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Abstract Incarcerated women are among the most vulnerable and perhaps the least studied populations in the US. Significant proportions of female inmates are substance users, and many living in unstable [...]

To link to full-text access for this article, visit this link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.addbeh.2010.07.004 Byline: Tonda L. Hughes, Laura A. Szalacha, Timothy P. Johnson, Kelly E. Kinnison, Sharon C. Wilsnack, Young Cho Keywords: Adult sexual assault; Childhood sexual abuse; Hazardous drinking; Revictimization; Sexual orientation Abbreviations: ASA, Adult Sexual Assault; CSA, Childhood Sexual Abuse; CHLEW, Chicago Health and Life Experiences of Women; NSHLEW, National Survey of Health and Life Experiences of Women Abstract: Although research shows that sexual minority women report high rates of lifetime sexual victimization and high rates of hazardous drinking, investigators have yet to explore the relationships between sexual victimization and hazardous drinking in this population. In addition, because the rates of these problems may vary within the sexual minority population, we examined and compared relationships between sexual victimization and hazardous drinking in exclusively heterosexual and sexual minority (mostly heterosexual, bisexual, mostly lesbian and exclusively lesbian) women.

To link to full-text access for this article, visit this link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jsat.2008.06.004 Byline: Mary Ellen Mackesy-Amiti (a), Michael Fendrich (b), Timothy P. Johnson (c) Keywords: MSM; Drug dependence; Alcohol dependence; Substance treatment; HIV Abstract: This study compares a sample of urban men who have sex with men (MSM) with a general population sample of men in the same city on self-reported problems with substance use indicative of dependence and history of substance use treatment. Both samples were randomly selected using multistage probability methods. All participants completed audio computer-assisted self-interviews, including questions on substance use, problems related to substance use experienced in the past 12 months, and substance treatment. Problem use of alcohol, marijuana, and cocaine did not differ between samples. Compared to men in the general population sample, MSM were significantly more likely to experience problems related to the use of sedatives, tranquilizers, or prescription pain relievers. Among MSM, history of substance treatment was associated with a positive HIV test, and treatment usually preceded HIV diagnosis. Research is needed on effective methods for integrating HIV prevention for MSM into substance treatment settings, including physician-administered buprenorphine treatment for opiate addiction. Author Affiliation: (a) Community Outreach Intervention Projects, School of Public Health, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL 60612, USA (b) Center for Addiction and Behavioral Health Research, Helen Bader School of Social Welfare, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Milwaukee, WI 53211, USA (c) Survey Research Laboratory, College of Urban Planning and Public Affairs, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL 60607, USA Article History: Received 29 February 2008; Revised 2 June 2008; Accepted 22 June 2008

To link to full-text access for this article, visit this link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.addbeh.2008.03.003 Byline: Mary Ellen Mackesy-Amiti (a), Michael Fendrich (b), Timothy P. Johnson (c) Keywords: Substance use; MSM; Reporting bias Abstract: This paper explores whether elevated rates of self-reported substance use among MSM compared to other males may be an artifact of reporting bias. Past month prevalence rates of marijuana, cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, Ecstasy, and Ketamine use were compared between a sample of men who have sex with men (MSM), and a general household sample of men, all residing in Chicago. We compared rates of self-reported use, and corrected rates based on the results of drug testing (urine and oral fluid tests). While MSM over 30 years old were significantly more likely than other men in this age group to report past month use of cocaine, test-corrected rates of use were equivalent. On the other hand, test-corrected estimates confirmed elevated rates of Ketamine and Ecstasy use in the MSM sample. Differential disclosure of substance use between MSM and other males may in some cases lead to distorted conclusions about differences in substance use between these groups. The use of biological testing in epidemiological studies of substance use can reduce the uncertainty of such comparisons. Author Affiliation: (a) Community Outreach Intervention Projects, School of Public Health, University of Illinois at Chicago, 1603 W. Taylor St., Chicago, IL 60612 USA (b) Center for Addiction and Behavioral Health Research, Helen Bader School of Social Welfare, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, 2400 E. Hartford Ave., Milwaukee WI 53211 USA (c) Survey Research Laboratory, College of Urban Planning and Public Administration, University of Illinois at Chicago, 412 S. Peoria St., Chicago IL 60607 USA

Objective: Studies of alcohol use among lesbians have typically used convenience samples with uncertain generalizability or general population samples with small numbers of lesbians. Here we compare rates of high-risk and problem drinking in a large sample of Chicago-area lesbians and a national sample of age- and education-matched urban heterosexual women. Method: Data came from comparable face-to-face interviews with 405 self-identified Chicago-area lesbians and with 548 urban women from a U.S. national sample. Rates of hazardous drinking (heavy episodic drinking, intoxication, drinking-related problems, alcohol-dependence symptoms) were compared for exclusively heterosexual, mostly heterosexual, bisexual, mostly lesbian, and exclusively lesbian subgroups. Results: Exclusively heterosexual women had lower rates than did all other women on all measures of hazardous drinking. Exclusively heterosexual women also reported less childhood sexual abuse, early alcohol use, and depression. Bisexual women reported more hazardous drinking indicators and depression than did exclusively or mostly lesbian women. Conclusions: These results indicate that sexual minority women are likely to have elevated risks of hazardous drinking. The differences between lesbian and bisexual women suggest that more attention is needed to subgroup differences among sexual minority women. Health care providers need to know the sexual identity of their patients and how their sexual identity may affect their risks for hazardous drinking. Higher rates of childhood sexual abuse, early drinking, and depression among sexual minority women suggest that these experiences may be important in assessing and treating problems related to their drinking, and in developing prevention and early intervention strategies., ALTHOUGH RESEARCH ON DRINKING and drinking-related problems in women has increased dramatically in recent decades (e.g., Plant, 1997; Wilsnack and Beckman, 1984), less attention has been given to similarities and [...]

Objective: This study examined the relationships between childhood and family background variables, including sexual and physical abuse, and subsequent alcohol abuse and psychological distress in adult lesbians. Methodology: Structural equation modeling was used to evaluate relationships between childhood sexual and physical abuse and parenting variables and latent measures of lifetime alcohol abuse and psychological distress in a large community-based sample of lesbians. Results: Childhood sexual abuse (CSA) directly predicted lifetime alcohol abuse, and childhood physical abuse (CPA) directly predicted lifetime psychological distress. In addition, CSA indirectly increased the risk of lifetime alcohol abuse through its negative effect on age at first heterosexual intercourse. Childhood physical abuse had only indirect effects on lifetime alcohol abuse through its strong relationship to lifetime psychological distress. Parental drinking problems and parental strictness directly predicted lifetime psychological distress; parental drinking problems indirectly predicted lifetime alcohol abuse through the mediators of age of drinking onset and lifetime psychological distress. White lesbians, younger lesbians, and those with lower levels of education were at greatest risk of psychological distress. Conclusion: While the cross-sectional design precludes causal conclusions, study findings--especially those related to CSA--are consistent with previous research on predominantly heterosexual women in the general population. Lesbians who experienced CSA were at heightened risk of lifetime alcohol abuse and those who experienced CPA were at heightened risk of lifetime psychological distress relative to lesbians without abuse histories. Given the dearth of research on childhood abuse and sexual orientation, studies are needed that examine the similarities and differences between lesbians' and heterosexual women's experiences of, and responses to, childhood abuse. Keywords: Childhood abuse; Alcohol abuse; Psychological distress; Lesbian; Sexual orientation

Objectives: Using data collected as part of the Multisite Women's Health Study, we examined the differences between lesbians and heterosexual women on objective breast cancer risk calculations using the Gail Model. Health risk behaviors and screening behaviors for breast cancer were also examined. It was hypothesized that lesbians would have higher objective cancer risk estimates and report more behavioral and screening risk factors for breast cancer than heterosexual women. Methods: Secondary data analyses were conducted using data from a study of women's health conducted from 1994 to 1996. Using a cross sectional design, a convenience sample of lesbian (n = 550) and heterosexual (n = 279) women was recruited from Chicago, New York City and Minneapolis-St. Paul. Data were collected using a self-administered questionnaire. Results: Estimates of 5-year and lifetime breast cancer risk were higher for lesbians compared to heterosexual women. Groups did not differ in self-perceptions of being overweight, but more lesbians reported heavier drinking and more reported abstinence from alcohol. Group differences in adherence to breast cancer screening were not significant. Conclusions: Findings suggest a small but statistically significant difference in the calculated breast cancer risk estimates of lesbian and heterosexual women, which seem to be largely accounted for by differences in reproductive risk factors, doi: 10.1300/J013v45n04_06 KEYWORDS. Sexual orientation, lesbian, breast cancer risk, Gail Model

The estimation of tobacco-reporting validity in an epidemiological survey on drug use was carried out by comparing the responses to questions about tobacco use and passive exposure to smoking with biological tests for cotinine. The underreporting of tobacco was relatively rare but the estimates of the study state that it may be increasing over time.

Relatively little is known about the substance abuse treatment need patterns and experiences of youth incarcerated in the United States juvenile justice system. To address this issue, four analytic questions concerned with understanding the predictors of treatment need and utilization patterns among adolescents entering the juvenile corrections system are examined. Data analyzed were collected as part of a face-to-face survey of 401 youth who entered the Illinois juvenile correctional system in mid-2000. Overall, need for treatment and treatment utilization each were predicted by sets of social environmental and personal characteristics, in addition to several sociodemographic variables. Less than half of youth with an identified need for treatment reported receiving treatment. Considerable variability in the effects of demographic and social environmental indicators on treatment need and utilization across race groups also was observed. These findings underscore the need for the continual development of the cultural competence of treatment providers and the expansion of onsite provision of substance abuse treatment services to incarcerated juveniles. Keywords: Substance abuse treatment need; Adolescents; Criminal justice; Race/ethnicity; Service utilization

Since subjects are often uncomfortable disclosing sensitive information, questions gauging respondent reaction to survey questions about drug abuse may aid in the interpretation of responses. Such debriefing questions can be worded subjectively, i.e., asking subjects about their own reactions to questions, or projectively, i.e., asking subjects about their perceptions of the reactions of others to questions. Using data from a study employing both types of debriefing questions, we examined whether question wording made any difference. We evaluated, the extent to which drug reporting was associated with respondent reaction to the survey and whether reactions varied by type of debriefing question. A factor analysis of debriefing questions appended to an experimental household survey on drug abuse yielded factors reflecting distinct subjective and projective dimensions. Analyses suggested that debriefing question wording does make a difference with respect to respondent reaction. Contrary to expectations, analyses suggested that those reporting drug use expressed less comfort on subjectively worded items and more comfort on projectively worded items. Subjects who self-administered their survey also reported lower levels of subjective comfort. The projective measures derived from analyses were associated with three demographic variables: Younger subjects reported higher levels of projective ease than older subjects. Those with some college reported higher levels of projective ease than those with the least amount of formal education. African-Americans reported lower levels of projective ease than White/Other subjects. Implications for the design, interpretation, and analysis of drug use surveys are considered.

Although a small number of studies are available that evaluate the effects of interviewer characteristics in substance use surveys conducted in person, none have clone so using information collected via telephone interviews. We address this issue by examining the utility of social attribution and social desirability models for detecting the presence of interviewer effects in a large statewide telephone survey concerned with substance use. The specific outcome variables of interest were reports of lifetime and 18-month composite drug use. Analyses focus on the direct effects of individual interviewer characteristics (to assess social attribution) and a summary measure of interviewer-respondent similarity (to assess social distance) and employ random effects regression models to control for respondent clustering by interviewer. Results are most consistent with a social distance model and suggest that social distance between respondent and interviewer may decrease the probability of respondents reporting substance use behavior.

As a die-hard supernaturalist, someone 'at two with nature' (Woody Allen) who would be at one with God, the author has mixed feelings about Theodore Nunez's defense of 'naturalism.' Unlike neopragmatists, the author is not troubled by Nunez's general realism about value; he takes exception not to Nunez's theoretical account of truth, but to his specific axiology. He does not share Nunez's confidence that 'projective nature' can provide reliable moral inspiration, suggesting instead that such inspiration can arise only from trust in the holiness of God. KEY WORDS: intrinsic value, neopragmatism, realism, supernaturalism, theocentrism

Research was conducted to examine the psychometric characteristics of the stage of readiness to change. The stage of readiness to change has been acknowledged as a valid independent measure of the transtheoretical model of health behavior change. A sample of 261 female smokers participated in a study to test the stability and reliability of the stage of readiness to change measure. Results suggest that the measure of stage of readiness to change has high levels of stability and reliability for the female smokers.

A study of the red slow-twitch muscle power output during steady and unsteady swimming in the largemouth bass using electromyography and oscillatory work-loop techniques reveals that red muscle fibers operate at a steady speed over a narrow range of shortening velocities. During unsteady swimming slow-twitch fibers are recruited during the burst and glide activity despite being inactivated. Maximal power output of red muscle fibers determines the transition in swimming behavior during fish locomotion.

A study of survey responses from homeless people in Illinois indicates more willingness to report drug abuse to a male interviewer. Race and age-related direct effects are also observed during the survey, with more homeless people responding to white and older interviewers. These results have implications for the practice of demographically linking respondents with interviewers of identical characteristics.

Several sociological perspectives, including social distance and social acquiescence theories, suggest that survey responses to threatening or sensitive questions may be influenced by interviewer gender. Most of the empirical work bearing on this issue has been conducted using face-to-face interviews. Research presented here examines interviewer gender effects in a telephone survey concerned with a sexually sensitive topic - the sale and consumption of pornographic materials. Subjects were mostly white middle-class adults living in a medium-sized metropolitan community. Approximately equal numbers of males (n = 230) and females (n = 219) were interviewed. Findings suggest that, although a weak trend indicative of an acquiescence effect was observed, interviewer gender effects may not in general be a serious source of nonsampling errors in telephone surveys.

A wide body of literature documents the effect of social networks and social supports on mental health. Fewer studies, however, have examined the reciprocal effect of mental health on social relationships. This problem is examined using data from a national panel survey of adults aged 20-64. For the sample as a whole, support was found for a social selection selection process, since psychological distress predicted decreases in primary, but not secondary, social relationship. The extent of primary relationships also were found to be associated with subsequent distress, providing evidence that the relationship between mental health and social environment may be transactional. When examinated separately by gender, males but not females were found to be vulnerable to the process of social selection, supporting the hypothesis that the expression of distress is less role-appropriate for men and therefore more likely to invite social sanctions. Social causation effects also were observed only among males.

We examined the potential prevalence impact of differences in consent procedures, mode of administration, and editing protocols in the 1997 National Household Survey on Drug Abuse, the Monitoring the Future study, and the Youth Risk Behavior Survey, limiting analyses to 10th and 12th graders. NHSDA's high level of compliance with federal regulations regarding human subjects research, including thorough parental permission prior to adolescent participation, may in part be responsible for the relatively low prevalence rates obtained in this study. Key mode effects which contribute to observed differences across surveys are survey setting and privacy. The two school-based surveys produce higher prevalence estimates than the NHSDA. Although NHSDA prevalence rates increase with increased interview privacy, the increase is not enough to account for discrepancies with the school surveys. The procedures used to handle inconsistent survey responses and to impute missing data are very different across the three surveys. These differences in editing procedures, however, are unlikely to be responsible for the observed differences in prevalence rates. Based on these analyses, we conclude that the field would benefit from a well-designed experimental study evaluating school vs. household effects as well as the impact of variation in consent procedures. Increased methodological research on the validity of school based drug surveys is also needed.

The most common theory of smoking cessation postulates that readiness to quit begins with changes in attitudes that move the smoker toward behavioral change and eventual cessation. However, trends in smoking indicate that many who currently smoke are not ready to quit. Hence, strategies that both enhance readiness and focus on quitting are likely to be most effective. We hypothesize that an intervention addressed to motivating behavior change will enhance readiness to change, which will in turn increase the smokers self-efficacy regarding further change. A smoking cessation intervention that combined a self-help booklet and televised segments was developed to address these issues in a population of women smokers with high school or less education. Readiness to quit was measured prior to the intervention, immediately following the intervention, and again at six and 12 months after intervention. The results indicate that the intervention had its effects on readiness to quit, which in turn affected self-efficacy, which further enhanced readiness to quit. These findings indicate that interventions aimed at this group of smokers may need to provide achievable objectives that focus on preparing the smoker to quit as well as promote cessation.

Objective: This study examines monthly variation in reports of recent alcohol consumption behavior. Method: Telephone survey data collected by the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System were used to measure self-reports of drinking and heavy episodic drinking in the 30 days before the interview. The sample (N = 57,758) comprised cases collected in six states in 5 selected years. Monthly variability in self-reported alcohol consumption was evaluated by logistic regression analysis, using 'deviation from means coding' for the month of interview, with background variables and year of interview controlled and state-level clustering adjusted. Results: Adults were significantly more likely to report past 30-day alcohol consumption when interviewed during the month of January and less likely to report consumption when interviewed during March. Respondents were also more likely to report heavy episodic drinking during the month of July. Despite large differences in alcohol consumption between male and female participants, these seasonal patterns were essentially the same for both genders. Conclusions: The findings suggest that assessments of alcohol consumption that do not consider seasonal variation may be biased. In order to minimize this bias, it is recommended that researchers avoid collecting data only during these particular times of the year or extend the data collection interval and control for seasonal variability. (J. Stud. Alcohol 62: 268-272, 2001), FOR MANY YEARS, conventional wisdom has suggested that epidemiologic surveys concerned with alcohol use should avoid data collection during particular times of the year when holidays or other events may [...]

Few studies comparing telephone and in-person surveys have examined response differentials to sensitive questions. This paper examines responses to a series of substance use questions asked of samples of university students interviewed face to face and via telephone. Consistent differences are found to exist, with in-person respondents being more likely to report having used a number of substances, including tobacco and several illegal drugs. Analysis suggests that these differences are attributable to a method rather than a selection effect.

Objectives. This study hypothesized that interpersonal workplace stressors involving sexual harassment and generalized workplace abuse are highly prevalent and significantly linked with mental health outcomes including symptomatic distress, the use and abuse of alcohol, and other drug use. Methods. Employees in 4 university occupational groups (faculty, student, clerical, and service workers; n = 2492) were surveyed by means of a mailed self-report instrument. Cross-tabular and ordinary least squares and logistic regression analyses examined the prevalence of harassment and abuse and their association with mental health status. Results. The data show high rates of harassment and abuse. Among faculty, females were subjected to higher rates; among clerical and service workers, males were subjected to higher rates. Male and female clerical and service workers experienced higher levels of particularly severe mistreatment. Generalized abuse was more prevalent than harassment for all groups. Both harassment and abuse were significantly linked to most mental health outcomes for men and women. Conclusions. Interpersonally abusive workplace dynamics constitute a significant public health problem that merits increased intervention and prevention strategies. (Am J Public Health. 1999;89:358-363)