Neighborhood Watch: Community Characteristics Associated with Reduced Substance Abuse among Mexican-Americans in the Texas-Mexico border

Introduction: Individuals living in the Texas-Mexico border region are exposed to numerous substance use risk factors present in their communities, including difficult socio-political life conditions, increased accessibility to illegal drugs, and significant barriers to accessing health care. Despite high prevalence of such risk factors, strikingly this population has similar rates of substance use and abuse to national samples—indicating the presence of protective factors. Examination of resilience factors when conducting research on drug use and abuse among this population is then important to leverage existing strengths and resources in community based programming and interventions. In particular, Latino collectivist values (community cohesion, informal social control, and frequent contact with family and friends) might mitigate distress hence require further investigation.

Methods: The current study utilizes survey data from a random sample of 1,200 adults living in 3 border sites: 1) El Paso; 2) the Rio Grande Valley, and 3) rural and semi-rural colonias (unincorporated towns on the US side of the Texas-Mexico border). 85% of the participants self-identified as Hispanic or Latino with 47% male and 53% female participants. Three logistic regression models examined predictors of past-year drug abuse, alcohol abuse, and substance abuse treatment-seeking to identify factors associated with decreased substance abuse and increased treatment-seeking. Predictors examined included: perceived neighborhood cohesion, informal social control, family support, and contact with friends and family. All analyses controlled for gender, age, neighborhood danger, and observed neighborhood drug use. Furthermore, analysis was conducted utilizing SUDAAN to account for survey sampling effects.

Results: Individuals who lived in neighborhoods characterized by low informal social controls and those who lived in communities with high social cohesion had lower rates of drug abuse. Lower rates of alcohol abuse were reported by individuals with higher levels of family support. Finally, among individuals using drugs or having a substance-related problem, those who perceived high usage of substances in their neighborhood were almost three times as likely to want or have sought treatment. Living in a neighborhood with high social control and being depressed also increased the likelihood of seeking treatment.

Discussion: These results suggest that, among the primarily Mexican American population of the border, neighborhood variables such as informal social control, neighborhood cohesion, and family support have an impact on personal substance abuse and treatment-seeking. This has significant implications for substance use and abuse preventative efforts as it lends to an understanding of potential modifiable protective-factors present in the lives of Mexican Americans living in the Texas-Mexico border. Specifically, community based programming designed to increase the social cohesion of neighborhoods and family connectedness are highly recommended.