The Effect of Acculturation on the Earliest Stage of Substance Use: A Cross National Comparison

Introduction

Ethnicity and culture are important moderators of risk and resilience in the etiology of Latino youth substance use. Although most studies report that more acculturated youth are at increased risk of using substances, findings have been mixed [1]. Few studies have examined levels acculturation in tandem with other processes implicated in the etiology of youth substance use, such as the quality of parenting and peer relationships [2, 3]. Separate studies from our lab indicate that peer and family variables’ influence on Latino substance use is contingent on the youth’s drug of choice (alcohol, cigarettes, or marijuana), phase of drug use being measured (i.e., extent of use or initiation), if immigration was staggered (parents arrive before youth), and whether the sample was international or domestic [4, 5, 6, 7]. Likewise, because exposure to an opportunity to use is the earliest stage of substance use, examining how acculturation relates to exposure is important for prevention scientists. The current study adds to our understanding of the interplay between acculturation and drug use among Latino youth by examining how parent and peer variables influence the probability of being exposed to using alcohol, cigarette, or marijuana in a combined foreign native, US low acculturation, and US high acculturation sample.

Methods

Two samples of 7^th grade youth collected from large metropolitan school districts, one domestic from Oklahoma City (n=632) and the other foreign native from Venezuela (n=280) were merged, and the paths between the variables were tested using zero inflated Poisson (ZIP) models in a multiple group analysis. Starting with an unconstrained model, paths were systematically constrained to find the best fitting, parsimonious model.

 Results

Parenting and peer variables’ influence on exposure to drug use differ by level of acculturation. For the native group, parenting variables predict whether a child will be exposed to marijuana, cigarettes, and alcohol, but peers do not. Among the low acculturation group, peer variables, but not parenting variables predict whether a child will be exposed to marijuana, cigarettes, and alcohol. Finally, a mixture of different parenting and peer variables predict exposure to marijuana, cigarettes, and alcohol among highly acculturated Latino 7^th graders.

 Conclusion

The impact of established predictors of exposure to substance use such as peers and parenting vary by acculturation status. This emphasizes the importance of acculturation status to our understanding of substance use among immigrant populations as it may influence the impact of other important key variables.  Cultural adaptations of prevention programs should test the effectiveness of core components moderated by acculturation status.