The Gateway Drug in Young Adult College Students: The Tobacco or Marijuana Products They Start With and Subsequent Use Profiles Público

Park, Amy Jung eun Park (Spring 2019)

Permanent URL: https://etd.library.emory.edu/concern/etds/8p58pf18v?locale=pt-BR
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Abstract

Background: Little research has been done on the application of the gateway theory in relation to the current tobacco market, as well as in the current policy and social norms context regarding marijuana use. We examined: the extent to which first product used predicted subsequent use of tobacco and marijuana, specifically total number of products used in the lifetime, total number of products currently used, and current use of each product.

Methods: Data was from a two-year longitudinal study consisting of 3,418 U.S. young adult college student in Georgia. Correlates we examined were sociodemographic, psychosocial factors, and parental use of cigarettes, ATPs, and marijuana. Our outcomes were tobacco products, lifetime ever use, and past 30-day use.

Results: More products ever used was significantly associated with being older, male, other race, higher parental education, attending public school, living in an urban environment, experiencing more ACEs, more ADHD symptoms, and parental use of ATPs or marijuana, and SLT as first tobacco product. More products used in the past 30-days was significantly associated with being younger, other race, sexual minority, lower parental education, experiencing more ACEs, more ADHD and depressive symptoms, parental use of marijuana, and choosing SLT as first tobacco product. Predictors of past 30-day use of each are as follows: cigarettes: first product used not being LCCs, e-cigarettes, hookah, or marijuana; first product used not being marijuana; smokeless tobacco: first product used being smokeless tobacco; e-cigarettes: no significant association with first product used; hookah: first product used being hookah; and marijuana: first product being used not being hookah but being marijuana.

Conclusion: The use of cigarettes as the first product used predicted more products ever used in the lifetime and in the past 30-days, compared to most other products as first product used (excluding SLT). Moreover, there is some specificity in terms of first product use and current product use, particularly for cigarettes, SLT, hookah, and marijuana. Thus, prevention efforts should be informed by this data. Specifically, cigarette use as first product can be considered as an indicator of overall subsequent use risk and recognize the specificity in relation to use trajectories for some products.

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

LITERATURE REVIEW... 4

Cigarettes, Alternative Tobacco Products, and Marijuana Use. 4

The Gateway Theory. 6

Sociodemographic Correlates of Use of Tobacco and Marijuana Products. 8

Psychosocial Correlates of Use of Tobacco and Marijuana. 10

Adverse Childhood Experience………………………………………………………..……………………………………….….10

Depression. 11

Parental Influence on Use of Tobacco Products. 12

Research Aims. 12

METHODS. 13

Procedure and Participants. 13

Measures. 14

First Product Used. 14

Current Tobacco Product or Marijuana Use. 14

Sociodemographic Measures. 15

Setting. 15

Psychosocial Measures. 15

Data Analysis. 16

RESULTS. 16

Number of Products Ever Used. 16

Number of Products Used in the Past 30 Days. 17

Past 30-Day Use of Each Product 17

DISCUSSION.. 18

Limitations. 22

CONCLUSIONS. 22

TABLES. 43

Table 1……………… …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..…44

Table 2……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..45

Table 3……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..46

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