Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 22, 2026

Social Defeat Stress Model for Adolescent C57BL/6 Male and Female Mice
Published on: March 15, 2024
Longitudinal relations among negative affect, substance use, and peer deviance during the transition from middle to
W Alex Mason1, Julia E Hitch, Richard L Spoth
1National Research Institute, Boys Town, 14100 Crawford Street, Omaha, NE 68010, USA. masonwa@boystown.org
Abstract:
The transition from middle to late adolescence brings challenges that increase risk for emotional, behavioral, and social problems. The nature of the associations among these types of problems is poorly understood. This National Institute on Drug Abuse-funded study examined longitudinal relations among negative affect, substance use, and peer deviance from ages 16 to 18 years. Multiwave youth and parent questionnaire data collected from 429 sixth graders (222 girls) and their families residing in the rural Midwestern United States and recruited in 1993 were analyzed via structural equation modeling. Consistent with the self-medication hypothesis, negative affect statistically predicted increased substance use over time. Implications for theory and prevention are discussed and the study's limitations are noted.
Related Concept Videos
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...
Conduct Disorder
Bullying
Cognitive Development During Adolescence
Drug Abuse and Addiction: Pharmacological Phenomena
Substance Use Disorders Affecting Sleep
Understanding the concepts of physical dependence,...

