Antisocial behavior: its relation to selected sociodemographic variables and alcohol and drug use among Mexican...

This study is part of the National School Survey on drug use by high school students in Mexico. The validity, reliability, and results of the Antisocial Acts Scale in Mexico City (n = 3,501) are discussed. Using factorial analyses of the Antisocial Acts Scale, two major sources of variability were observed. The first one is related to antisocial acts with severe social consequences, in which violence and drug selling are included, and the second one is related to thefts. Significant differences were found in the number of offenses among groups of different gender, age, and occupation during the previous year. More antisocial acts were perpetrated by alcohol and drug users than by nonusers. In a logistic regression model, it was found that the main risk factors for perpetrating antisocial acts were being male, using alcohol, and using other drugs.