@article{ref1,
title="U.S. trends in adolescent substance use and conduct problems and their relation to trends in unstructured in-person socializing with peers",
journal="Journal of Adolescent Health",
year="2021",
author="Borodovsky, Jacob T. and Krueger, Robert F. and Agrawal, Arpana and ElBanna, Basant and de Looze, Margaretha and Grucza, Richard A.",
volume="ePub",
number="ePub",
pages="ePub-ePub",
abstract="PURPOSE: This study examined whether national trends in unstructured in-person socializing with peers (i.e., socializing without goals or supervision) among adolescents could help explain recent declines in adolescent risk behaviors (e.g., substance use, fighting, theft). <br><br>METHODS: The sample contained of 44,842 U.S. 12th-grade students (aged 17-18 years) from the Monitoring the Future survey (years 1999-2017). Analyses examined (1) prevalence trends, (2) latent factor structure of risk behaviors and unstructured in-person socializing, and (3) whether trends in the unstructured in-person socializing factor accounted for the relationship between time (i.e., survey year) and the risk behavior factor. <br><br>RESULTS: Adolescent risk behaviors and unstructured in-person socializing declined by approximately 30% in the U.S., and both formed coherent latent factors. After adjusting for sociodemographics, declines in unstructured in-person socializing accounted for approximately 86% of declines in risk behaviors. <br><br>CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of risk behaviors and unstructured in-person socializing behaviors declined among U.S. 12th graders from 1999 to 2017. It is unknown whether such effects are directly causal and/or influenced by unmeasured variables. However, the results provide evidence that national declines in unstructured in-person socializing are a likely component of the explanation for national declines in adolescent risk behaviors.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>",
language="en",
issn="1054-139X",
doi="10.1016/j.jadohealth.2020.12.144",
url="http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2020.12.144"
}