Pubertal Timing and Substance Use in Children and Adolescents: Gender Differences

描述（由申请人提供）：青春期成熟的时间与男孩和女孩的物质使用有关，但成熟影响物质使用的确切机制尚不清楚。与非早熟者相比，早熟女孩更有可能在年幼时使用药物，而早熟和晚熟男孩与按时成熟者相比，使用药物的风险似乎更高。拟议的项目利用现有的数据集超过1000大多处于危险中的儿童，检查青春期成熟和启动和使用烟草，酒精，大麻和吸入剂之间的关系的主持人和调解人。本调查侧重于3个领域的家庭，同伴和个人的差异，并纳入可能的性别差异，在这些领域。拟议的研究：（1）研究青春期时间与青少年吸烟、饮酒、吸食大麻和吸入性药物之间的关系;（2）检验了青春期时间与物质使用之间联系途径的性别差异，（3）检验了家庭因素对青春期时间与物质使用之间关系的调节作用，（4）考察同伴因素和情绪困扰在青春期时间与物质使用关系中的中介作用。与非工作时间成熟相关的风险和保护因素的知识可以帮助识别早期物质使用风险增加的人群，并可以帮助确定和完善预防计划。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The timing of pubertal maturation has been associated with substance use in both boys and girls, but the exact mechanisms by which maturation influences substance use are unclear. Early maturing girls are more likely to use substances at an early age compared to non-early maturers, while both early and late maturing boys appear to be at increased risk for substance use compared to on-time maturers. The proposed project utilizes an existing data set of over 1000 mostly at-risk children to examine moderators and mediators of the relation between pubertal maturation and initiation and use of tobacco, alcohol, marijuana, and inhalants. This investigation focuses on 3 domains-family, peer, and individual differences-and incorporates probable gender differences in each of these domains. The proposed study: (1) examines the relation between pubertal timing and tobacco, alcohol, marijuana, and inhalant use in young adolescents; (2) examines gender differences in the pathways linking pubertal timing with substance use, (3) examines moderating effects of family factors on the relation between pubertal timing and substance use, and (4) examines mediating effects of peer factors and emotional distress on the relation between pubertal timing and substance use. Knowledge of risk and protective factors associated with off-time maturation can aid in identifying populations at increased risk of early substance use and can help target and refine prevention programs.