Pubdate: Mon, 04 Jun 2007
Source: Charlotte Observer (NC)
Copyright: 2007 The Charlotte Observer
Contact:  http://www.charlotte.com/mld/observer/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/78
Author: Caterina Roman
Note: From Caterina Roman, a senior research associate at the Urban 
Institute's Justice Policy Center in Washington, D.C.
Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v07/n587/a08.html

WHY RISE IN LATINO DRUG USE?

Latino Students Pick Up the Bad Habits of Their U.S. Peer Group

Jenny Song's May 11 Observer article, "Study finds rising drug use in 
CMS," noted that white students used gateway drugs at higher rates in 
past years, but now minority student rates have reached similar levels.

This recent surge in drug use -- driven primarily by minorities, 
mostly Latinos -- illustrates why we must better understand how 
millions of children in immigrant families in the United States are 
adapting to American culture. Until then, strategies designed to 
prevent high-risk behaviors, such as alcohol and drug use, will fail.

Acculturation is the complicated process by which individuals of one 
culture adopt the language, values, identity and behaviors of another 
culture. A growing body of research suggests that the longer Latinos 
live in the U.S., the more likely they are to engage in high-risk 
behavior. More specifically, studies show that greater, not lower, 
levels of acculturation by Latino youth have been associated with 
increased rates of smoking, drinking and substance abuse, lower rates 
of family formation, and increased rates of dependence on government 
assistance programs.

Similarly, a study of alcohol use among Latino youth found that 
U.S.-born adolescents had higher levels of alcohol use than 
non-U.S.-born youth and that a greater length of time in the United 
States was associated with higher levels of drinking. These youth 
with higher levels of use are not "new to the community"; they have 
already brokered an understanding of the local norms of adolescent behavior.

Another study found that greater youth "Americanism," compared to 
their parents, was linked to substance use because the acculturation 
gap increased family stress and reduced effective parenting. The 
study suggested that intervention efforts targeting the acculturation 
process may be less effective than addressing family-related stress 
and parenting.

Youth violence has been found to follow many of these same patterns. 
A recent study found that third-generation Latinos were at greater 
risk of violence than first- and second-generation immigrants. 
Furthermore, the study found that immigrant status actually lowered 
the potential for violent behavior for all racial/ethnic groups in 
the study, except for certain subpopulations of Latino youth, such as 
Puerto Rican youth.

This finding highlights that, not surprisingly, even within racial 
and ethnic groups, there are important differences that affect 
behavior. Populations that appear homogenous may be very different 
with regard to language use, religious affiliation, value systems and 
country of birth. Fortunately, research also shows that culturally 
relevant prevention programming can provide promising venues for 
reducing high-risk behaviors. But the United States has a long way to 
go in documenting effective practices for at-risk Latino populations.
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MAP posted-by: Richard Lake