Substance abuse and American Indians: prevalence and susceptibility

The use of alcohol and other substances by American Indians has received considerable popular attention over the years. Empirical studies of prevalence for all types of substance abuse, however, have generally been few and limited in scope. In this paper prevalence studies among Indians are reviewed and analyzed by comparison with each other and national studies. In addition, issues important to the research of Indian alcohol and drug abuse are discussed. Finally a specific scheme of susceptibility is proposed which may explain the patterns of variation in both tribal and individual substance abuse.