Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 4, 2026
07:30
Brain Morphology of Cannabis Users With or Without Psychosis: A Pilot MRI Study
Published on: August 18, 2020
Deviant socialization mediates transmissible and contextual risk on cannabis use disorder development: a prospective
Ralph E Tarter1, Diana Fishbein, Levent Kirisci
1University of Pittsburgh, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Pittsburgh, PA 15261, USA. tarter@pitt.edu
Addiction (Abingdon, England)
|February 16, 2011
Summary
Genetic risk and adverse social factors in childhood predict adult cannabis use disorder. Peer influence and non-normative attitudes mediate this pathway, highlighting the role of deviant socialization.
Area of Science:
- Psychiatry
- Genetics
- Developmental Psychology
Background:
- Cannabis use disorder (CUD) has complex developmental origins.
- Understanding the interplay of genetic, familial, and peer influences is crucial for prevention.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate how transmissible risk, family, and peer factors influence the development of CUD.
- To model the developmental pathway from childhood risk to adult CUD.
Main Methods:
- Longitudinal family high-risk study tracking sons from childhood to adulthood.
- Utilized the transmissible liability index (TLI) and measures of parent-child relationship, behavior, attitudes, and peer groups.
Main Results:
- Transmissible risk for substance use disorder (SUD) in childhood predicted adult CUD.
- Affiliation with deviant peers and non-normative attitudes at age 16 mediated the link between early risk and later CUD.
- This pathway involved illegal drug use at age 19.
Conclusions:
- Deviant socialization, influenced by transmissible risk and poor parent-child relationships, is key to CUD development.
- Early intervention targeting peer influences and family environment may mitigate CUD risk.
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