There is broad agreement that neighborhood contexts are important for adolescent development, but there is less consensus about their association with adolescent smoking and alcohol use. Few studies have examined associations between neighborhood socioeconomic contexts and smoking and alcohol use while also accounting for differences in family and peer risk factors for substance use. Data drawn from the Seattle Social Development Project (N = 808), a gender-balanced (female = 49%), multiethnic, theory-driven longitudinal study originating in Seattle, WA, were used to estimate trajectories of smoking and alcohol use from 5th to 9th grade. Time-varying measures of neighborhood socioeconomic, family, and peer factors were associated with smoking and alcohol use at each wave after accounting for average growth in smoking and alcohol use over time and demographic differences. Results indicated that living in more socioeconomically disadvantaged neighborhoods, lower family income, lower family general functioning, more permissive family smoking environments, and affiliation with deviant peers were independently associated with increased smoking. Lower family functioning, more permissive family alcohol use environments, and deviant peers were independently associated with increased alcohol use. The effect of neighborhood disadvantage on smoking was mediated by family income and deviant peers while the effect of neighborhood disadvantage on alcohol use was mediated by deviant peers alone. Family functioning and family substance use did not mediate associations between neighborhood disadvantage and smoking or alcohol use. The results highlight the importance of neighborhood, family, and peer factors in early adolescent smoking and alcohol use. Future studies should examine the unique association of neighborhood disadvantage with adolescent smoking net of family socioeconomics, functioning, and substance use, as well as peer affiliations. Better understanding of the role of contextual factors in early adolescent smoking and alcohol use can help bolster efforts to prevent both short and long harms from substance use.

Purpose As marijuana laws have become more permissive, survey data on adolescents in the United States have shown an increase in marijuana-specific risk factors, particularly in the proportion of youth who do not perceive marijuana use as harmful. Prevalence of marijuana use among youth, however, has changed little. Using representative data from Washington State, which has legalized medical and nonmedical marijuana for adults, we examined two competing hypotheses to account for this divergence in population trends. Methods Data were from 2000 – 2014 biennial Washington State surveys of 10th-grade students. First, we assessed whether associations between marijuana use and marijuana-specific risk factors have weakened over time. Second, we examined whether decreases in alcohol and cigarette use can account for the lack of expected increase in marijuana use prevalence. Results Despite stability in marijuana use prevalence, there were increases in marijuana-specific risk factors of low perceived harm, youth favorable attitudes about use, and perceived community attitudes favorable to use. Associations between marijuana use and marijuana-use predictors varied little across time; if anything, the positive association between low perceived harm and marijuana use grew stronger. Decreases in prevalence of alcohol and cigarette use largely accounted for stability in marijuana use during a period when marijuana risk factors increased. Conclusions Decreases in other types of substance use or in the underlying, common risk for substance use may have mitigated effects of increases in marijuana-specific risk factors.

As of January 2016, 23 U.S. states and the District of Columbia have legalized medical or nonmedical cannabis, with more likely to follow. This dynamic policy context represents a substantial challenge for policy evaluation. Part I of this article provides a summary of state-level cannabis policy components across states and federal action regarding state-level policies. Part II presents a detailed history of cannabis policies in Washington State from 1998 to 2015 and analyzes the potential impacts of the policy changes on cannabis supply and demand. As an early adopter of both medical and nonmedical cannabis policies, Washington State provides an excellent example of the key elements to be considered in evaluating the relationship between policy changes and cannabis use. We highlight the importance of the interplay of federal enforcement priorities and previously adopted state-level cannabis regimes in interpreting the potential impacts of new cannabis policies.

The present study used secondary data gathered from a statewide random sample of 1,073 adult women enrolled in Utah's single-parent cash assistance program and logistic regression to examine associations between self-reported physical, emotional, and sexual abuse during childhood and later life physical and mental health indicators. Results demonstrated significant associations between low-income women's self-reports of physical, emotional, or sexual abuse in childhood, and current and lifetime anxiety disorder, domestic violence, current posttraumatic stress disorder, bipolar disorder, physical health or mental health issues, and any mental health diagnosis. These results build on previous research to paint a fuller picture of the associations between childhood abuse and physical and mental health for low-income women in Utah. Consistent with research by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, findings suggest the applicability of conceptualizing childhood abuse as a public health issue. Social workers can play an integral role in promoting and implementing broader screening practices, connecting affected individuals with long-term interventions, and applying research findings to the design and provision of services within a public health model.