Monique Bolognini

Substance use and depression. Comparative course in adolescents.

ObjectiveTo examine the relation between depression and substance use in adolescents and the concomitant courses of both disorders.MethodsFour individual interviews were administered to 85 adolescent substance users aged 14–19 years (mean 17.1 years, SD 1.4) over a 3.5 year period using the Adolescent Drug Abuse Interview (ADAD) and the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-13).ResultsNo predictive effect was observed on one dimension over the other, but each dimension was predictive of its own course. A decrease in substance-use severity paralleled a decrease in depressive state. Similarly, stable substance-use rates, either at a low or a high level, tended to be associated with low or high levels of depression, respectively. However, an increase in substance use was not accompanied by an increase in depressive states. Moreover, depression varied greatly between adolescents, and according to gender and age.ConclusionsDepressive states and substance use in adolescents can vary considerably overtime, and are closely but rather synchronically related. Since most of the adolescents do not seek help for substance-related problems, substance use should be systematically assessed in adolescents presenting with a depressive state.

Sensation seeking: a personality trait characteristic of adolescent girls and young women with eating disorders?

The aim of the following study was to evaluate the role of sensation seeking in eating disorders (anorexia and bulimia), taking into account the subtypes (purging versus nonpurging) and the concept of binge-eating disorder. The study involved 141 adolescent girls and young women, aged 14 to 25 years who lived in the French speaking part of Switzerland (79 clinical subjects with eating disorders according to DSM-IV criteria, and 62 control subjects without eating disorders from the general population). All the subjects completed the Sensation Seeking Scale (SSS, Zuckerman, 1971). The results show that subjects with bulimic behaviours characterized by recurrent episodes of binge-eating, whatever their exact diagnosis and subtype, do not significantly differ from one another on the Sensation Seeking Scale. They all had higher scores than the control group especially on the ‘Thrill and Adventure Seeking’ dimension. In contrast, restricting anorexics had lower scores on the Sensation Seeking Scale than the control group, especially on the ‘Experience Seeking’ dimension. Copyright

Adolescent's Suicide Attempts: Populations at Risk, Vulnerability, and Substance Use #

Adolescence corresponds to a transition period that requires adaptation and change capacities and skills. Most young people succeed with this challenge, whereas a minority fail. In order to identify with the teenage culture, become autonomous, and differentiate from their parents, some adolescents choose to use drugs, beginning with the use of cigarettes, alcohol, cannabis, followed by other illicit drugs such as opiates and stimulants. A high proportion of these adolescents attempt suicide, which is the primary cause of death during adolescence in many European countries. Who are the “vulnerable” adolescents? What are the mechanisms that can explain the varieties of drug-use initiation or suicide attempts? Can “protective factors” be identified? What kind of strategies might be developed at a social and political level in order to prevent or to minimize drug abuse and suicide attempts, among other harmful behaviors? These issues will be discussed on the basis of the recent literature and in the light of a recent study carried out in the French-speaking part of Switzerland on large cohorts of adolescent drug users. Unresolved critical issues are noted and future needed research is suggested.

Coping Strategies in Early and Mid-Adolescence

The way an adolescent handles different internal and external sources of stress depends partially on coping strategies. The aim of this study is to answer the following questions: Do coping strategies vary according to age and gender? And do relationships between coping and mental health vary according to age? Participants in this study consist of a community sample (N = 140; 73 girls and 67 boys, 11 through 15 years of age) in an urban area of the French-speaking part of Switzerland. The population was divided into two groups: a subsample of 70 subjects with a mean age of 12.25 years (early adolescents) and a subsample of 70 subjects with a mean age of 13.75 years (mid-adolescents). Coping was measured by the A-COPE (Patterson & McCubbin, 1987). Findings show that there are less family-oriented coping strategies and more relaxing strategies in mid-adolescents compared to early adolescents. Girls more often use social relationships as well as ventilating feelings and self-reliance, whereas boys more often...

Adolescent Substance-Use Assessment: Methodological Issues in the Use of the ADAD (Adolescent Drug Abuse Diagnosis)

THis article has been retracted.

DRUG USE AND SUICIDE ATTEMPTS: THE ROLE OF PERSONALITY FACTORS

This study on suicide attempts is part of a large research project on dependent behavior in adolescents and young adults. 228 subjects aged 14–25 (107 “drug abusers,” 121 controls) from the French speaking part of Switzerland were evaluated on the basis of a semi-structured interview (Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview), enabling a DSM-IV diagnosis, and self-reports (SSS by Zuckermann, MMPI-2, IDI by Hirschfeld). 31.5% of “drug abuser” males and 41.2% of “drug abuser” females committed one or more suicide attempts. The results of a logistic regression show that the significant factor explaining suicide attempts in drug users is emotional reliance for males and experience-seeking for females.

Adolescent drug use escalation and de-escalation: A 3-year follow-up study

This study aims to assess adolescents drug use with a longitudinal perspective in order to identify factors interacting with drug use onset and course. Supported by the Swiss Federal Office of Public Health, the study was initiated in 1999 with a follow-up in 2001 and 2002. The first objective was to measure risk factors for substance use initiation. The second objective was to analyse the co-variation of substance use with environmental, social, relational, medical and psychological factors. A total of 102 adolescents, aged 14–19 years, were recruited for the study in the French-speaking part of Switzerland. Results clearly show that substance use is not a disorder per se in adolescence, but that it is part of a multidimensional complex of problems that some adolescents may encounter: increase and decrease in substance use is paralleled with an increase or decrease in the other areas. This implies that prevention of substance use should not be focused mainly on substances but should consider the adolescent’s environment and significant life areas.

Substance use early initiation among violent and nonviolent antisocial adolescents

The relationship between delinquency and substance use and abuse has been much studied. Investigating this relationship as a function to the type of adolescent delinquent behavior presented, whether antisocial or violent, might help explain this complex issue. To this end, 211 adolescents completed the Adolescent Drug Abuse Diagnosis (ADAD), a multidimensional evaluation instrument that provided information regarding their substance use and antisocial behavior. Subjects were separated into three groups (violent, antisocial, and control) as a function of their reported antisocial behavior. The three groups were compared on the lifetime use of tobacco, alcohol and cannabis, and any illicit substance. The ages of initiation for these substances were also examined. Results indicated a high percentage of lifetime and problem substance use among violent and antisocial adolescents. However, on the issue of substance use initiation age, the violent adolescents consistently began using substances significantly earlier than both control and antisocial adolescents.

Mentally Retarded Adolescents: Evaluation of Communication Strategies in Different Settings.

The present project aims to evaluate communication strategies used by mentally retarded adolescents in different types of verbal interaction. The study was carried out on 17 subjects and notably shows that their language content is mostly informative and that the control of conversation varies according to the interlocutors status. Moreover, the global developmental age of the subjects appears to be a significant factor in the use of communication strategies. This could have pedagogical implications.

From the child to the young adult: sex differences in the antecedents of psychological problems: A retrospective study over ten years

SummaryThree hundred children chosen at random from the general population were examined at 9 years of age and seen again at 20. The results of the study emphasize the discontinuity of psychological problems between childhood and adulthood: serious difficulties in psychological functioning at age 9 do not predict disturbances at 20, but psychological disturbances at 20 may originate in adolescence. The overrepresentation, at age 9, of boys at risk disappears at 20, at which point there is a slightly higher proportion of women amongst the “cases”. The factors which influence the mental health of girls and boys are analysed and discussed.