Exploring Child Maltreatment and Its Relationship to Alcohol and Cannabis Use in Selected Latin American and Caribbean Countries

• NCJ Number: 241791
• Journal: Child Abuse & Neglect Volume: 37 Issue: 1 Dated: January 2013 Pages: 77-85
• Author(s): S. Longman-Mills; W.Y. Gonzalez; M.O. Melendez; M.R. Garcia; J.D. Gomez; C.G. Juarez; E.A. Martinez; S.J. Penalba; E.M. Pizzanelli; L.I. Solorzano; M.G.M. Wright; F. Cumsille; W. De La Haye; J.C. Sapag; A. Khenti; H.A. Hamilton; P.G. Erickson; B. Brands; R. Flam-Zalcman; S. Simpson; C. Wekerle; R.E. Mann
• Date Published: January 2013
• Length: 9 pages
• Sponsoring Agency: Ontario Ministry of Health; Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Cmssn; Centre for Addiction and Mental Health; Canada Foreign Affairs and International Trade
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Research (Applied/Empirical)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This study explored the relationship between a history of child maltreatment and alcohol and cannabis use among a sample of university students in selected Latin American and Caribbean countries.

Abstract

Findings from this study on the relationship between a history of child maltreatment and alcohol and cannabis use among a sample of university students in six Latin American and Caribbean countries include the following: alcohol use was reported by almost 60 percent of the sample, while cannabis use was reported by 19 percent of the sample; physical abuse was the most common form of child maltreatment reported in the survey, 33.9 percent, followed by emotional abuse, 30.4 percent, and sexual abuse, 6.1 percent; experiencing physical abuse and experiencing emotional abuse significantly predicted the use of alcohol among the participants, while experiencing sexual abuse did not significantly predict drinking status; and participants with higher levels of religiosity were less likely to use cannabis regardless of gender. This study explored the relationship between a history of childhood maltreatment and subsequent alcohol and cannabis use among a sample of 2,294 university students from 6 Latin American and Caribbean countries. Students from seven universities in Columbia, El Salvador, Jamaica, Nicaragua, Panama, and Uruguay participated in the study to determine whether religiosity and psychological distress were contributing factors in a student's decision to use alcohol and cannabis. The data was analyzed using logistic regression models. The findings from the analyses indicate while a history of childhood maltreatment may increase the risk of alcohol and cannabis use among university students in Latin American and Caribbean countries, this risk may be mediated by the student's level of religiosity. Study limitations are discussed. Tables and references