257429 Social networks and substance abuse trajectories: Initial outcomes from a study of planned migration in Atlanta

Tuesday, October 30, 2012 : 2:30 PM - 2:50 PM

Aaron T. Vissman, MPH , Department of Behavioral Sciences and Health Education, Emory University, Atlanta, GA
Hannah LF Cooper, ScD, SM , Department of Behavioral Sciences and Health Education, Rollins School of Public Health at Emory University, Atlanta, GA
Josalin Hunter-Jones, MSW, MPH , Department of Behavioral Sciences and Health Education, Emory University, Rollins School of Public Health, Atlanta, GA
Conny Karnes, MA , Department of Behavioral Sciences and Health Education, Rollins School of Public Health at Emory University, Atlanta, GA
Richard Rothenberg, MD , Department of Medicine, Division of Infectious Disease, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA
Loida Bonney, MD, MPH , Division of General Medicine, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA
The federally-funded HOPE VI policy is one of the largest planned relocation initiatives in the US, and disperses residents of public housing (PH) complexes to voucher-subsidized housing in the private market; new housing may be scattered across neighborhoods in the target city. Because relocaters have high rates of substance misuse before they move and because past research suggests relocations disrupt social networks, HOPE VI provides an opportunity to prospectively study how changes in networks relate to changes in alcohol and other drug (AOD) use patterns in a vulnerable population. Baseline, 6 and 12-month data were collected (pre and post-relocation) from a cohort of 172 Black PH residents; substance misusers were oversampled. Participants were asked to enumerate past 6-month friendship, kinship, and other network relations. Participants were also queried about demographic characteristics and substance use. Multivariate analyses tested the hypothesis that steeper declines in binge-drinking and AOD dependence would be reported by relocaters who experienced increased network density and decreased number of substance misusers in their network. Covariates included demographics and depression. Hierarchical modeling accounted for baseline clustering within PH complex. Preliminary analyses indicate that relocaters experienced significant declines in binge drinking and AOD-dependence over time. The average 22-year-old woman experienced a 1.2-unit reduction in AOD-dependence for each additional kin/family member added to her network. Residential migration may disrupt social and environmental cues for AOD use. Future research will assess neighborhood-level predictors, and whether perceived network changes are associated with behavioral health over the long term and compared with non-relocaters.

Learning Areas:
Public health or related public policy
Social and behavioral sciences

Learning Objectives:
Compare the ongoing federal voucher program, entitled HOPE-VI, to past initiatives to relocate public housing (PH) residents. Describe characteristics of PH residents participating in a prospective HOPE-VI study. Define measures used in the HOPE-VI study to assess residents' social networks and drug/alcohol dependence. Evaluate changes in social network factors among participants relocated by the HOPE-VI program. Analyze the relationships between social network factors and alcohol/drug abuse trajectories in the first 12-months after PH residents moved to new communities.

Keywords: Public Housing, Drug Abuse

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am currently a 2nd year doctoral student. I have conducted state and federally funded research addressing migration, acculturation, and behavioral health outcomes under the supervision of principal-investigators in schools of medicine and schools of public health.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

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.