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Abstract #157276

Jie W. Weiss, PhD and Michele Mouttapa, PhD. Department of Health Science, California State University, Fullerton, 800 N. State College Blvd., Fullerton, CA 92834, 714-278-4388, jweiss@fullerton.edu

The persistence of tobacco and alcohol use in an era when the harmful effects of these habits is well known constitutes a major puzzle for researchers. Among adolescents, it is not clearly known whether the choice to smoke cigarettes or drink alcohol is the result of rational processes, where costs and benefits are weighed, or is simply governed by impulses.

The purpose of this cross-sectional study was to determine whether the Multi-Attribute Utility (MAU) model is associated with smoking and alcohol use among an ethnically diverse Southern Californian sample of 2,789 7th graders. The MAU model was chosen because it allows researchers to investigate the roles that specific perceived consequences of substance use (e.g., being more popular, feeling more relaxed) plays in the decision to engage or not engage in substance use.

Students completed a paper-and-pencil questionnaire in a classroom setting. The overall results supported the MAU model. Specifically, chi-square analyses revealed that substance users were more likely to have positive utility scores than non-users. Furthermore, logistic regression odds ratios adjusted for the effects of demographic covariates revealed that smoking and alcohol use were associated with higher perceived utilities of using the substance. Implications and future directions are further discussed.

Learning Objectives:

• Understand how specific thought processes influence adolescents' decision to use substances.
• Demostrate how the Multi-Attribute Utility Model can be used to predict an adolescent's likelihood to smoke cigarettes and drink alcohol.

Keywords: Adolescents, Drug Use

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Any relevant financial relationships? No
Any institutionally-contracted trials related to this submission?

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.