NCJ Number
205883
Journal
Substance Use & Misuse Volume: 39 Issue: 6 Dated: May 2004 Pages: 931-962
Date Published
May 2004
Length
32 pages
Annotation
Using independent and dependent variables for the subsample of students with disabilities who responded to the National Education Longitudinal Study (NELS) of 1988-2000, this study examined whether the use of cigarettes, alcohol, marijuana, or cocaine was significantly related to negative long-term outcomes in the areas of education, employment, and social relationships.
Abstract
The NELS database reliably represents the school-age population across the United States and is the most current, comprehensive database available for studying the long-term effects of substance use by adolescents; it also incorporates a significant subsample of students with disabilities. Using 1988 as the base year, eighth-grade students were identified as having a disability if their parent reported the child as having at least one of several categories of disability and if the child had ever been enrolled in special education programs at school. The study was limited to subjects with a disability who entered the study during the base year and who provided third year as well as fourth year follow-up data. Using this approach 1,021 individuals constituted the study sample. Data on the topics of interest were analyzed for all sample members through 8 years past subjects' scheduled high school completion data, thereby providing little confounding of employment outcomes due to college attendance. The study found that adolescents with disabilities who used either cigarettes or marijuana or who engaged in binge drinking had significantly higher school drop-out rates, lower high school graduation rates, lower college attendance, and lower high school grade point averages. Also, fewer of this group earned core credit units in English, science, and mathematics than nonusers. Adolescents with disabilities who used either cigarettes, alcohol, or drugs were also significantly more likely to engage in sexual activity at a younger age. The lack of significant associations between cocaine use, whether on a monthly, yearly, or lifetime basis by the end of high school, is probably due to the small sample size of users. These findings mostly confirm those of other similar studies of this specific population. These results indicate the need for increased alcohol, cigarette, and drug education in schools for students with disabilities, particularly regarding the early onset of smoking, binge drinking, and marijuana use. 5 tables, 1 figure, and 51 references