NCJ Number
211703
Editor(s)
Mario R. De La Rosa,
Lori K. Holleran,
Shulamith Lala Ashenberg Straussner
Date Published
2005
Length
214 pages
Annotation
This volume of the journal Substance Abusing Latinos: Current Research on Epidemiology, Prevention, and Treatment focuses on contributing to the research literature on the extent and nature of substance abuse among Latino subpopulations.
Abstract
While the past 15 years has witnessed a marked increase in research on the growing problem of substance abuse among Latino populations in the United States, there is still much to be learned regarding substance use behaviors and the effectiveness of culturally sensitive drug treatment and prevention services. The articles in this volume thus focus on these issues, describing substance abuse patterns among Latino gang members, low-income Puerto Rican women, and Cuban juvenile offenders, among others. In particular, articles in this volume examine patterns of drug treatment entry for Hispanic women injection drug users residing in Massachusetts and the impact of psychiatric, family, and ethnicity-related characteristics on substance abuse treatment utilization among Hispanic substance abusing adolescents. Other articles investigate the effectiveness of a culturally specific substance abuse intervention for Latino families with children at risk for substance abuse and examine whether language preference of Mexican and Mexican-American middle school students influences the effects of a substance use prevention intervention. The research literature on the patterns and trajectories of substance use within the Latino community, as well as research concerning ethnic differences in alcohol and illicit drug use is reviewed and the relationship between childhood sexual abuse and adult drug use among low-income Puerto Rican women living in urban communities in Puerto Rico is explored. The special topic of HIV/AIDS prevention among Latino substance abusers is investigated and the volume concludes with an autobiographical account of a bi-cultural Latina drug addict. Index