Sexual Abuse and Drinking and Drug Use: Implications for Prevention

Abstract

Based on a survey of adolescent females in grades seven through twelve in a suburban school system, the relationship between drinking, drug use, and sexual abuse is examined. Using a holistic approach to adolescent deviant behavior, connections between family, peer, psychosocial factors and drug use and delinquency are explored. Girls who report sexual molestation are more likely to have used a number of drugs, different from the prevalence profile of the larger sample. Significant correlations for younger girls between sexual molestation and delinquency are also reported. Implications for school based drug prevention programs are discussed.

Alcohol abuse in individuals exposed to trauma: A critical review.

“…Using structural equation modeling, they obtained evidence that both forms of abuse appear to precede and substantially contribute to the development of alcohol abuse. This finding is consistent across gender and over time (Watts & Ellis, 1993 ).…”

Stressful life events, smoking behavior, and intentions to smoke among a multiethnic sample of sixth graders

“…socioeconomic status (Covey & Tam 1990;Dryfoos 1990;Conrad et al 1992), psychological distress (Aneshensel & Huba 1983;Stefanis & Kokkeve 1986;Wills 1986), exposure to violence and abuse (Dembo et al 1988;Kashani et al 1992;Watts & Ellis 1993;Rixey 1994;Harrison et al 1997), and family stresses (Newcomb & Harlow 1986;) can result in higher risks for regular smoking among adolescents. Stressful events have also been found to increase the risk of smoking among adolescents (Tyas & Pederson 1998;Simantov et al 2000).…”

The Correlates of Youth Violence: Evidence From the Literature

“…One suggestion is that girls are at a much higher risk for being victimized physically or sexually in both their families of origin as well as through stranger contact, a fact that relates prior victimization with the perpetration of violence. Both Langhinrichsen-Rohling and Neidig (1995) and Watts and Ellis (1993) noted the association of a history of victimization for girls with higher scores on measures of violence and mental health indicators. Cunningham and Leschied (1998) reported the high incidence of victimization of women who subsequently came into contact with the adult justice system in part as a result of their past victimization histories.…”