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Author: Tam, Christina
Resulting in 1 citation.
1. Lui, Camillia K.
Witbrodt, Jane
Li, Libo
Tam, Christina
Williams, Edwina
Guo, Zihe
Mulia, Nina
Associations between Early Childhood Adversity and Behavioral, Substance Use, and Academic Outcomes in Childhood through Adolescence in a U.S. Longitudinal Cohort
Drug and Alcohol Dependence published online (3 February 2023): 109795.
Also: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0376871623000339
Cohort(s): Children of the NLSY79, NLSY79 Young Adult
Publisher: Elsevier
Keyword(s): Academic Development; Alcohol Use; Behavior Problems Index (BPI); Childhood Adversity/Trauma; Drug Use; High School Completion/Graduates; Peabody Individual Achievement Test (PIAT- Math); Peabody Individual Achievement Test (PIAT- Reading)

Background: Childhood adversity is strongly associated with adolescent substance use, but few epidemiologic studies have investigated early childhood adversity (ECA) before age 5. This study investigated pathways by which ECA is associated with adolescent alcohol and cannabis use and high school completion through childhood behavioral and academic mediators and their reciprocal effects.

Methods: Data were from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979-Child/Young Adult Cohort which surveyed children born 1984-1999 and followed through 2016 (n=5,521). Outcomes included alcohol and cannabis use frequency at ages 15-18, and high school completion by age 19. ECA at ages 0-4 was a cumulative score of maternal heavy drinking/drug use, low emotional support, low cognitive stimulation, and household poverty. Multilevel path models were conducted with ECA, childhood mediators (behavioral ( externalizing and internalizing problems) and academics (reading and math scores), accounting for demographics and confounders.

Results: ECA was indirectly associated with adolescent cannabis frequency through mediators of externalizing/internalizing problems, low academics, and early cannabis onset before age 14. ECA was also indirectly associated with alcohol frequency via the same mediators, but not early alcohol onset. Greater behavioral problems elevated substance use risk; whereas, low academics reduced risk. Reciprocal effects were evident between childhood behavioral problems and cannabis frequency to high school completion.

Bibliography Citation
Lui, Camillia K., Jane Witbrodt, Libo Li, Christina Tam, Edwina Williams, Zihe Guo and Nina Mulia. "Associations between Early Childhood Adversity and Behavioral, Substance Use, and Academic Outcomes in Childhood through Adolescence in a U.S. Longitudinal Cohort." Drug and Alcohol Dependence published online (3 February 2023): 109795.