published_or_final_version / Social Work / Master / Master of Social Work

The purpose of this study was to assess the prevalence of crack use among adolescents living in a large southwestern city, and to study relationships between crack use and marijuana use. This included investigating reasons as well as associated circumstances for both crack use and marijuana use; and whether marijuana use would predict crack use. High school seniors (N = 269) were asked to disclose information about their marijuana (and hashish) use and non-use, and crack use and non-use. Preliminary computation of the results revealed only 2.6% of respondents indicating crack use; thus statistical analysis of that data was not warranted. Computation of the results indicated 34% of respondents reporting marijuana use; therefore, the focus of the study shifted to marijuana exclusively, resulting in a final sample size of n = 92. Two specific phenomena were investigated: crack use and marijuana use. Discriminant analysis of the data was performed to (1) measure differences in frequencies (indicated as "seldom" and "occasionally") of respondents' marijuana use a predicted by particular circumstances and reasons for its use; and (2) to measure whether students' marijuana use would predict crack use. Statistical significance using Chi square and canonical correlation was calculated for each set of variables. Chi square (5) = 46.10 yielded significance (p <.001) for five of nine circumstances as predictors of marijuana use: "At a party" was the best discriminating variable. Chi square (4) = 36.73 yielded significance (p <.001) for four of thirteen reasons as predictors of marijuana use; "To get high" was the best discriminating reasons variable. The study succeeded in determining several drug-related attributions: (1) there is one-third less prevalence of crack use among adolescents in the area being researched than is reported nationally; (2) there is about the same prevalence of marijuana use as nationally reported; (3) there are specific associated circumstances which predict frequency of marijuana use; and (4) there are specific associated reasons which predict frequency of marijuana use. Finally, although it is not data-based, marijuana appears to be a predictor of crack use, i.e., all seven crack users reported having used marijuana prior to crack use.

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This study examined the relationship between psychological birth order and substance abuse and suicide in adolescents. It was hypothesized that adolescents operating from a perceived inferior position as measured by the Psychological Birth Order Instrument would be more likely to abuse substances and/or engage in self-destructive behavior. Ninety-five adolescents from Southern Arizona volunteered to participate in this study. The forty-eight treatment subjects were current in-patients at a psychiatric hospital. The control group consisted of forty-seven high school students. The results indicated that there was a difference in perceptions between adolescents in treatment versus those not in treatment for substance abuse and/or suicide. There was a significant relationship at the.005 level and it was concluded that adolescents operating from a perceived inferior position are more likely to abuse substances and/or attempt suicide.

The application of multiple medications has successively increased during a number of years and has thereby increased the potential risks of adverse drug reactions, interactions and non-adherence to drug therapy. This may result in unnecessary health expenditure, directly due to redundant drug sales, and indirectly due to the increased hospitalization caused by drug-related problems. The overall aim of this thesis was to investigate the occurrence and development of drug use, multiple medication, and polypharmacy in an entire national population by using individual-based data on dispensed drugs. The studies (I-V) in the thesis are based on data of dispensed prescription drugs for up to 6.2 million individuals obtained from the Swedish Prescribed Drug Register. The data in the studies cover different periods of time between July 2005-Sept 2008, and the data have been analyzed on the basis of epidemiological measures and statistical methods. The major conclusions of the studies are: the prevalence of dispensed drugs and multiple medications was extensive in all age groups and was higher for females than for males. Multiple medications should be regarded as a risk in terms of potential drug-drug interactions and adverse drug reactions in all age groups (I). Regional differences in the prevalence of polypharmacy were observed and partly explained by the regional age distribution in Sweden. The use of a novel weighted polypharmacy index indicated regional differences in drug therapy for individuals with polypharmacy (II). The number of drugs used by an individual not only increased the potential risks associated with multiple drug use, but also the potential burden of an increased therapeutic intensity, especially for elderly (III). Individuals with ten or more drugs accounted for almost fifty percent of the total acquisition costs of dispensed drugs. Therefore, interventions with a focus on the reduction of the number of prescription drugs for the small group of patients with a large number of different drugs may also result in a substantial reduction in the total drug costs (IV). In spite of national and regional efforts to reduce polypharmacy, the prevalence of polypharmacy and excessive polypharmacy and the mean number of drugs per individual continued to increase in Sweden 2005-2008 (V). The observed year-by-year increase in polypharmacy underlines the importance of monitoring the development of drug use in all ages. Individual-based registers studies of dispensed drugs provide high quality data and could serve as the basis for further research and also in terms of training health care personnel. It can also be used as a base for interventions and the evaluation of drug use. To enable better comparisons on drug use and its consequences, there is a need for standards concerning measurements, classification and criteria which encompass all types of medications. For clinicians, there is a need for information concerning the patient’s actual use of all different types of medications.

The aim of this study was to examine the experienced study situation and drug use of program students at the Linnaeus University and to investigate whether there was a connection. With this survey, we wanted an oversight of the situation which could be a basis for efforts. The empirical material was collected via an online survey, answered by 135 students. Of the 135 respondents, 65% were women, 34% men and 1% other. Women aged 23-27 represent the majority of respondents. The results showed that there was a present drug use among the students however it didn’t indicate a widespread and continuous use. The experienced study situation showed that the students felt moderate to high stress over their situation. No significant connection could be seen between drug use and the experienced study situation.

This study examines the effect of strain on youth drug use in Turkey. With its many unexplored fields, Turkey is a haven for social researchers. Adolescent crime and especially drug use is an important yet poorly studied subject in Turkey. Of the many correlates of youth drug use, strain as asserted by the General Strain Theory of Agnew (1985) is chosen as the main explanatory variable in this research. Using Youth in Europe (YIE) survey data administered to a representative sample of high school students in Istanbul City, correlates of marijuana, LSD, amphetamine and ecstasy use among adolescents are analyzed in this study. The logistic regression analyses reveal that, as hypothesized, strain operationalized by the negative life events experienced and having been exposed to physical violence, significantly affect drug use. In order to enhance our understanding of this significance and measure the magnitude of the effect controlling for the effect of other explanatory variables, Post simulation developed and advised by Long and Freese (2006) is used.

Young adults are most at-risk for the non-medical use of prescription drugs (NMUPD) and many of its associated negative consequences. Understanding this population’s motivations for use can help to inform efforts to reduce NMUPD. Past research has been limited in scope, consisting primarily of cross-sectional work with college students focusing on prescription stimulants. The current study researched how motivations for NMUPD changed over young adulthood using three waves of data from a longitudinal, nationally representative sample of 14,990 19 to 24 year olds in the Monitoring the Future study cohorts collected between 1976 to 2013. Prescription stimulants, central nervous system (CNS) depressants, and opioids were investigated, along with sex and college attendance as potential moderators. Differences in NMUPD motivations for young adults who initiated NMUPD in high school versus in early young adulthood were studied. Additionally, motivation patterns of new users were investigated. Analyses indicated that both recreational and self-treatment motivations commonly were reported over time and across drug classes, with four to five popular motivations acknowledged in each class. In general, generalized estimated equations repeated measure analyses found that NMUPD motivations remained relatively stable across young adulthood, with some reductions for the motivations of experimentation and boredom, and an increase in select self-treatment motivations. Overall, men were more likely to endorse recreational motivations, while women were more likely to endorse self-treatment motivations, though this varied somewhat by prescription drug class. Young adults not enrolled in college courses were more likely to endorse using stimulants non-medically for different reasons than their peers who were enrolled. There also were differences in motivations based on if young adults initiated NMUPD in high school compared to when they were 19/20 years old. However, motivations were fairly consistent across young adult development regardless of when NMUPD was initiated. These data suggest that efforts aimed at preventing or reducing NMUPD in young adult populations should include targets to reduce both self-treatment and recreational motivations; may need to be tailored by prescription drug class, sex, and college attendance status; could start in high school; and can be used for new and continued users across young adulthood.

The subject of this thesis is the issue of criminological aspects of drug-related crime. This topic is considerably wide, therefore this thesis focuses on two specific aspects of this particular crime: the relationship between drug use and crime and the criminal careers of drug-addicted offenders. Since these two aspects are still being overlooked in the Czech Republic, the aim of this thesis is to introduce this issue using foreign literature and to complement it with my own research carried out within the Capital City of Prague. The first part of the thesis (Chapters 1 and 2) represents an introduction into the issue of drug-related crime. First, it explains basic notions that are essential to know for easy orientation within the thesis. Then, it discusses the history of drug abuse in the Czech Republic from 1918 until nowadays, and also complements current situation with an actual drug policy strategy. The second part of this thesis (Chapters 3 and 4) focuses on acquainting with the issue of the relationship between drug use and crime and the criminal careers. Using mostly foreign literature, it looks at these specific problems from two different perspectives: describing both the most famous theories and models and the most recent or well-known empirical researches. The last part of the thesis...

SLAVÍČKOVÁ, T. Tématicko apercepční test u uživatelů drog. Pedagogická fakulta Univerzity Karlovy v Praze, 2012. 140 s. Diplomová práce. Diplomová práce měla za cíl odhalit specifika použití TAT u problémových a závislých uživatelů drog a na základě srovnání s výsledky, kterých v testu dosáhla kontrolní skupina, přinést evidenci pro zhodnocení diagnostického potenciálu TAT u uživatelů drog. Výzkumné šetření bylo provedeno v Kolíně na klientech nízkoprahového kontaktního centra, které poskytuje služby harm reduction skryté populaci uživatelů nealkoholových drog. Těžiště výzkumu bezprostředně souvisí s metodou analýzy příběhů, jejichž vyprávění bylo u probandů vyvoláno předložením tabulí TAT. K analýze příběhů byl použit psychometricky zakotvený skórovací systém SCORS (Social Cognition - Object Relation Scale) současného amerického autora D. Westena. Použití TAT u uživatelů drog tak bylo zaměřeno na zhodnocení úrovně jejich fungování v sociálních vztazích. Metodologický princip diplomové práce tkví v induktivním usuzování a statistickém zpracování dat. Způsob zpracování dat, který je až na několik oblastí výhradně v režii kvantitativních metod, spolu s dostatečně velkým souborem zkoumaných osob umožňuje zobecnění důležitých rozdílů ve výsledcích TAT u výzkumné a kontrolní skupiny. V rámci analýzy...