Causes and correlates of adolescent drug abuse and implications for treatment

On the basis of the literature, the following risk factors for drug abuse by adolescents were identified: biological predisposition to drug abuse; personality traits that reflect a lack of social bonding; a history of low quality and consistency of family management, family communication, family relationships and parental role-modelling, a history of being abused or neglected; low socioeconomic status; emotional or psychiatric problems; significant stressors and/or inadequate coping skills and social supports; inadequate social skills; history of associating with drug-using peers, rejection by prosocial peers due to poor social skills; a history of low commitment to education, failure at school; a history of anti-social behaviour and delinquency and early initiation to drug use. Models for conceptualizing the aetiology of drug abuse are discussed, namely Jessor's problem behaviour syndrome and Rhodes & Jason's Social Stress Model. It is clear that the path to drug abuse is complex, so simple solutions to the problem are unlikely to be effective.