Kirsty E. Scholes-Balog

A prospective study of adolescent risk and protective factors for problem gambling among young adults

There is a paucity of research examining prospective predictors of problem gambling. The current study utilised a large longitudinal data set (N = 2328) to examine a large range of adolescent risk and protective factors for problem gambling in young adulthood. These risk and protective factors covered the domains of the community, family, school, peer group and individual. Numerous predictors associated with the family, school and peer-individual were statistically significant in analyses adjusted for gender and age. However, in the fully adjusted multivariate analyses, only two predictors were statistically significant. Within this model, gender (female) was associated with a reduced risk of young adult problem gambling, while family rewards for prosocial involvement moderated the risk relationship between adolescent alcohol use and young adult problem gambling. These findings highlight the importance of adolescent alcohol use and family environment as potentially modifiable predictors of young adult problem gambling.

Alcohol warning labels: unlikely to affect alcohol‐related beliefs and behaviours in adolescents

Objective: In Australia, many health researchers and policy makers are advocating for mandated warning labels on alcoholic beverages. Alcohol‐related harms are of particular concern among adolescents. The aim of this article was to review the available literature and evaluate the impact of alcohol warning labels on adolescent drinking, knowledge and behaviour.

Associations Between Youth Homelessness, Sexual Offenses, Sexual Victimization, and Sexual Risk Behaviors: A Systematic Literature Review

Homeless youth commonly report engaging in sexual risk behaviors. These vulnerable young people also frequently report being sexually victimized. This systematic review collates, summarizes, and appraises published studies of youth investigating relationships between homelessness, perpetration of sexual offenses, experience of sexual victimization, and engagement in sexual risk behavior. A systematic search of seventeen psychology, health, and social science electronic databases was conducted. Search terms included “homeless*,” “youth,” “offend*,” “victimization,” “crime,” “rape,” “victim*,” and “sex crimes.” Thirty-eight studies were identified that met the inclusion criteria. Findings showed homeless youth commonly report being raped and sexually assaulted, fear being sexually victimized, and engage in street prostitution and survival sex. Rates of victimization and sexual risk behavior were generally higher for females. Given the paucity of longitudinal studies and limitations of current studies, it is unclear whether homelessness is prospectively associated with sexual victimization or engagement in sexual risk behavior, and whether such associations vary cross nationally and as a function of time and place. Future prospective research examining the influence of the situational context of homelessness is necessary to develop a better understanding of how homelessness influences the perpetration of sexual offenses, experience of sexual victimization, and engagement in sexual risk behavior among homeless youth.

Relationships Between Online Gambling, Mental Health, and Substance Use: A Review

This review deals with the published literature to date while examining the relationship between online gambling, mental health problems, and substance use. Online gambling, particularly problematic gambling online, was found to be associated with poor mental health and use of various substances. Recent preliminary evidence also suggests that online gamblers may be at a greater risk of some substance use and mental health problems, relative to nononline gamblers. However, many of the reviewed studies were limited by investigation of online gambling behaviors only; these samples may have inadvertently comprised individuals who engage in both online and nononline gambling. Future research is required to address these limitations.

Effects of early adolescent alcohol use on mid-adolescent school performance and connection: a longitudinal study of students in Victoria, Australia and Washington State, United States.

BACKGROUND This article examines the effect of early adolescent alcohol use on mid-adolescent school suspension, truancy, commitment, and academic failure in Washington State, United States, and Victoria, Australia. Also of interest was whether associations remain after statistically controlling for other factors known to predict school outcomes. METHODS State-representative student samples were surveyed in 2002 (grade 7; N = 1858) and followed up annually to 2004 (grade 9) in both sites. Students completed a modified version of the Communities That Care survey to report alcohol use, school outcomes, and risk and protective factors. Response rates were above 74% and retention rates exceeded 98% in both places. RESULTS Controlling for grade 7 risk factors, grade 7 current alcohol use, and heavy episodic drinking were associated with grade 8 school suspension. Grade 7 current and frequent alcohol use and heavy episodic drinking were linked to grade 9 truancy. In fully adjusted analyses, associations between early alcohol use and academic failure and low school commitment did not remain. CONCLUSIONS Although alcohol use is one factor influencing school performance and connection, there are other risk factors that need to be targeted to improve school outcomes.

Developmental trajectories of adolescent cannabis use and their relationship to young adult social and behavioural adjustment: A longitudinal study of Australian youth

This study aimed to identify distinct developmental trajectories (sub-groups of individuals who showed similar longitudinal patterns) of cannabis use among Australian adolescents, and to examine associations between trajectory group membership and measures of social and behavioural adjustment in young adulthood. Participants (n=852, 53% female) were part of the International Youth Development Study. Latent class growth analysis was used to identify distinct trajectories of cannabis use frequency from average ages 12 to 19, across 6 waves of data. Logistic regression analyses and analyses of covariance were used to examine relationships between trajectory group membership and young adult (average age: 21) adjustment, controlling for a range of covariates. Three trajectories were identified: abstainers (62%), early onset users (11%), and late onset occasional users (27%). The early onset users showed a higher frequency of antisocial behaviour, violence, cannabis use, cannabis-related harms, cigarette use, and alcohol harms, compared to the abstinent group in young adulthood. The late onset occasional users reported a higher frequency of cannabis use, cannabis-related harms, illicit drug use, and alcohol harms, compared to the abstinent group in young adulthood. There were no differences between the trajectory groups on measures of employment, school completion, post-secondary education, income, depression/anxiety, or alcohol use problems. In conclusion, early onset of cannabis use, even at relatively low frequency during adolescence, is associated with poorer adjustment in young adulthood. Prevention and intervention efforts to delay or prevent uptake of cannabis use should be particularly focussed on early adolescence prior to age 12.

Predicting early initiation of alcohol use : a prospective study of Australian children

This study explores the social, contextual and individual factors that predict early initiation of alcohol use. A state-wide representative sample of 927 fifth-grade students, in Victoria, Australia were surveyed. Students were resurveyed in the sixth and seventh grade. Risk and protective factors were measured with a modified version of the Communities That Care youth survey. Alcohol use was measured to assess transition from alcohol nonuse to use. Social contexts perceived to provide easier access to alcohol and drugs were found to be the clearest predictors of early onset alcohol use. The limitations and implications of these findings are discussed.

Problem gambling and internalising symptoms: a longitudinal analysis of common and specific social environmental protective factors.

INTRODUCTION Comorbidity between problem gambling and internalising disorders (anxiety and depression) has long been recognised. However, it is not clear how these relationships develop, and what factors can foster resilience to both conditions. The current study draws on longitudinal cohort data to investigate: 1) the cross-sectional and longitudinal relationships between problem gambling and internalising symptoms; 2) whether there are common and/or specific social environmental factors protective against both internalising symptoms and problem gambling in young adulthood; and 3) interactive protective factors (i.e., those that moderate the relationship between problem gambling and internalising symptoms). METHODS A sample of 2248 young adults (55% female) completed a survey in 2010 (T1) and 2012 (T2) which assessed problem gambling (measured via two items based on established measures), internalising symptoms, and social environmental protective factors. RESULTS A positive cross-sectional relationship between problem gambling and internalising symptoms was found; however, there was no statistically significant longitudinal relationship between the two conditions. Protective factors for internalising symptoms were observed within the domains of the community, family and peer group; however, there were no statistically significant protective factors identified for problem gambling. CONCLUSIONS These findings demonstrate that the social environmental protective factors for adult internalising symptoms assessed in the present study are poor longitudinal predictors of young adult problem gambling. Given the lack of common protective factors, it may be necessary to focus on separate factors to protect against each condition, if we are to address the comorbidity between problem gambling and internalising symptoms.

Cannabis use and related harms in the transition to young adulthood: a longitudinal study of Australian secondary school students

The current study documents the changing rates of cannabis use, misuse and cannabis-related social harms among Australian adolescents as they grow into young adulthood. It utilised data from a longitudinal study of young people at ages 15, 16, 17, and 19. The rates of cannabis use were found to increase as participants aged; past year use increased from 7.5% at age 15 to 29.8% at age 19. Further, at ages 17 and 19, cannabis use was more prevalent among males than females. Among those who reported cannabis use, the rates of cannabis-related harms were low to moderate, and did not increase with age in the same manner as rates of cannabis use. The most prevalent self-reported cannabis-related harm was anxiety/depression; affecting between 20-30% of the cannabis users at each age. These findings may assist in understanding the extent of cannabis-related problems among youth, and in planning relevant services.

Relationships Between Sport Participation, Problem Alcohol Use, and Violence A Longitudinal Study of Young Adults in Australia

There is a growing body of evidence suggesting a link between sport participation and violent behavior outside of the sporting context. However, there have been few studies that have investigated the basis of this relationship. The current study examined longitudinal relationships between sport participation, problem alcohol use, and various violent behaviors, and whether sport participation moderates relationships between problem alcohol use and violence. The sample comprised 2,262 young adults (55% female, age range at Time 1 = 17-24 years) from Victoria, Australia, surveyed in 2010 and 2012. When controlling for common risk factors, substance use, and past violence, sport participation was not associated with any violent behaviors 2 years later. However, sport participation moderated the relationship between problem alcohol use and fighting, whereby problem alcohol use was associated with engaging in fights 2 years later for sport participants, but not for nonparticipants. These findings suggest that it is not sport participation per se that influences later violence but the drinking norms or culture embedded within certain sporting contexts. Prevention approaches that address the drinking culture and social approval of excessive alcohol consumption within sporting contexts may reduce the incidence of violent behavior in the community.