Motivations for Misusing Opioids Among African Americans.

Background: A wide range of opioid misuse motives have been documented in the literature, including to relieve physical pain, feel good/get high, relax, manage feelings/emotions, sleep, and moderate the effects of other substances. Despite a rise in opioid misuse among African Americans over the last 2 decades, their motivations for misuse remain unclear. Much of the research on opioid misuse motivations either rely on samples with little racial diversity or do not stratify their findings by race.