Risk factors of adolescent drug use: an affect-based interpretation

We examined the continuity and stability of relational patterns among putative risk factors and measures of total drug use over the age period of 12 to 18. Using Marlatt's (1987) affect-based model of moderation versus dependence, risk factors were classified on the basis of their assumed relationships to (a) positive and negative affect and (b) low versus high constraint. It was hypothesized that two distinct developmental pathways characterize the emergence of drug use in a normal population sample of adolescents: one indicative of low constraint and a predominance of positive affect, the other indicative of low constraint and a predominance of negative affect. Results of principal components analyses generally support the hypothesis. Theoretical and methodological implications are discussed.