NCJ Number
231374
Journal
Journal of Child and Adolescent Substance Abuse Volume: 19 Issue: 3 Dated: July-August 2010 Pages: 193-209
Date Published
July 2010
Length
17 pages
Annotation
Results are presented from an analysis of evaluation data on a sample of high school students examining whether reflected appraisal is associated with subsequent intention to use marijuana, whether the association is mediated by negative self-concept, and whether it is moderated by ethnicity and gender.
Abstract
Drawing on theories of symbolic interaction, some researchers have suggested that negative reflected appraisal imposes a "delinquent" identity on adolescents whom adults and peers perceive as delinquent, creating ego identity discomfort that these adolescents seek to mitigate through association with drug-using peers for whom the delinquent label is evaluated more positively. On the other hand, research on reflected appraisal and delinquency has suggested that negative reflected appraisal is more salient for adolescents who are or desire to be part of high-status peer groups than for adolescents who are uninterested in such peer groups. This article reports results of a secondary analysis of evaluation data from a federally sponsored school-based substance abuse prevention project testing whether reflected appraisal is associated with subsequent intention to use marijuana, whether this association is mediated by negative self-concept, and whether it is moderated by ethnicity and gender. Results indicate that reflected appraisal is associated with marijuana use intentions and that negative self-concept mediates this association. It also indicates that the association between negative reflected appraisal and negative self-concept is weaker for African-Americans and males, and that the association between negative reflected appraisal and marijuana use intentions is less salient for Hispanics. Figure, tables, and references (Published Abstract)