Substance Use Behaviors Among Latinx Youth: Examining Cultural and Family Factors

Background/Purpose: Substance use among youth is associated with later adverse consequences and may increase vulnerability to addiction and psychiatric disorders later in life. Cultural factors have been found to be associated with substance use among Latinx youth. However, few studies have highlighted how family factors influence this association among minority youth. From the lens of the ecodevelopmental theory, several levels of influence should be investigated in determining health outcomes. This study uses longitudinal data to examine associations of cultural factors, family factors and substance use among Latinx youth.

Methods: Data were from Reteniendo y Entendiendo Diversidad para Salud (Project RED). A longitudinal study of acculturation and substance use among Latinx youth in Southern California (Average age = 14.5). Three-stage hierarchical regression models were used to assess the role of cultural factors (acculturation, enculturation, discrimination, and familism) and family factors (childhood adversity, parental monitoring, and parental communication) in influencing youth substance use behaviors (alcohol, problematic alcohol use, marijuana use, and tobacco use). Statistical analyses were conducted in SPSS.

Results: Bivariate correlations revealed that cultural variables were significantly related to the family variables. Findings from the hierarchical regression models revealed that participants with higher enculturation predicted a lower likelihood of alcohol use (-.02, p < 05). Discrimination was associated with alcohol susceptibility controlling for sociodemographic and family variables (OR = 1.03, p< 05). Additionally, parental communication and parental monitoring were linked to alcohol and marijuana use. Childhood adversity also increased the risk of tobacco (OR = 1.16, p < .001), alcohol (B = .05, p < .05) and marijuana (OR= 1.20, p <.001) use for youth.

Conclusions and Implications: Although cultural challenges such as discrimination may increase youths' risks of substance use, well-functioning family support systems can help protect Latinx children from the negative behavioral and health-related consequences of cultural challenges. This study also highlights the protective role of cultural values such as enculturation. Interventions designed for minority youth may benefit from targeting multiple systemic levels including both cultural and family factors. To mitigate the effects of ACEs on substance use, intervening efforts should focus on strengthening family relationships in acculturating families. Bolstering positive parenting practices and parenting skills and early prevention efforts aimed at promoting parental communication and positive parenting practices might be effective strategies to disrupt the risk of youth substance use. Further, interventions focused on socio-emotional psychoeducation might also be important to help parents gain the knowledge and skills to meet the developmental needs of children. Also, there is a need to have partnerships with parents and utilize family-centered treatments, when working with youths who use substances.