Psychosocial correlates of adolescent drug-taking behavior

This research was designed to test the extent to which personality, environmental factors, and conventional behaviours predict drug-taking among a sample of Australian high school students. Respondents (n = 199; 101 females and 98 males) indicated the extent of their alcohol, tobacco and marijuana use. Correlational analyses showed broad support for the view that personality and environmental factors as well as conventional behaviours are related to drug use. Regression analyses showed that the significant predictors of drug use vary according to the drug in question. In particular, the predictors of mood-enhancing drugs (alcohol and marijuana) appear distinctive from the predictors of tobacco use. The results are discussed in the context of previous research in this area.