The role of the church in adolescent drug education

Despite drug education and prevention efforts, adolescent substance use is on the rise in the United States. In an exploration of correlates of substance use and components of effective drug education, three dimensions of religiosity--religious proscriptiveness, involvement in church activities, and the importance an individual places on church activities--emerge. Each has previously demonstrated an inverse relationship with adolescent substance use. In the present study, interactions among these three dimensions were evaluated in 238 adolescents. Religious proscriptiveness interacted with church involvement and with church importance in relation to adolescent use of alcohol, cigarettes, marijuana, and other drugs. Additionally, among adolescents who had ever used alcohol, a positive relationship was observed between religious proscriptiveness and binge drinking such that the highest incidence of binge drinking was reported by those affiliated with proscriptive religious groups. The church may be an important vehicle for drug education. Implications for drug education are discussed, and further research is suggested.