Is There an Association Between Adolescent Bullying Victimization and Substance Abuse?

• NCJ Number: 243861
• Journal: Journal of Drug Education Volume: 42 Issue: 4 Dated: 2012 Pages: 447-467
• Author(s): Chris Ringwalt, Dr.PH; Steven Shamblen, Ph.D.
• Date Published: 2012
• Length: 21 pages
• Contract Number(s): 283-07-1401
• Sponsoring Agency: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Admin (SAMHSA)
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Research (Applied/Empirical); Report (Study/Research); Report (Grant Sponsored)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This study assessed the association between specific reasons for which adolescents believe that they are targeted for bullying and their rates of various types of substance use.

Abstract

Bullying is endemic in the Nation's schools and takes a substantial toll on its victims' physical and social-emotional well-being. The authors assessed the association between specific reasons for which adolescents believe that they are targeted for bullying and their rates of various types of substance use by analyzing the association between self-reported past 20-day substance use and past 30-day bullying victimization among 53,750 middle and high school students in Oregon. Results of the current study confirm previous estimates of prevalence rates for bullying as well as modest (r less than 0.20) associations between bullying victimization and substance use. However, study findings did not reveal a particular reason for bullying victimization that would place adolescents at a relatively high risk of substance use. (Published Abstract)