Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 14, 2026

Handwriting Analysis Indicates Spontaneous Dyskinesias in Neuroleptic Naïve Adolescents at High Risk for Psychosis
Published on: November 21, 2013
Externalizing behaviors as predictors of substance initiation trajectories among rural adolescents
Catherine J Lillehoj1, Linda Trudeau, Richard Spoth
1Partnerships in Prevention Science Institute, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa 50010-8296, USA. catheri@iastate.edu
Purpose:
The purpose of the current study was to investigate the influence of externalizing behaviors on substance initiation trajectories among rural adolescents over a 42-month period.
Methods:
Data were obtained from 198 rural adolescents (105 boys, 93 girls) who were participating in a longitudinal study. At the baseline assessment, subjects were on average 12.3 years of age.
Results:
Controlling for gender, higher baseline levels of externalizing were associated with a greater number of substances initiated over time. The initiation trajectory was curvilinear. Girls, compared with boys, reported a lower number of substances initiated at baseline, a greater linear growth trajectory, and a deceleration of growth over time.
Conclusions:
The influence of adolescent externalizing behaviors on baseline levels and growth trajectories of substance initiation and the utility of latent growth curve modeling in the study of longitudinal change are discussed.
Related Concept Videos
Self-Presentation: Self-Monitoring and Self-Handicapping
Conduct Disorder
Substance Use Disorders Affecting Sleep
Understanding the concepts of physical dependence,...
Drug Dependence
Influence of Parents and Peers on Identity
Parental Influence on Identity Development
Parents serve as primary guides and managers in an adolescent's life, offering support instrumental in decision-making and personal growth. This guiding role...
Drug Abuse and Addiction: Pharmacological Phenomena
