Competitive sports participation in high school and subsequent substance use in young adulthood: Assessing differences based on level of contact

The widely held notion that sports participation reduces subsequent risk of substance use is evaluated with longitudinal data of a representative sample of youth when they were in their preteen and young adult years. Unlike previous inquiries into the deterrence hypothesis, the present study controls for other major factors previously found to be predictive of alcohol and drug use. Results of analyses revealed that contrary to the deterrence hypothesis, playing high school sports does not appear to be a protective factor that lowers one's involvement in young adult alcohol or drug use – with one exception. Subgroup analyses revealed that among blacks, the greater the extent of high school sports participation the less the risk of substance use. In direct contradiction to the deterrence hypothesis, playing high school sports was found to be positively associated with alcohol use for whites, even in the context of other major predictors of alcohol use. Further analyses revealed that the positive association between sports participation and alcohol use appeared to exist only for white males. The implications of these results are discussed.

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The Effect of High School Sports Participation on the Use of Performance-Enhancing Substances in Young Adulthood

Journal of Adolescent Health ◽

10.1016/j.jadohealth.2005.12.025 ◽

2006 ◽

Vol 39 (3) ◽

pp. 367-373 ◽

Cited By ~ 70

Author(s):

Tonya L. Dodge ◽

James J. Jaccard

Keyword(s):

High School ◽

Young Adulthood ◽

Sports Participation ◽

High School Sports ◽

School Sports ◽

Performance Enhancing Substances ◽

Performance Enhancing

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Alcohol and Marijuana Use among American High School Seniors: Empirical Associations with Competitive Sports Participation

Sociology of Sport Journal ◽

10.1123/ssj.28.3.362 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 28 (3) ◽

pp. 362-379 ◽

Cited By ~ 16

Author(s):

Bryan E. Denham

Keyword(s):

High School ◽

Alcohol Consumption ◽

Female Athletes ◽

High School Seniors ◽

Sports Participation ◽

Marijuana Use ◽

Track And Field ◽

White Female ◽

Competitive Sports ◽

Exercise Frequency

Drawing on data gathered from high-school seniors in the 2008 Monitoring the Future Study of American Youth (N = 2,063), this research examined the explanatory effects of competitive sports participation on alcohol consumption and marijuana use using race and noncompetitive exercise frequency as controls. Among males, competitive sports included baseball, basketball, football, soccer, track and field, and weightlifting, and among females, sports included softball, basketball, soccer, swimming and diving, track and field, and volleyball. White males reported greater alcohol consumption than Black and Hispanic respondents, with competitors in baseball, football and weightlifting consuming alcohol more frequently. The use of marijuana did not depend on race, but baseball players and weightlifters reported significantly more use. Among females, race differences did not emerge in ordinal regression models testing effects on alcohol consumption, but participants in every sport reported drinking alcohol more frequently. White female athletes also appeared to smoke marijuana more frequently. Overall, results suggested comparably strong effects for female sport environments while male behaviors varied by race, noncompetitive exercise frequency, and sports competition. Limitations of the study and recommendations for future research are offered.

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Changes in Substance use during the Transition to Adulthood: A Comparison of College Students and Their Noncollege Age Peers

Journal of Drug Issues ◽

10.1177/002204260503500204 ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 35 (2) ◽

pp. 281-306 ◽

Cited By ~ 136

Author(s):

Helene R. White ◽

Erich W. Labouvie ◽

Vasiliki Papadaratsakis

Keyword(s):

College Students ◽

High School ◽

Substance Use ◽

Emerging Adulthood ◽

Transition To Adulthood ◽

Young Adulthood ◽

Community Sample ◽

Marijuana Use ◽

Latent Growth ◽

Prospective Data

This study examines transitions in alcohol, cigarette, and marijuana use and alcohol- and marijuana-related problems from late adolescence through young adulthood. Men and women who attend college are compared to their peers who do not to determine if the situational/socialization effects of college are unique during this developmental period. Prospective data from a community sample were collected at ages 18, 21, and 30 years. ANOVAs revealed that 18 year olds who transition out of high school, regardless of college status, reported higher levels of substance use than their peers who were still in high school. In addition, nonstudents compared to college students reported higher levels of cigarette and marijuana use in adolescence, emerging adulthood, and young adulthood and higher levels of alcohol- and marijuana-related problems in adolescence and young adulthood. Latent growth curve analyses revealed that college status was related to lower levels of alcohol and marijuana problems at age 18, greater increases from ages 18 to 21, and greater decreases from ages 21 to 30 even after controlling for level and growth in use. Overall, the findings suggest that nonstudents may be a more important target group than college students for drug use prevention efforts during emerging adulthood.

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Associations between Risk Factors in Late Adolescence and Problem Behaviors in Young Adulthood: A Six-Year Follow-Up of Substance Related and Behavioral Addictions in Swedish High School Seniors

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph182312766 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (23) ◽

pp. 12766

Author(s):

Claes Andersson ◽

Anders Håkansson

Keyword(s):

Risk Factors ◽

High School ◽

Substance Use ◽

Problem Behaviors ◽

Young Adulthood ◽

Tobacco Use ◽

Illicit Drug ◽

Late Adolescence ◽

Behavioral Addictions ◽

Gambling Problems

Introduction: Risk factors of traditional substance use related problems in young adults are more well-known than for behavioral addictions such as gambling and gaming problems. The present study aims to provide knowledge about the longitudinal patters of substance use related and behavioral addictions in early adulthood. Methods: Using self-report surveys, substance-related, psychiatric, and demographic predictors were assessed in Swedish high school seniors and re-assessed six years later along with gambling and gaming problems, n = 800. Associations (Risk Ratios) between risk factors in late adolescence and problem behaviors in young adulthood were analyzed. Results: Tobacco use, illicit drug use, and hazardous drinking in young adulthood were associated with tobacco use, illicit drug use, alcohol use, conduct problems, and impaired impulse control in late adolescence. Gambling problems in young adulthood were only associated with heredity of alcohol problems, while gaming was not associated to any problem behavior in late adolescence. Conclusion: It is concluded that predictors for traditional substance-related addictions differ from predictors for behavioral addictions, and that this difference is more pronounced for gaming problems than for gambling problems.

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