Longitudinal Comparison of Perceived Risk of Substance Use Behaviors and Accessibility among Homeschooled and Traditional Schooled High School Students

Alcohol, tobacco, and other drug (ATOD) use has been well documented among U.S. adolescents, but little is known about the influence of homeschooling versus traditional schooling on perceived risk of various substance use behaviors, as well as the accessibility of ATOD in these specific groups. As such, the purpose of this study was to compare the perceived risk of various substance use behavior and accessibility among homeschooled and traditional high school students over time. Data were derived from the 2003, 2005, and 2007 National Survey on Drug Use and Health which measures the prevalence and correlates of drug use among residence of the United States. A total of 14,703, 15,219, and 14,739 adolescents aged 14-18 completed the survey in 2003, 2005, and 2007, respectively. In 2007, a significantly larger percentage of homeschooled high school students perceived that smoking was a risk to one's health, yet a significantly fewer percentage of homeschooled students viewed marijuana, cocaine, and heroin as a risk to one's health. Additionally, a significantly larger percentage of homeschooled students indicated that cocaine, crack, and heroin were easily obtainable, yet a smaller percentage of these students had been approached by someone selling drugs. Similar results were also found in 2003 and 2005. This study also assesses the factors that may have influenced these results and a discussion of the implications for school personnel and parents who homeschool high school aged students will be explored.