daily smoking. Conclusion: Parental smoking cessation before children reach third grade may lead children to develop more negative cognitions about smoking, and, in turn, reduce their risk of smoking.

Yabiku ST; Marsiglia FF; Kulis S; Parsai MB; Becerra D; Del-Colle M. Parental monitoring and changes in substance use among Latino/a and Non-Latino/a preadolescents in the Southwest. Substance Use & Misuse 45(14): 2524-2550, 2010. (73 refs.)

Prior research shows parental monitoring is associated with less substance use, but these studies have some limitations. Many examine older adolescents from White, Euro-American heritage, and cross-sectional studies are unable to test if parental monitoring decreases substance use over time. We address these limitations with longitudinal data of 2,034 primarily Latino preadolescents in Phoenix, Arizona, USA in 2004-2005. We use multilevel regression with multiple imputation of missing data. We find parental monitoring has beneficial, longitudinal effects on youth's substance use and related intentions, norms, and attitudes. Effects are invariant to gender or Latino ethnicity, except in the case of marijuana.