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Updated: Jun 30, 2026
14:21
Creating Dynamic Images of Short-lived Dopamine Fluctuations with lp-ntPET: Dopamine Movies of Cigarette Smoking
Published on: August 6, 2013
Reducing early smokers' risk for future smoking and other problem behavior: insights from a five-year longitudinal
Phyllis L Ellickson1, Joan S Tucker, David J Klein
1RAND Corporation, Santa Monica, California 90407-2138, USA. Phyllis_Ellickson@rand.org
Summary
Protective factors like family and good grades, and risk factors like peer substance use, predict adolescent smoking and behavior. Interventions should target these areas for at-risk youth.
Area of Science:
- Adolescent Health
- Behavioral Science
- Public Health
Background:
- Adolescent smoking and problem behaviors are significant public health concerns.
- Identifying predictors in at-risk youth is crucial for effective prevention strategies.
- Early initiation of smoking is a key indicator for future substance use and behavioral issues.
Purpose of the Study:
- To identify risk and protective factors for regular smoking and multiple problem behaviors.
- To examine these factors across early and later adolescence.
- To define at-risk youth as those who initiated smoking by grade 7.
Main Methods:
- Longitudinal study of 2,000 at-risk youth from California and Oregon.
- Data collected at grades 7, 10, and 12.
- Multivariate regression analyses used to predict grade 12 outcomes based on earlier data.
Main Results:
- Protective factors: intact family, good grades, parental disapproval of substance use.
- Risk factors: substance-using peers, school problems.
- Adult substance use predicted early adolescent behavior; pro-drug beliefs predicted later adolescent behavior.
Conclusions:
- Interventions should include peer resistance training and parental involvement.
- Improving educational performance is vital for both middle and high school students.
- Targeting pro-drug beliefs may be more effective for older adolescents.
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