Community influences on alcohol and marijuana use

Objective: To investigate the association between community characteristics derived from the Social Development Model and alcohol and marijuana use by Cape Town adolescents. Method: A stratified sampling procedure was used to select 1,239 students in grades 8 & 11 from 39 non-private schools in Cape Town, South Africa. We fitted a series of nested structural equation models to assess associations between community constructs and substance use. Results: Separate models were calculated for alcohol and marijuana use across all racially classified social groups (RCSGs). Both models provided an excellent fit to the data (χ2 (83) = 291, 293, Rho = 0.94, 0.94, CFI = 0.96, 0.96, RMSEA = 0.04, 0.04, alcohol, marijuana, respectively). Models of alcohol and marijuana use for each RCSG did not significantly differ when factor loadings and factor variances were constrained across groups. Community affirmation was associated with less alcohol use for whites and less marijuana use for blacks. Antisocial adult behavior was positively related to both alcohol and marijuana use for all RCSGs, except for blacks' marijuana use. Opinions of the neighborhood were not associated with alcohol or marijuana use for any RCSG. Finally, subjective adult norms (adolescents' perception that adults did not view certain behaviors as wrong) were associated with alcohol use for white and colored students and with marijuana use for white students. Conclusions: This analysis illustrates the influence of community variables on adolescent substance use. It suggests targeting certain aspects of the community for interventions when attempting to reduce adolescent substance use.