Search Results

Author: Chilcoat, Howard
Resulting in 2 citations.
1. Miech, Richard A.
Chilcoat, Howard
Maternal Education and Adolescent Drug Use: A Longitudinal Analysis of Causation and Selection Over a Generation
Social Science and Medicine 60,4 (February 2005): 725-735.
Also: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0277953604002928
Cohort(s): NLSY79, NLSY79 Young Adult
Publisher: Elsevier
Keyword(s): Drug Use; Intergenerational Patterns/Transmission; Mothers, Education; Substance Use

Current evidence indicates that in the USA illegal drug use among adolescents between the 1980s and 1990s became significantly more prevalent in families with lower maternal education in comparison to families with higher maternal education. In this study, we examine whether this inter-generational change results from either (a) a changing influence of socioeconomic status on drug use, as predicted by the inter-generational social 'causation' hypothesis, or (b) a negative influence of drug use on socioeconomic status, as predicted by the inter-generational social 'selection/drift' hypothesis. The analyses are based on the US National Longitudinal Study of 1979, which includes information on drug use for both a nationally representative sample of respondents aged 19–27 in 1984, as well as drug use information for the children of these respondents, who were aged 18–27 in 1998. The results indicate that inter-generation change in cocaine and marijuana use resulted almost entirely from social causation. These findings support illegal drug use as a good candidate for analyses in the 'fundamental cause' tradition that seek to understand the social factors that concentrate poor health and health behaviors in the lower social strata over historical time.
Bibliography Citation
Miech, Richard A. and Howard Chilcoat. "Maternal Education and Adolescent Drug Use: A Longitudinal Analysis of Causation and Selection Over a Generation." Social Science and Medicine 60,4 (February 2005): 725-735.
2. Miech, Richard A.
Chilcoat, Howard
The Formation of a Socioeconomic Disparity: A Case Study of Cocaine and Marijuana Use in the 1990s
American Journal of Preventive Medicine 32,6,Supplement (June 2007): S171-S176.
Also: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0749379707001092
Cohort(s): NLSY79
Publisher: Elsevier
Keyword(s): Discrimination, Racial/Ethnic; Discrimination, Sex; Drug Use; Educational Attainment; Ethnic Differences; Gender Differences; Health Factors; Hispanics; Racial Differences; Socioeconomic Factors; Substance Use

Background: Around the year 1990, the reputation of cocaine use changed from glamorous to undesirable, and at the same time, a socioeconomic disparity in cocaine use emerged. This study examined (1) whether the socioeconomic disparity was created by differential incidence, differential cessation, or both, (2) whether a socioeconomic disparity also developed in marijuana use, and (3) whether disparities formed across race, Hispanic ethnicity, and/or gender.

Methods: The analyses center on 6544 respondents aged 14–21 in 1979 in the National Longitudinal Survey of 1979 that provided information on past-year use of powder cocaine and marijuana use before and after 1990—specifically, in 1984, 1988, 1992, 1994, and 1998.

Results: Both differential incidence and differential cessation across education contributed to the formation of the socioeconomic disparity in cocaine use, although differential cessation played a more influential role in this cohort. A socioeconomic disparity in marijuana use also came about around the same time. No emerging disparities by race, Hispanic ethnicity, or gender were observed.

Conclusions: This case study suggests that the redefinition of a health behavior as unhealthy will result in a socioeconomic disparity in the behavior across socioeconomic strata as a result of both differential incidence and cessation, but disparities will not necessarily form by race, ethnicity, or gender. [Copyright 2007 Elsevier]

Copyright of American Journal of Preventive Medicine is the property of Elsevier Science Inc. NY/Journals and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (C opyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Bibliography Citation
Miech, Richard A. and Howard Chilcoat. "The Formation of a Socioeconomic Disparity: A Case Study of Cocaine and Marijuana Use in the 1990s." American Journal of Preventive Medicine 32,6,Supplement (June 2007): S171-S176.