Similar and different precursors to drug use and delinquency among African Americans and Puerto Ricans

Correlational and net regression techniques were used to examine the commonalities and differences in risks for later drug use and delinquency among African American and Puerto Rican adolescents. Eight-eight percent of the risks were significantly related to both problem behaviors. Within the personality, family, peer, ecology, and acculturation domains, many risks independently contributed to the prediction of each problem. Only three risks had a significantly stronger relationship to one of the problem behaviors than to the other. Finding so many common predictors supports a general dimension of problem behavior and highlights the psychosocial risks for drug use and delinquency. The commonalities suggest that interventions targeting these adolescent risks might reduce both problem behaviors.