Links between adolescent binge drinking and midlife alcohol use behaviors by age, sex, and race/ethnicity.

Background: Alcohol use is increasing among adults in midlife (i.e., ages 35-60), but few studies examine specific alcohol use behaviors in this age group.

Historical change in associations between perceived risk, disapproval, and use of cannabis among young adults ages 19-30, 2011-2022.

Background: The current study used U.S. young adult data to examine overall and age group-specific historical trends in (a) mean perceived risk and disapproval of cannabis use, and (b) risk/use and disapproval/use associations.

Historical Trends in Cannabis Use Among U.S. Adults Ages 19-55, 2013-2021.

Objective: The current study used U.S. national data to examine trends in cannabis use from 2013 to 2021, focusing on changes in cannabis prevalence during young and middle adulthood and whether trends differed by sociodemographic characteristics.

Trends in coping reasons for marijuana use among U.S. adolescents from 2016 to 2022.

Objective: This study examines historical trends in coping reasons for marijuana use among adolescents (1976-2022) and explores sociodemographic variations in recent years (2016-2022).

Method: Data from U.S.

Age- and Sex-Varying Associations Between Depressive Symptoms and Substance Use from Modal Ages 35 to 55 in a National Sample of U.S. Adults.

It is important to examine normative age-related change in substance use risk factors across the lifespan, with research focusing on middle adulthood particularly needed. The current study examined time-varying associations between depressive symptoms and alcohol, cigarette, and marijuana use from modal ages 35 to 55 in a national sample of US adults, overall and by sex. Data were obtained from 11,147 individuals in the longitudinal Monitoring the Future study.

Alcohol Use Disorder Symptoms Reported during Midlife: Results from the Monitoring the Future Study among US Adults at Modal Ages 50, 55, and 60.

Background: The extent to which adolescent substance use is associated with alcohol use disorder (AUD) symptoms in midlife is not yet fully explored.

Methods: Longitudinal data from the national Monitoring the Future study was used. The sample included 11,830 12 graders (1976-1987) who were surveyed again at modal ages 50 (37.

Alcohol use contexts (social settings, drinking games/specials, and locations) as predictors of high-intensity drinking on a given day among U.S. young adults.

Background: This study examined whether variability in young adult drinking social settings, drinking games/drink price specials, and locations differentiated daily high-intensity drinking (HID) likelihood; whether contexts varied by legal drinking age and college status (attending a 4-year college full-time); and whether legal drinking age and college status moderated drinking context/intensity associations.

Methods: Participants (n = 818 people, 46.3% female) were part of the Young Adult Daily Life Study in 2019 to 2022.

Comparison of a web-push vs. mailed survey protocol in the Monitoring the Future panel study among adults ages 35 to 60.

Introduction: Updating the mode of data collection may affect response rates or survey results. The ongoing, national Monitoring the Future (MTF) panel study has traditionally used mailed paper surveys. In 2018, MTF experimented with a web-push data collection design for young adults ages 19-30, concluding that the web-push design improved response rates and did not change substance use estimates after controlling for sociodemographic characteristics (Patrick et al.

Patterns and predictors of high-intensity drinking and implications for intervention.

Efforts to intervene with subgroups at particularly high risk for alcohol use require information on factors that differentiate drinking intensity levels. This article summarizes existing research and provides new findings on sociodemographics and risk factors that differentiate high-intensity drinking (HID) to provide context for developing and delivering interventions for the highest-risk drinkers. Cross-sectional data were obtained in 2019 from participants who reported past 30-day alcohol use in 2018 as part of the nationally representative 12th grade Monitoring the Future study.

Solitary alcohol use in adolescence predicts alcohol problems in adulthood: A 17-year longitudinal study in a large national sample of US high school students.

Background: Identifying risk factors for alcohol use disorder (AUD) is important for public health. The social context of drinking-such as drinking alone-may be an independent and robust early risk marker for AUD symptoms later in life. We evaluated whether solitary alcohol use in adolescence (age 18) and young adulthood (age 23/24) was concurrently associated with binge drinking and prospectively predicted age 35 AUD symptoms, and whether associations differed by sex.

An empirical evaluation of alternative approaches to adjusting for attrition when analyzing longitudinal survey data on young adults' substance use trajectories.

Objectives: Longitudinal survey data allow for the estimation of developmental trajectories of substance use from adolescence to young adulthood, but these estimates may be subject to attrition bias. Moreover, there is a lack of consensus regarding the most effective statistical methodology to adjust for sample selection and attrition bias when estimating these trajectories. Our objective is to develop specific recommendations regarding adjustment approaches for attrition in longitudinal surveys in practice.

Characteristics and reasons for use associated with solitary alcohol and marijuana use among U.S. 12th Grade Students, 2015-2021.

Background: Little is known regarding what sociodemographic characteristics and reasons for use are associated with adolescent solitary alcohol and marijuana use.

Methods: Data from 7845 12th grade students participating in the nationally-representative Monitoring the Future study from 2015 to 2021 were used to examine cross-sectional associations between sociodemographics, heavy drinking/marijuana use, reasons for use, and past 12-month solitary alcohol or marijuana use among past 12-month users. Historical trends and possible differences related to the COVID-19 pandemic also were examined.

Alcohol use and the COVID-19 pandemic: Historical trends in drinking, contexts, and reasons for use among U.S. adults.

Objective: The current study used U.S. national data to examine drinking trends prior to and during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, focusing on changes in U.

Social Role, Behavior, and Belief Changes Associated With Driving After Using Marijuana Among U.S. Young Adults, and Comparisons With Driving After 5+ Drinking.

Objective: This study examined past-2-week driving after marijuana use (DMU) and driving after having five or more drinks (D5D) during young adulthood, specifically focusing on associations between within-person change in social roles (living situation, marriage, parenthood, education, employment) and mediators (perceived risk, evenings out, and religiosity) from modal ages 19 to 30.

Method: Multilevel analyses were conducted using survey data collected from 2013 to 2019 from 1,873 adults (1,060 women; total number of data collection waves = 7,037) participating in the longitudinal Monitoring the Future study.

Results: Change across waves from not being married to married was associated with lower DMU likelihood at any particular wave both directly and via mediation through wave-level change in evenings out.

Self-reported perceived negative consequences of marijuana use among U.S. young adult users, 2008-2019.

Purpose: This study estimated self-reported perceived negative marijuana use consequences among a national sample of U.S. young adults, examining consequence prevalence differences by use frequency, college attendance, living situation, employment, sex, and race/ethnicity; and use frequency/sociodemographic characteristic interactions.

Consideration of an upper-bound continuous maximum drinks measure for adolescent binge and high-intensity drinking prevalence.

Background: The degree to which binge and high-intensity drinking prevalence estimates vary from fixed threshold frequency and continuous maximum drinks measures is unknown. The current study compared prevalence estimates for adolescent binge and high-intensity drinking (5+ drinks, 10+ drinks, respectively) and sex-specific thresholds using fixed threshold frequency and continuous maximum drinks measures.

Methods: Data were obtained from 7911 respondents participating in the 2018 and 2019 nationally representative Monitoring the Future 12th-grade surveys.

Drinking Intensity at Age 29/30 as a Predictor of Alcohol Use Disorder Symptoms at Age 35 in a National Sample.

Objective: The purpose of this longitudinal study was to identify associations of drinking intensity at age 29/30 with symptoms of alcohol use disorder (AUD) at age 35.

Method: Analyses used national longitudinal data from 1,253 individuals (53.5% female) participating in the Monitoring the Future study.

Drinking Motives and Drinking Consequences across Days: Differences and Similarities between Moderate, Binge, and High-Intensity Drinking.

Background: The current study examined the extent to which within-person variation in drinking motives differentiates moderate, binge, and high-intensity drinking; and independent associations of motives and drinking intensity with alcohol use consequences in a sample of young adult drinkers from across the United States.

Methods: Participants were past 30-day drinkers in the U.S.

Solitary Use of Alcohol and Marijuana by US 12th Grade Students, 1976-2019.

This cohort study examines changes in the rates of solitary alcohol and marijuana use among 12th grade students between 1976 and 2019.

Diversion of Medical Marijuana to Unintended Users Among U.S. Adults Age 35 and 55, 2013-2018.

Objective: This study estimated the percentage of age 35 and 55 adults reporting using medical marijuana intended for someone else (diverted use) and compared demographics and health status of such users with respondents reporting recommended use (i.e., individuals with a medical marijuana recommendation for their own health conditions) and to respondents using marijuana not intended for medical use (nonmedical marijuana [NMM] use).

Changes in the Order of Cigarette and Marijuana Initiation and Associations with Cigarette Use, Nicotine Vaping, and Marijuana Use: U.S. 12th Grade Students, 2000-2019.

This study (a) examined changes in marijuana and cigarette initiation sequencing and (b) considered implications of such changes for prevention efforts by examining associations between initiation sequencing and current adolescent substance use. Analyses used 2000-2019 cross-sectional data from the national Monitoring the Future (MTF) study (78,252 U.S.

The growing transition from lifetime marijuana use to frequent use among 12th grade students: U.S. National data from 1976 to 2019.

Background: More United States adolescents now report high-frequency marijuana use than similar use levels of alcohol or tobacco. Increased high-frequency use raises questions such as (a) is frequent use likelihood growing among adolescents who experiment with use? (b) Is such change observed equally across sex and racial/ethnic subgroups? (c) Have sociodemographic and other covariate associations with frequent use changed over time?

Methods: Data were obtained from 649,505 12th grade students participating in the cross-sectional, nationally-representative Monitoring the Future study from 1976 to 2019. Historical trends were modeled for any and frequent (20+ occasions) past 30-day marijuana use among all students and lifetime users, and lifetime user sex and racial/ethnic subgroups.

Negative alcohol-related consequences experienced by young adults in the past 12 months: Differences by college attendance, living situation, binge drinking, and sex.

Purpose: This study estimated the prevalence of negative consequences associated with alcohol use in a national sample of young adults one or two years after graduating from high school, focusing on differences by college attendance, living situation, binge drinking, and sex.

Methods: A subsample (N = 1068) of U.S.

The national prevalence of adolescent nicotine use in 2017: Estimates taking into account student reports of substances vaped.

Introduction: This study presents the first nationally-representative estimates of adolescent nicotine prevalence that take into account adolescent reports of substances vaped. These reports allow nicotine estimates that consider the impact of the newly-emerged group of adolescents who report vaping only non-nicotine substances such as flavoring and/or marijuana and do not use nicotine in any form - a group typically treated as nicotine users.

Methods: Data come from Monitoring the Future and are a randomly-selected subsample of 2231 U.