Discrimination Trends and Mental Health Among Native- and Foreign-Born Latinos: Results from National Surveys in 2004 and 2013

Prevention Science - We examined national trends and mental health correlates of discrimination among Latinos in the USA. We used data from two nationally representative surveys based on the...     

Crime and Violence among MDMA Users in the United States

The question of whether MDMA use is associated with increased crime and violence has not been adequately explored especially in nationally representative samples. This study used data from the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions (NESARC) to assess the association between MDMA use and violent and non-violent antisocial behavior while controlling for sociodemographic variables, lifetime psychiatric, alcohol and drug use disorders, and family history of antisocial behavior. MDMA users, both male and female, were involved in a number of crimes in acts of violence including drunk driving, shoplifting, theft, intimate partner violence, and fighting. Notably, female MDMA users were more antisocial than male non-MDMA users. Although adjusting the results for numerous confounds attenuated the relationships, MDMA users were still at significantly greater odds of engaging in violent and nonviolent crime than non-MDMA users. Although MDMA has been considered a facilitator of empathy and closeness, the current study suggests a dark side as MDMA is associated with a broad array of crimes and transgressions. Additional tests of the MDMA-crime link are needed to properly inform policy.     

Far from a monolith: a typology of externalizing behavior among African American youth

Purpose

Previous studies have examined externalizing behaviors among African American youth using variable-centered approaches that study aggression and delinquency separately. However, aggression and delinquency often operate together in shaping adolescent behavior. For this reason, person-centered approaches are essential for identifying subgroups of African American youth using multiple indicators of aggression and delinquency to model the behavioral heterogeneity within this population. We examined the relationship between interpersonal, school, and parenting factors and externalizing behaviors among African American youth.

Method

Drawing from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health 2015–2018, we conducted latent class analysis based on 5 externalizing behavior indicator variables (i.e., serious fight, attack to harm, stealing, drug selling, handgun carrying) using a sample of 7,236 African American adolescents, aged 12–17.

Results

We identified a three class solution: Class #1—No Involvement (74.4%), characterized by very low levels of involvement in all of the externalizing behaviors examined; Class #2—Serious fight (23.3%), which is characterized by near-universal involvement in a serious fight, far lower levels of attack to harm, and negligible levels of stealing, drug selling, and handgun caring; and Class #3—Multidimensional externalizing (2.3%), characterized by very high levels of involvement in all of the externalizing variables examined.

Conclusion

Most African American youth are not involved in externalizing behaviors. It is vital to support both the large majority of African-American youth who are abstaining from externalizing behaviors and to develop/implement programs to address the contextual and interpersonal needs of youth at elevated risk for consequences related to externalizing.

     

Buckle up: non-seat belt use and antisocial behavior in the United States

ObjectiveTo compare persons who report that they never wear a seat belt while driving or as a passenger with those who do in a nationally representative sample in the United States. Our guiding hypothesis is that failure to wear a seat belt is part of an antisocial behavior spectrum.MethodsUsing public-use data from the 2010 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, this study employed binary logistic regression with adjustments for complex survey sampling to assess relationships between never wearing a seat belt and sociodemographic variables, antisocial behaviors, substance abuse and co-occurring problems, and criminal justice system contact.ResultsIndividuals who do not wear seat belts are younger, more likely to be male, less likely to be African American or Hispanic, have incomes of less than $75,000, and be a high school or college graduate. After controlling for the effects of age, gender, race, income, education, and population density, individuals reporting that they never wear a seat belt while driving or as a passenger are more likely to report using alcohol and drugs (adjusted odds, 1.61–2.56), committing antisocial behaviors including felony offenses (adjusted odds, 2.13–3.57), and possess a dual diagnosis (adjusted odds, 1.62–1.73).ConclusionsFindings indicate that non-seat belt use is convergent with a spectrum of serious antisocial behavior and comorbid psychological distress. Importantly, results suggest that standard seat belt use policies and campaigns may not be effective for non-seat belt using individuals and a targeted approach may be needed.     

Addiction and crime: The importance of asymmetry in offending and the life-course

The intersection of addiction and crime is pervasive. Not only is there a high prevalence of substance use and substance use disorders among criminal justice populations that is substantially higher than in the general population, but also offenders with substance use disorders are more likely to be rearrested. The authors believe there are several broad points that addiction researchers and criminologists have come to understand that are important to bring together. In this commentary, the asymmetrical nature of crime (i.e., a small subset account for the lion's share of offending) and the value of a developmentally sensitive life-course approach to inform criminal behavior are elucidated and discussed. These 2 themes are intertwined. High-impact offenders have extensive drug use histories and need intervention (policy or individual-level), but the form and content and ultimately the effectiveness of the intervention may depend on what period in the life-course the intervention is to be implemented.     

Attacks Intended to Seriously Harm and Co-occurring Drug Use Among Youth in the United States

Background: While it is known that substance use and violence co-occur, less is understood in terms of how this relationship might vary based on the degree of youth involvement in violence. Objectives: This study sought to examine the prevalence and degree that substance use disorders (SUD) and related intrapersonal and contextual factors were associated with violent attacks. Method: Repeated cross-sectional data from a population-based study (National Survey on Drug Use and Health) of youth ages 12–17 (n = 216,852) in the United States between 2002 and 2013 were pooled to increase the analytic sample size. Survey multinomial regression was used to examine psychosocial and substance use differences between youth reporting episodic (1–2 times, n = 13,091; 5.84%) and repeated violent attacks (3+ times, n = 1,819; 0.83%) in contrast with youth reporting no attacks. Additional analyses examined the association of sociodemographic, intrapersonal, and contextual factors with SUD among youth reporting violent attacks. Results: The prevalence of SUD among youth with no attacks was 6% compared to 22% among episodic and 36% among repeatedly violent youth. Violence-involved youth were substantially more likely to experience elevated sensation-seeking, easy drug access, and recent drug offers and less likely to benefit from religiosity and protective substance use beliefs. Conclusions/Importance: Findings highlight the importance of distinguishing between the various gradations of violence among youth in understanding the relationship between substance use and violence, and shed light on the intrapersonal and contextual factors that can help identify violent youth at greatest risk for substance use problems.     

Overeating and binge eating among immigrants in the United States: new terrain for the healthy immigrant hypothesis

Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology - Prior research indicates that, compared to individuals born in the United States (US), immigrants are less likely to experience mental health and...