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This occasional paper presents subgroup findings from the Monitoring the Future (MTF) study on levels of and trends in the use of a number of substances for nationally representative samples of high school graduates ages 19-30. The data have been gathered in a series of follow-up surveys of representative subsamples of high school seniors who were first surveyed in 12th grade as part of the MTF study. Therefore, the universe being described omits people who did not complete high school--between 8-15% of each age group, with the most recent class cohorts closer to the bottom of that range. Surveys of the graduating cohorts of high school seniors started in 1976 and have continued with each graduating class since. Data were first available for the 19-22 age group in 1980 and for the older age groups in subsequent years, as the tables and figures in this occasional paper indicate. The general epidemiological findings from these samples are contained in "Volume II" of the annual monograph series. The subgroup trends shown in the current occasional paper complement the last section of Chapter 5 (Trends in Drug Use in Early and Middle Adulthood) of that monograph by presenting the trend data for young adult subgroups in both graphic and tabular form. The results are described and discussed in Chapter 5, but the extensive set of tables and figures is provided here for the reader who wishes to view the figures and the underlying numerical values. Three demographic dimensions are differentiated: gender, region of the country, and population density. Gender includes trends for males and females; region describes trends for each of the four major regions defined by the U.S. Census; and population density differentiates trends for five levels of urbanicity. The Table of Contents and List of Figures in this occasional paper contain clickable links to the content and figures. Following each figure is a table giving the numerical values associated with each trend line in that figure. [For "Monitoring the Future National Survey Results on Drug Use, 1975-2014. Volume 2, College Students & Adults Ages 19-55," see ED578455.]

This occasional paper presents national demographic subgroup data for the 1975-2014 Monitoring the Future (MTF) national survey results on 8th, 10th, and 12th graders' use of drugs, alcohol, and tobacco. MTF is funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse at the National Institutes of Health under a series of investigator-initiated, competitive research grants. The study covers all major classes of illicit and licit drugs for an array of population subgroups. The 2014 subgroup data presented here accompany the "Monitoring the Future National Survey Results on Drug Use: 1975-2014: Overview, Key Findings on Adolescent Drug Use" and the "Monitoring the Future National Survey Results on Drug Use, 1975-2014: Volume I, Secondary School Students." Since 2013, the MTF subgroup definitions and data have been presented in a series of occasional paper, such as this, as tables and figures to facilitate the examination and interpretation of trend data. "Volume I" contains a description of MTF's design and purposes, as well as extended reporting on substance use of all kinds--licit and illicit--and a number of related factors, such as attitudes and beliefs about drugs, age of initiation, noncontinuation of drug use, perceived availability, relevant conditions in the social environment, history of daily marijuana use, use of drugs for the treatment of ADHD, and sources of prescription drugs used outside of medical supervision. The trends offered here in tabular and graphic forms cover demographic subgroups based on: (1) gender; (2) college plans; (3) region of the country; (4) population density; (5) education level of the parents (a proxy for socioeconomic level); and (6) racial/ethnic identification. Detailed descriptions of the demographic categories are provided in the section below. Data for 12th grade begins with 1975, the first year in which a nationally representative sample of high school seniors was surveyed. Data for 8th and 10th grades begin with 1991, when the study's nationally representative annual surveys were expanded to include those grade levels. [For "Monitoring the Future National Survey Results on Drug Use, 1975-2014. Volume 1, Secondary School Students," see ED578369. For "Monitoring the Future National Survey Results on Drug Use, 1975-2014: Overview, Key Findings on Adolescent Drug Use," see ED578603.]

Problem: Priority health-risk behaviors contribute to the leading causes of morbidity and mortality among youth and adults. Population-based data on these behaviors at the national, state, and local levels can help monitor the effectiveness of public health interventions designed to protect and promote the health of youth nationwide. Reporting Period Covered: September 2012-December 2013. Description of the System: The Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS) monitors six categories of priority health-risk behaviors among youth and young adults: 1) behaviors that contribute to unintentional injuries and violence; 2) tobacco use; 3) alcohol and other drug use; 4) sexual behaviors that contribute to unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections (STIs), including human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection; 5) unhealthy dietary behaviors; and 6) physical inactivity. In addition, YRBSS monitors the prevalence of obesity and asthma. YRBSS includes a national school-based Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) conducted by CDC and state and large urban school district school-based YRBSs conducted by state and local education and health agencies. This report summarizes results for 104 health-risk behaviors plus obesity, overweight, and asthma from the 2013 national survey, 42 state surveys, and 21 large urban school district surveys conducted among students in grades 9-12. Results: Results from the 2013 national YRBS indicated that many high school students are engaged in priority health-risk behaviors associated with the leading causes of death among persons aged 10-24 years in the United States. During the 30 days before the survey, 41.4% of high school students nationwide among the 64.7% who drove a car or other vehicle during the 30 days before the survey had texted or e-mailed while driving, 34.9% had drunk alcohol, and 23.4% had used marijuana. During the 12 months before the survey, 14.8% had been electronically bullied, 19.6% had been bullied on school property, and 8.0% had attempted suicide. Many high school students nationwide are engaged in sexual risk behaviors that contribute to unintended pregnancies and STIs, including HIV infection. Nearly half (46.8%) of students had ever had sexual intercourse, 34.0% had had sexual intercourse during the 3 months before the survey (i.e., currently sexually active), and 15.0% had had sexual intercourse with four or more persons during their life. Among currently sexually active students, 59.1% had used a condom during their last sexual intercourse. Results from the 2013 national YRBS also indicate many high school students are engaged in behaviors associated with chronic diseases, such as cardiovascular disease, cancer, and diabetes. During the 30 days before the survey, 15.7% of high school students had smoked cigarettes and 8.8% had used smokeless tobacco. During the 7 days before the survey, 5.0% of high school students had not eaten fruit or drunk 100% fruit juices and 6.6% had not eaten vegetables. More than one-third (41.3%) had played video or computer games or used a computer for something that was not school work for 3 or more hours per day on an average school day. Interpretation: Many high school students engage in behaviors that place them at risk for the leading causes of morbidity and mortality. The prevalence of most health-risk behaviors varies by sex, race/ethnicity, and grade and across states and large urban school districts. Long term temporal changes also have occurred. Since the earliest year of data collection, the prevalence of most health-risk behaviors has decreased (e.g., physical fighting, current cigarette use, and current sexual activity), but the prevalence of other health-risk behaviors has not changed (e.g., suicide attempts treated by a doctor or nurse, having ever used marijuana, and having drunk alcohol or used drugs before last sexual intercourse) or has increased (e.g., having not gone to school because of safety concern and obesity and overweight). Public Health Action: YRBSS data are used widely to compare the prevalence of health-risk behaviors among subpopulations of students; assess trends in health-risk behaviors over time; monitor progress toward achieving 20 national health objectives for Healthy People 2020 and one of the 26 leading health indicators; provide comparable state and large urban school district data; and help develop and evaluate school and community policies, programs, and practices designed to decrease health-risk behaviors and improve health outcomes among youth. [An Errata for Volume 63, Number SS-4 notes that the title for Table 23 on page 72 was incorrect. It should read, "Table 23. Percentage of high school students who felt sad or hopeless, by sex, race/ethnicity, and grade--United States, Youth Risk Behavior Survey, 2013." Available at http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6326a6.htm?mm6326a6.htm_w. For the 2011 report, "Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance--United States, 2011. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. Surveillance Summaries. Volume 61, Number 4," see ED532750.]

Monitoring the Future (MTF) is a long-term study of American adolescents, college students, and adults through age 55. It has been conducted annually by the University of Michigan's Institute for Social Research since its inception in 1975 and is supported under a series of investigator-initiated, competing research grants from the National Institute on Drug Abuse. The 2013 MTF survey encompassed about 41,700 8th-, 10th-, and 12th-grade students in 389 secondary schools nationwide. The first published results are presented in this report. Recent trends in the use of licit and illicit drugs are emphasized, as well as trends in the levels of perceived risk and personal disapproval associated with each drug. This project has shown these beliefs and attitudes to be particularly important in explaining trends in use. In addition, trends in the perceived availability of each drug are presented. The report begins with a synopsis of the design and methods used in the study and an overview of the key results from the 2013 survey. This is followed by a separate section for each individual drug class, providing figures that show trends in the overall proportions of students at each grade level (1) using the drug; (2) seeing a "great risk" associated with its use (perceived risk); (3) disapproving of its use (disapproval); and (4) saying that it would be fairly or very easy to get if they wanted to (perceived availability). For 12th graders, annual data are available since 1975 and for 8th and 10th graders since 1991, the first year they were included in the study. [For "Monitoring the Future National Survey Results on Drug Use, 1975-2013. Volume 1, Secondary School Students," see ED578546.]

This occasional paper presents national demographic subgroup trends for U.S. secondary school students in a series of figures and tables. It supplements two of four annual monographs from the Monitoring the Future (MTF) study, namely the "Overview of Key Findings" and "Volume I: Secondary School Students." MTF is funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse under a series of investigator-initiated, competitive research grants. The full 2013 survey results are reported in "Monitoring the Future National Survey Results on Drug Use, 1975-2013: Volume I, Secondary School Students." That monograph contains a description of MTF's design and purposes, as well as extended reporting on substance use of all kinds, licit and illicit, and a number of related factors such as attitudes and beliefs about drugs, age of initiation, non-continuation of drug use, perceived availability, relevant conditions in the social environment, history of daily marijuana use, use of drugs for the treatment of ADHD, and sources of prescription drugs used outside of medical supervision. Until 2012, "Volume I" contained the tabular data on trends in drug use for various demographic subgroups that are now presented in the present occasional paper. The trends offered here in tabular form and graphic form--the latter for ease of comprehension--cover demographic subgroups based on: (1) gender; (2) college plans; (3) region of the country; (4) population density; (5) education level of the parents (a proxy for socioeconomic level); and (6) racial/ethnic identification. Detailed descriptions of the demographic categories are provided in a separate chapter. The graphs and tables in this occasional paper present trend data for 8th-, 10th-, and 12th-grade respondents. Data for 12th grade begins with 1975, the first year in which a nationally representative sample of high school seniors was surveyed. Data for 8th and 10th grades begin with 1991, when the study's annual surveys were expanded to include those grade levels. [For "Monitoring the Future National Survey Results on Drug Use, 1975-2013. Volume 1, Secondary School Students," see ED578546. For "Monitoring the Future National Survey Results on Drug Use, 1975-2013: Overview, Key Findings on Adolescent Drug Use," see ED578545.]

This occasional paper presents subgroup findings from the Monitoring the Future (MTF) study on levels of and trends in the use of a number of substances for nationally representative samples of high school graduates ages 19-30. The data have been gathered in a series of follow-up surveys of representative subsamples of high school seniors who were first surveyed in 12th grade as part of the MTF study. Therefore, the universe being described omits people who did not complete high school--between 9-15% of each age group, with the most recent class cohorts closer to the bottom of that range. Surveys of the graduating cohorts of high school seniors started in 1976 and have continued with each graduating class since. Data were first available for the 19-22 age group in 1980 and for the older age groups in subsequent years, as the tables and figures in this occasional paper indicate. The general epidemiological findings from these samples are contained in "Volume II" of the annual monograph series. The subgroup trends shown in the current occasional paper complement the last section of Chapter 5 (Trends in Drug Use in Early and Middle Adulthood) of that monograph by presenting the trend data for young adult subgroups in both graphic and tabular form. The results are described and discussed in Chapter 5, but the extensive set of tables and figures is provided here for the reader who wishes to view the figures and the underlying numerical values. Three demographic dimensions are differentiated: gender, region of the country, and population density. Gender includes trends for males and females, region describes trends for each of the four major regions defined by the U.S. Census, and population density differentiates trends for five levels of urbanicity. The Table of Contents and List of Figures are actively linked to the content and figures in this occasional paper. Following each figure is a table giving the numerical values associated with each trend line in that figure. [For "Monitoring the Future National Survey Results on Drug Use, 1975-2013. Volume 2, College Students & Adults Ages 19-55," see ED578547.]

Monitoring the Future (MTF) is a long-term study of American adolescents, college students, and adults through age 50. It has been conducted annually by the University of Michigan's Institute for Social Research since its inception in 1975 and is supported under a series of investigator-initiated, competing research grants from the National Institute on Drug Abuse. The 2011 the MTF survey encompassed about 46,700 8th-, 10th-, and 12th-grade students in 400 secondary schools nationwide. The first published results are presented in this report. Recent trends in the use of licit and illicit drugs are emphasized, as well as trends in the levels of perceived risk and personal disapproval associated with each drug. This study has shown these beliefs and attitudes to be particularly important in explaining trends in use. In addition, trends in the perceived availability of each drug are presented. A synopsis of the design and methods used in the study and an overview of the key results from the 2011 survey is presented in the introductory section. These are followed by a separate section for each individual drug class, providing figures that show trends in the overall proportions of students at each grade level (a) using the drug, (b) seeing a "great risk" associated with its use (perceived risk), (c) disapproving of its use (disapproval), and (d) saying they could get it "fairly easily" or "very easily" if they wanted to (perceived availability). For 12th graders, annual data are available since 1975, and for 8th and 10th graders, since 1991, the first year they were included in the study. The tables at the end of this report provide the statistics underlying the figures; in addition, they present data on lifetime, annual, 30-day, and (for selected drugs) daily prevalence. (Contains 17 tables and 9 footnotes.) [For "Monitoring the Future National Results on Adolescent Drug Use: Overview of Key Findings, 2010," see ED528077.]

Monitoring the Future (MTF), which is now in its 36th year, is a research program conducted at the University of Michigan's Institute for Social Research under a series of investigator-initiated research grants from the National Institute on Drug Abuse. The study is comprised of several ongoing series of annual surveys of nationally representative samples of 8th- and 10th-grade students (begun in 1991), 12th-grade students (begun in 1975), and high school graduates into adulthood (begun in 1976). The current monograph reports the results of the repeated cross-sectional surveys of high school graduates since 1976 as the authors follow them into their adult years. Several segments of the general adult population are covered in these follow-up surveys: (1) American college students; (2) Their age peers who are not attending college, sometimes called the "forgotten half"; (3) All young adult high school graduates of modal ages 19 to 30, which the authors refer to as the "young adult" sample; and (4) High school graduates at the specific later modal ages of 35, 40, 45, and 50. Changes in substance abuse and related attitudes and beliefs occurring at each of these age strata receive particular emphasis. The authors can summarize the findings on trends as follows: For more than a decade--from the late 1970s to the early 1990s--the use of a number of illicit drugs declined appreciably among 12th-grade students, and declined even more among American college students and young adults. These substantial improvements--which seem largely explainable in terms of changes in attitudes about drug use, beliefs about the risks of drug use, and peer norms against drug use--have some extremely important policy implications. One clear implication is that these various substance-using behaviors among American young people are malleable--they can be changed. It has been done before. The second is that demand-side (rather than supply-side) factors appear to have been pivotal in bringing about most of those changes. The levels of marijuana availability, as reported by 12th graders, have held fairly steady throughout the life of the study. (Moreover, among students who abstained from marijuana use, as well as among those who quit, availability and price rank very low on their lists of reasons for not using.) And, in fact, the perceived availability of cocaine was actually rising during the beginning of the sharp decline in cocaine and crack use in the mid- to late- 1980s, which occurred when the perceived risk associated with that drug rose sharply. However, improvements are surely not inevitable; and when they occur, they should not be taken for granted. Relapse is always possible and, indeed, just such a relapse in the longer term epidemic occurred during the early to mid-1990s, as the country let down its guard on many fronts. The drug problem is not an enemy that can be vanquished. It is more a recurring and relapsing problem that must be contained to the extent possible on an ongoing basis. Therefore, it is a problem that requires an ongoing, dynamic response--one that takes into account the continuing generational replacement of children, the generational forgetting of the dangers of drugs that can occur with that replacement, and the perpetual stream of new abusable substances that will threaten to lure young people into involvement with drugs. (Contains 30 tables, 49 figures and 68 footnotes.) [For related reports, see "Monitoring the Future National Survey Results on Drug Use, 1975-2010. Volume I, Secondary School Students" (ED528081); and "Monitoring the Future National Results on Adolescent Drug Use: Overview of Key Findings, 2010" (ED528077).]

This report presents the 2011 Montana Youth Risk Behavior Survey high school student frequency distributions for American Indian students on or near a reservation. These frequency distributions are based upon surveys with 720 high school American Indian students on or near a reservation in Montana during February of 2011. Frequency distributions may not total 720 due to nonresponse and percents may not total 100 percent due to rounding. This paper also contains trend data for 1999-2011 on (1) Injury and violence; (2) Tobacco use; (3) Alcohol and other drug use; (4) Sexual behaviors; (5) Weight management and dietary behaviors; (6) Physical activity; and (7) Other.

This report presents the 2011 Montana Youth Risk Behavior Survey high school student frequency distributions for nonpublic accredited schools. These frequency distributions are based upon surveys with 349 high school students in Nonpublic Region during February of 2011. Frequency distributions may not total 349 due to nonresponse and percents may not total 100 percent due to rounding. This paper also contains trend data for 1999-2011 on (1) Injury and violence; (2) Tobacco use; (3) Alcohol and other drug use; (4) Sexual behaviors; (5) Weight management and dietary behaviors; (6) Physical activity; and (7) Other.

This report presents the 2011 Montana Youth Risk Behavior Survey high school student frequency distributions for American Indian students in urban schools. These frequency distributions are based upon surveys with 808 high school American Indian students in urban schools during February of 2011. Frequency distributions may not total 808 due to nonresponse and percents may not total 100 percent due to rounding. This paper also contains trend data for 1999-2011 on (1) Injury and violence; (2) Tobacco use; (3) Alcohol and other drug use; (4) Sexual behaviors; (5) Weight management and dietary behaviors; (6) Physical activity; and (7) Other.

The Monitoring the Future (MTF) study involves an ongoing series of national surveys of American adolescents and adults that has provided the nation with a vital window into the important, but largely hidden, problem behaviors of illegal drug use, alcohol use, tobacco use, anabolic steroid use, and psychotherapeutic drug use. For more than a third of a century, MTF has provided a clearer view of the changing topography of these problems among adolescents and adults, a better understanding of the dynamics of factors that drive some of these problems, and a better understanding of some of their consequences. It has also given policymakers and nongovernmental organizations in the field some practical approaches for intervening. This annual monograph series has been the primary vehicle for disseminating MTF's epidemiological findings. This latest two-volume monograph presents the results of the 36th survey of drug use and related attitudes and beliefs among American high school seniors, the 31st such survey of American college students, and the 20th such survey of 8th- and 10th-grade students. Importantly, results are also reported for high school graduates followed in a series of panel studies through age 50. Results from the samples of 8th, 10th, and 12th graders are contained in "Volume I", which is preceded by two national press releases and an advance summary report. Results on college students and other adults are reported each year in "Volume II", which is published a few months after "Volume I". A new monograph was added in 2009 on risk and protective behaviors for the spread of HIV/AIDS among young adults. The authors can summarize the findings on trends as follows: For more than a decade--from the late 1970s to the early 1990s--the use of a number of illicit drugs declined appreciably among 12th-grade students, and declined even more among American college students and young adults. These substantial improvements--which seem largely explainable in terms of changes in attitudes about drug use, beliefs about the risks of drug use, and peer norms against drug use--have some extremely important policy implications. One clear implication is that these various substance-using behaviors among American young people are malleable--they can be changed. It has been done before. The second is that demand-side (rather than supply-side) factors appear to have been pivotal in bringing about most of those changes. The levels of marijuana availability, as reported by 12th graders, have held fairly steady throughout the life of the study. Moreover, among students who abstained from marijuana use, as well as among those who quit, availability and price rank very low on their lists of reasons for not using.) And, in fact, the perceived availability of cocaine was actually rising during the beginning of the sharp decline in cocaine and crack use in the mid- to late- 1980s, which occurred when the perceived risk associated with that drug rose sharply. However, improvements are surely not inevitable; and when they occur, they should not be taken for granted. Relapse is always possible and, indeed, just such a relapse in the longer term epidemic occurred during the early to mid-1990s, as the country let down its guard on many fronts. The drug problem is not an enemy that can be vanquished. It is more a recurring and relapsing problem that must be contained to the extent possible on an ongoing basis. Therefore, it is a problem that requires an ongoing, dynamic response--one that takes into account the continuing generational replacement of children, the generational forgetting of the dangers of drugs that can occur with that replacement, and the perpetual stream of new abusable substances that will threaten to lure young people into involvement with drugs. Appended are: (1) Prevalence and Trend Estimates Adjusted for Absentees and Dropouts; (2) Definition of Background and Demographic Subgroups; (3) Estimation of Sampling Errors; (4) Trends by Subgroup: Supplemental Tables for Secondary School Students; (5) Trends in Specific Subclasses of Hallucinogens, Amphetamines, Tranquilizers, Sedatives, and Narcotic Drugs Other than Heroin; and (6) Trends in Drug Use for Three Grades Combined. An index is included. (Contains 242 tables, 123 figures and 131 footnotes.) [For related reports, see "Monitoring the Future National Survey Results on Drug Use, 1975-2010. Volume II, College Students & Adults Ages 19-50" (ED528082); and "Monitoring the Future National Results on Adolescent Drug Use: Overview of Key Findings, 2010" (ED528077).]

Since 1975 the Monitoring the Future (MTF) survey has measured drug, alcohol, and cigarette use and related attitudes among adolescent students nationwide. Survey participants report their drug use behaviors across three time periods: lifetime, past year, and past month; for some drugs, daily use is also reported. Initially, the survey included 12th-graders only, but in 1991 it was expanded to include 8th- and 10th-graders. The MTF survey is funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) and is conducted by the University of Michigan's Institute for Social Research. The 36th annual study was conducted during 2010. This year's Monitoring the Future survey raises concerns about increases in drug use among the Nation's teens, particularly the youngest. This paper provides the highlights of this year's Monitoring the Future survey. (Contains 2 notes.)

Monitoring the Future (MTF) is a long-term study of American adolescents, college students, and adults through age 50. It has been conducted annually by the University of Michigan's Institute for Social Research since its inception in 1975 and is supported under a series of investigator-initiated, competing research grants from the National Institute on Drug Abuse. The 2010 MTF survey encompassed about 46,500 eighth-, 10th-, and 12th-grade students in almost 400 secondary schools nationwide. The first published results are presented in this report. Recent trends in the use of licit and illicit drugs are emphasized, as well as trends in the levels of perceived risk and personal disapproval associated with each drug. This study has shown these beliefs and attitudes to be particularly important in explaining trends in use. In addition, trends in the perceived availability of each drug are presented. A synopsis of the design and methods used in the study and an overview of the key results from the 2010 survey follow this report's introductory section. These are followed by a separate section for each individual drug class, providing figures that show trends in the overall proportions of students at each grade level (a) using the drug, (b) seeing a "great risk" associated with its use (perceived risk), (c) disapproving of its use (disapproval), and (d) saying they could get it "fairly easily" or "very easily" if they wanted to (perceived availability). For 12th graders, annual data are available since 1975, and for 8th and 10th graders, since 1991, the first year they were included in the study. The tables at the end of this report provide the statistics underlying the figures; in addition, they present data on lifetime, annual, 30-day, and (for selected drugs) daily prevalence. (Contains 17 tables and 9 footnotes.) [For related reports, see "Monitoring the Future National Survey Results on Drug Use, 1975-2010. Volume I, Secondary School Students" (ED528081); and "Monitoring the Future National Survey Results on Drug Use, 1975-2010. Volume II, College Students & Adults Ages 19-50" (ED528082).]

The Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) is an epidemiologic surveillance system that was established by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to help monitor the prevalence of behaviors that not only influence youth health, but also put youth at risk for the most significant health and social problems that can occur during adolescence and adulthood. To monitor priority health-risk behaviors in each of these six categories and obesity and asthma among youth and young adults, CDC developed the YRBS. The YRBS has been conducted biennially since 1991 in Montana. The purpose of the YRBS is to assist educators and health professionals in determining the prevalence of the aforementioned health-risk behaviors among youth. This report describes the results of the survey and the methods used to conduct the survey. The results will be used to focus the continuing development of statewide comprehensive health education and to reduce those health behaviors that place Montana youth at risk. Survey results are presented in the following parts: (1) Introduction; (2) Graphs; (3) Frequency Distributions; (4) Native American YRBS Results; (5) Trend Report (1993-2011); and (6) Other Frequency Distributions and Trend Reports. [Funding for this paper was provided by the Montana Board of Crime Control, the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services, the Billings Area Indian Health Service, and the Montana Department of Transportation.]

The national Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) monitors priority health risk behaviors that contribute to the leading causes of death, disability, and social problems among youth and adults in the United States. The national YRBS is conducted every two years during the spring semester and provides data representative of 9th through 12th grade students in public and private schools throughout the United States. This fact sheet presents selected 2011 findings on health risk behaviors and health outcomes by race/ethnicity. (Contains 3 endnotes.) [For related report, "Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance--United States, 2011. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. Surveillance Summaries. Volume 61, Number 4," see ED532750.]

The full 2010 survey results are reported in "Monitoring the Future National Survey Results on Drug Use, 1975;2010: Volume I, Secondary School Students". That monograph contains a description of MTF's design and purposes, as well as extended reporting on substance use of all kinds, licit and illicit, and a number of related factors such as attitudes and beliefs about drugs, age of initiation, non-continuation of drug use, relevant conditions in the social environment, history of daily marijuana use, use of drugs for the treatment of ADHD, and sources of prescription drugs used outside of medical supervision. Appendix D of "Volume I" contains tabular data on trends in drug use for various demographic subgroups for each of the many drugs under study. The present occasional paper presents those same subgroup trends in "graphic form", because graphic presentations are much easier to comprehend. (Showing the trends in color greatly facilitates the differentiation of the various trend lines in each graph.) Historically, the graphic presentations have not been included in "Volume I" due both to their length and the cost of printing them in color. Even though the annual monographs from the study now are published electronically on the study's Website, rather than in paper form, the authors continue to make the graphic presentation of the subgroup trends available in this separate document in the MTF Occasional Paper series. Trend data are presented for 12th-grade respondents beginning with 1975, the first year in which a nationally representative sample of high school seniors was surveyed. Trend data for 8th and 10th grades are presented beginning with 1991, when the study's annual surveys were expanded to include those grade levels. The numerical information upon which these graphics are based is contained in the relevant appendix D tables of "Volume I". Detailed definitions of the demographic categories are given in appendix B of that volume. (Contains 258 figures.)

Now in its 35th year, Monitoring the Future (MTF) is a long-term program of research conducted at the University of Michigan's Institute for Social Research under a series of investigator-initiated research grants from the National Institute on Drug Abuse. The study is comprised of several ongoing series of annual surveys of nationally representative samples of 8th- and 10th-grade students (begun in 1991), 12th-grade students (begun in 1975), and high school graduates into adulthood (begun in 1976). The current monograph reports the results of the repeated cross-sectional surveys since 1976 following graduating high school seniors into their adult years. Several segments of the general adult population are covered in these follow-up surveys: (1) American college students; (2) Their age peers who are not attending college, sometimes called the "forgotten half"; (3) All young adult high school graduates of modal ages 19 to 30, which the authors refer to as the "young adult" sample; and (4) High school graduates at the specific modal ages of 35, 40, 45, and 50. Changes in substance abuse and related attitudes and beliefs within each of these various age strata receive particular emphasis. The authors can summarize the findings on trends as follows: For more than a decade--from the late 1970s to the early 1990s--the use of a number of "illicit" drugs declined appreciably among 12th-grade students, and declined even more among American college students and young adults. In 1992, eighth graders exhibited a significant increase in annual use of "marijuana," "cocaine," "LSD," and "hallucinogens other than LSD," as well as an increase in "inhalant" use. Over the years, MTF has demonstrated that changes in perceived risk and disapproval have been important causes of change in the use of a number of drugs. These beliefs and attitudes are almost certainly influenced by the amount and nature of public attention paid to the drug issue in the historical period during which young people are growing up. Another lesson that derives from the MTF epidemiological data is that social influences that tend to reduce the "initiation" of substance use also have the potential to deter "continuation" by those who have already begun to use, particularly if they are not yet habitual users. The drug problem is not an enemy that can be vanquished. It is more a recurring and relapsing problem that must be contained to the greatest extent possible on an ongoing basis. Therefore, it is a problem that requires an ongoing, dynamic response--one that takes into account the continuing generational replacement of children, the generational forgetting of the dangers of drugs that can occur with that replacement, and the perpetual stream of new abusable substances that will threaten to lure young people into involvement with drugs. An index is included. (Contains 30 tables, 74 figures and 64 footnotes.) [For related reports, see "Monitoring the Future National Survey Results on Drug Use, 1975-2009. Volume I, Secondary School Students. NIH Publication Number 10-7584" (ED529150) and "Monitoring the Future National Results on Adolescent Drug Use: Overview of Key Findings, 2009. NIH Publication Number 10-7583" (ED529149).]

Monitoring the Future (MTF), now in its 35th year, has become one of the nation's most relied-upon sources of information on changes taking place in licit and illicit psychoactive drug use among American adolescents, college students, young adults, and more recently, middle-aged adults. During the last three and a half decades, the study has tracked and reported on the use of an ever-growing array of such substances in these populations. This annual series of monographs is one of the major vehicles by which the epidemiological findings from MTF are reported. Findings from the inception of the study in 1975 through 2009 are included--the results of 35 national in-school surveys and 33 national follow-up surveys. MTF has conducted in-school surveys of nationally representative samples of (a) 12th-grade students each year since 1975 and (b) 8th- and 10th-grade students each year since 1991. In addition, beginning with the class of 1976, the project has conducted follow-up mail surveys on representative subsamples of the respondents from each previously participating 12th-grade class. These follow-up surveys now continue well into adulthood. A number of important findings have been summarized in this report to provide the reader with an overview of the key results. Because so many populations, drugs, and prevalence intervals are discussed here, a single integrative set of tables (Tables 2-1 through 2-4) show the 1991-2009 trends for all drugs on five populations: 8th-grade students, 10th-grade students, 12th-grade students, full-time college students modal ages 19-22, and all young adults modal ages 19-28 who are high school graduates. (Note that the young adult group includes the college student population.) "Volume II" also contains data on older age bands based on the longer term follow-up surveys: specifically, ages 35, 40, 45, and 50. An index is included. (Contains 30 tables, 74 figures, and 64 footnotes.) [For Volume I, see ED514370.]

The National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) is the primary source of information on the prevalence, patterns, and consequences of substance abuse among people age 12 and older. The survey is conducted every year by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). The 2009 NSDUH, released September 16, 2010, shows that drug use in the United States increased in 2009, reversing downward trends since 2002. This paper presents an overview of the findings of the 2009 National Survey on Drug Use and Health. The Obama Administration's 2010 National Drug Control Strategy is outlined. (Contains 7 figures.)

The Monitoring the Future (MTF) study is an ongoing series of national surveys of American adolescents and adults that has provided the nation with a vital window into the important, but largely hidden, problem behaviors of illegal drug use, alcohol use, tobacco use, anabolic steroid use, and psychotherapeutic drug use. For more than a third of a century, MTF has provided a clearer view of the changing topography of these problems among adolescents and adults, a better understanding of the dynamics of factors that drive some of these problems, and a better understanding of some of their consequences. It has also given policymakers and nongovernmental organizations in the field some practical approaches for intervening. This annual monograph series has been the primary vehicle for disseminating MTF's epidemiological findings. This latest two-volume monograph presents the results of the 35th survey of drug use and related attitudes and beliefs among American high school seniors, the 30th such survey of American college students, and the 19th such survey of 8th- and 10th-grade students. Results are also reported for high school graduates followed in a series of panel studies through age 50. Two of the major topics included in this report are (a) the "prevalence and frequency" of drug use among American secondary school students in 8th, 10th, and 12th grades and (b) "historical trends" in use by students in those grades. Distinctions are made among important demographic subgroups in these populations based on gender, college plans, region of the country, population density, parents' education, and race/ethnicity. The authors can summarize the findings on trends as follows: For more than a decade--from the late 1970s to the early 1990s--the use of a number of "illicit" drugs declined appreciably among 12th-grade students, and declined even more among American college students and young adults. These substantial improvements--which seem largely explainable in terms of changes in attitudes about drug use, beliefs about the risks of drug use, and peer norms against drug use--have some extremely important policy implications. One clear implication is that these various substance-using behaviors among American young people are malleable--they can be changed. Over the years, MTF has demonstrated that changes in perceived risk and disapproval have been important causes of change in the use of a number of drugs. These beliefs and attitudes are almost certainly influenced by the amount and nature of public attention paid to the drug issue in the historical period during which young people are growing up. A substantial decline in attention to this issue in the early 1990s very likely explains why the increases in perceived risk and disapproval among students ceased and began to backslide. Another lesson that derives from the MTF epidemiological data is that social influences that tend to reduce the "initiation" of substance use also have the potential to deter "continuation" by those who have already begun to use, particularly if they are not yet habitual users. The drug problem is not an enemy that can be vanquished. It is more a recurring and relapsing problem that must be contained to the greatest extent possible on an ongoing basis. Therefore, it is a problem that requires an ongoing, dynamic response--one that takes into account the continuing generational replacement of children, the generational forgetting of the dangers of drugs that can occur with that replacement, and the perpetual stream of new abusable substances that will threaten to lure young people into involvement with drugs. Appended are: (1) Prevalence and Trend Estimates Adjusted for Absentees and Dropouts; (2) Definition of Background and Demographic Subgroups; (3) Estimation of Sampling Errors; (4) Trends by Subgroup: Supplemental Tables for Secondary School Students; (5) Trends in Specific Subclasses of Hallucinogens, Amphetamines, Tranquilizers, Sedatives, and Narcotic Drugs other than Heroin; and (6) Trends in Drug Use for Three Grades Combined. An index is included. (Contains 242 tables, 123 figures and 129 footnotes.) [For related reports, see "Monitoring the Future National Survey Results on Drug Use, 1975-2009. Volume II, College Students & Adults Ages 19-50. NIH Publication Number 10-7585" (ED529151) and "Monitoring the Future National Results on Adolescent Drug Use: Overview of Key Findings, 2009. NIH Publication Number 10-7583" (ED529149).]

The Monitoring the Future (MTF) study is an ongoing series of national surveys of American adolescents and adults that has provided the nation with a vital window into the important, but largely hidden, problem behaviors of illegal drug use, alcohol use, tobacco use, anabolic steroid use, and psychotherapeutic drug use. For more than a third of a century, MTF has provided a clearer view of the changing topography of these problems among adolescents and adults, a better understanding of the dynamics of factors that drive some of these problems, and a better understanding of some of their consequences. It has also given policymakers and nongovernmental organizations in the field some practical approaches for intervening. This annual monograph series has been the primary vehicle for disseminating MTF's epidemiological findings. This latest two-volume monograph presents the results of the 35th survey of drug use and related attitudes and beliefs among American high school seniors, the 30th such survey of American college students, and the 19th such survey of 8th- and 10th-grade students. Results are also reported for high school graduates followed in a series of panel studies through age 50. Results from the samples of 8th, 10th, and 12th graders are contained in "Volume I", which is preceded by two national press releases and an advance summary report. Results on college students and other adults are reported each year in "Volume II", which is published a few months after "Volume I". Two of the major topics included in this report are (a) the "prevalence and frequency" of drug use among American secondary school students in 8th, 10th, and 12th grades and (b) "historical trends" in use by students in those grades. Distinctions are made among important demographic subgroups in these populations based on gender, college plans, region of the country, population density, parents' education, and race/ethnicity. MTF has demonstrated that key attitudes and beliefs about drug use are important determinants of usage trends; thus, they are also tracked over time, as are students' perceptions of certain relevant aspects of the social environment--in particular, perceived availability, peer norms, use by friends, and exposure to use of the various drugs. Data on grade of first use, usage trends in lower grades, and intensity of use are also measured. Appendices include: (1) Prevalence and Trend Estimates Adjusted for Absentees and Dropouts; (2) Definition of Background and Demographic Subgroups; (3) Estimation of Sampling Errors; (4) Trends by Subgroup: Supplemental Tables for Secondary School Students; (5) Trends in Specific Subclasses of Hallucinogens, Amphetamines, Tranquilizers, Sedatives, and Narcotic Drugs other than Heroin; and (6) Trends in Drug Use for Three Grades Combined. An index is included. (Contains 242 tables, 123 figures, and 129 footnotes.) [For Volume II, see ED514367.]

Results of the 2009 "Monitoring the Future" (MTF) study document the disturbing prevalence among teens of abuse of prescription and over-the-counter drugs. The data show, for example, that seven of the substances most commonly abused by high school seniors are pharmaceuticals. Many parents believe they are powerless to influence their teens. However, research makes clear that parents remain the single most powerful influence in their kids' lives. This paper offers some tips for parents on how to talk to their teens about drug use. (Contains 4 figures.)

Monitoring the Future (MTF) is a long-term study of American adolescents, college students, and adults through age 50. It has been conducted annually by the University of Michigan's Institute for Social Research since its inception in 1975. It is supported under a series of investigator-initiated, competing research grants from the National Institute on Drug Abuse. The 2009 MTF survey encompassed over 46,000 eighth-, 10th-, and 12th-grade students in almost 400 secondary schools nationwide. The first published results are presented in this report. Recent trends in the use of licit and illicit drugs are emphasized, as well as trends in the levels of perceived risk and personal disapproval associated with each drug. This study has shown these beliefs and attitudes to be particularly important in explaining trends in use. In addition, trends in the perceived availability of each drug are presented. A synopsis of the design and methods used in the study and an overview of the key results from the 2009 survey follow the introductory section. This is followed by a separate section for each individual drug class, providing figures that show trends in the overall proportions of students at each grade level (a) using the drug, (b) seeing a "great risk" associated with its use (perceived risk), (c) disapproving of its use (disapproval), and (d) saying that they think they could get it "fairly easily" or "very easily" if they wanted to (perceived availability). For 12th graders, annual data are available since 1975, and for 8th and 10th graders, since 1991, the first year they were included in the study. The tables at the end of this report provide the statistics underlying the figures; in addition, they present data on lifetime, annual, 30-day, and (for selected drugs) daily prevalence. For the sake of brevity, the authors present these prevalence statistics here only for the 1991-2009 interval, but statistics on 12th graders are available for earlier years in other MTF publications. For each prevalence period, the tables indicate which of the most recent one-year changes (between 2008 and 2009) are statistically significant. The graphic depictions of multiyear trends often indicate gradual, continuing change that may not reach significance in a given one-year interval. (Contains 17 tables and 7 footnotes.) [For related reports, see "Monitoring the Future National Survey Results on Drug Use, 1975-2009. Volume I, Secondary School Students. NIH Publication Number 10-7584" (ED529150) and "Monitoring the Future National Survey Results on Drug Use, 1975-2009. Volume II, College Students & Adults Ages 19-50. NIH Publication Number 10-7585" (ED529151).]

Monitoring the Future (MTF) is a long-term study of American adolescents, college students, and adults through age 50. It has been conducted annually by the University of Michigan's Institute for Social Research since its inception in 1975. It is supported under a series of investigator-initiated, competing research grants from the National Institute on Drug Abuse. The need for a study such as MTF is clear. Substance use by American young people has proven to be a rapidly changing phenomenon, requiring frequent assessments and reassessments. Since the mid-1960s, when it burgeoned in the general youth population, illicit drug use has remained a major concern for the nation. Smoking, drinking, and illicit drug use are leading causes of morbidity and mortality, both during adolescence as well as later in life. How vigorously the nation responds to teenage substance use, how accurately it identifies the emerging substance abuse problems, and how well it comes to understand the effectiveness of policy and intervention efforts largely depend on the ongoing collection of valid and reliable data. Monitoring the Future is designed to generate such data in order to provide an accurate picture of what is happening in this domain and why, and has served that function well for the past 34 years. Policy discussions in the media; in government, education, and public health institutions; and elsewhere have been informed by the ready availability of extensive and accurate information from the study relating to a large number of substances. The 2009 MTF survey encompassed over 46,000 eighth-, 10th-, and 12th-grade students in almost 400 secondary schools nationwide. The first published results are presented in this report. Recent trends in the use of licit and illicit drugs are emphasized, as well as trends in the levels of perceived risk and personal disapproval associated with each drug. This study has shown these beliefs and attitudes to be particularly important in explaining trends in use. In addition, trends in the perceived availability of each drug are presented. (Contains 17 tables and 7 footnotes.) [For the related reports, see "Volume I" (ED514370), "Volume II" (ED514367), and "HIV/AIDS: Risk & Protective Behaviors among American Young Adults" (ED514378).]

This occasional paper serves as a supplement to one of four annual monographs from the Monitoring the Future (MTF) study, written by the study's investigators and published by the study's sponsor, the National Institute on Drug Abuse. The full 2009 survey results are reported in "Monitoring the Future National Survey Results on Drug Use, 1975-2009: Volume I, Secondary School Students". That monograph contains a description of MTF's design and purposes, as well as extended reporting on substance use of all kinds and a number of related factors such as attitudes and beliefs about drugs, age of initiation, non-continuation of drug use, relevant conditions in the social environment, history of daily marijuana use, and use of drugs for the treatment of ADHD. Appendix D of Volume I contains tabular data on trends in drug use for various demographic subgroups for each of the many drugs under study. The present occasional paper presents those subgroup trends in "graphic" form, because graphic presentations are much easier to comprehend. The graphic presentations have not been included in "Volume I" due both to their length and the cost of printing them in color. Trend data are presented for 12th-grade respondents beginning with 1975, the first year in which a nationally representative sample of high school seniors was surveyed. Trend data for 8th and 10th grades are presented beginning with 1991, when those grade levels were added to the study design. The numerical information upon which these graphics are based is contained in the relevant appendix D tables of Volume I. Detailed definitions of the demographic categories are given in appendix B of that volume. For the reader's convenience, both appendix B and appendix D have also been included in this occasional paper. (Contains 258 figures and 1 footnote.)

The Monitoring the Future study has provided the nation with a window into the important, but largely hidden, problem behaviors of illicit drug use, alcohol use, and tobacco use. It has provided a clearer view of the changing topography of these problems among adolescents and adults, a better understanding of the dynamics of factors that drive some of these problems, and a better understanding of some of their consequences. It has also given policy makers and nongovernmental organizations in the field some approaches for reducing these problems. The 2008 survey, reported here, is the 34th in this series of national surveys of substance use among America's young people. Results from the secondary school samples of 8th, 10th, and 12th graders are contained in Volume I, which is preceded by an advance summary of its key findings in "Monitoring the Future National Results on Adolescent Drug Use: Overview of Key Findings, 2008." Two of the major topics included in this series of annual reports are: (1) the prevalence and frequency of drug use among American secondary school students (specifically, in 8th, 10th, and 12th grades); and (2) historical trends in use by students in those grades. Distinctions are made among important demographic subgroups in these populations based on gender, college plans, region of the country, population density, parents' education, and race/ethnicity. Data on grade of first use, trends in use at lower grade levels, as well as intensity of drug use are also reported in separate chapters. This study has demonstrated that key attitudes and beliefs about use of the various drugs are important determinants of trends in use over time. Therefore, they are also tracked over time, as are students' perceptions of certain relevant aspects of the social environment--in particular, perceived availability, peer norms, use by friends, and exposure to use of the various drugs. The following are appended: (1) Prevalence and Trend Estimates Adjusted for Absentees and Dropouts; (2) Definition of Background and Demographic Subgroups; (3) Estimation of Sampling Errors; (4) Trends by Subgroup: Supplemental Tables for Secondary School Students; and (5) Trends in Specific Subclasses of Hallucinogens, Amphetamines, Tranquilizers, and Narcotic Drugs Other Than Heroin. (Contains 223 tables, 123 figures, and 125 footnotes.) [This document was produced by the Monitoring the Future project at the Institute for Social Research, the University of Michigan. For Volume II, see ED508297.]

Since the mid-1960s, when illicit drug use burgeoned in the normal youth population, substance use by American young people has proven to be a rapidly changing phenomenon. Smoking, drinking, and illicit drug use are leading causes of morbidity and mortality, both during adolescence as well as later in life. How vigorously the nation responds to teenage substance use, how accurately it identifies the substance abuse problems that are emerging, and how well it comes to understand the effectiveness of policy and intervention efforts depend on the ongoing collection of valid and reliable data. Monitoring the Future (MTF), a long-term study of American adolescents, college students, and adults through age 50, is designed to generate such data in order to provide an accurate picture of what is happening in this domain and why, has been ongoing on an annual basis since its inception in 1975. In recent years, the trends in drug use have become more complex, as cohort effects, lasting differences between class cohorts that stay with them as they advance through school and beyond, have emerged. These effects result in the various grades reaching peaks or valleys in different years; thus, various age groups are sometimes moving in different directions at a given point in history. A synopsis of the design and methods used in the study and an overview of the key results from the 2008 survey are included, followed by sections for each individual drug class, providing figures that show trends in the overall proportions of students at each grade level (1) using the drug; (2) seeing a "great risk" associated with its use; (3) disapproving of its use; and (4) saying that they think they could get it "fairly easily" or "very easily" if they wanted to. The years for which data on each grade are available are 1975-2008 for 12th graders and 1991-2008 for 8th and 10th graders. Tables at the end of the report provide the statistics underlying the figures, and present data on lifetime, annual, 30-day, and (for selected drugs) daily prevalence. (Contains 6 footnotes and 17 tables.) [For 2007 overview, see ED502205.]