Sources of alcohol and drug information among Israeli urban adolescents

This article describes a study which investigated sources of alcohol and drug information among Israeli urban adolescents in the north of Israel during the winter of 1993. Data were obtained from a sample of 1,346 students (50.9% males, 49.1% females), who were asked to indicate the amount of information (none, little, much) they had received from ten sources about eight categories of drugs. Among the findings: television is the primary source of information for all drugs, except inhalants, for which newspapers/magazines are the main source. Newspapers/magazines are of secondary importance for the rest of the seven categories of drugs. Teenagers are less likely to receive information from physicians/nurses and relatives than from other sources. Information based on personal experience is prominent concerning alcohol, cigarettes, inhalants and hashish/marijuana, and it prevails more among males than among females (p < .01). Females use school teachers as a source of information in all drug categories more than males (p < .01). There are differences in using various information sources among grades and types of places of living. Information based on personal experience with alcohol is notably correlated with that with cigarettes, whereas information based on personal experience with opiates is correlated with that with stimulants, hallucinogens and hashish/marijuana (p < .001). The mean number of sources of information used by the respondents is the highest concerning alcohol and the lowest concerning depressants. Implications for prevention are discussed.