The neighborhood environment and drug use in NYC

描述（由申请人提供）：拟进行一项研究，在控制相关个人层面因素的情况下，评估纽约市居民的邻里特征（如邻里劣势、集体功效、居住隔离）与吸毒行为之间的关系。本研究的第二个目的是确定关键社区特征与药物使用的医疗后果之间的关系，特别是致命的药物过量。最近的研究表明，社区特征与药物使用、滥用和依赖的可能性有关，仅关注药物使用的个人模式的研究不足以充分解释个体间的药物使用行为。在这里，我们提出了一个系统的数据收集，以表征大城市地区的社区特征，并测试可能解释吸毒行为及其后果的个体差异的关键假设。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Proposed is a study is to assess the relations between neighborhood characteristics (e.g., neighborhood disadvantage, collective efficacy, residential segregation) and drug use behavior among residents of New York City while controlling for relevant individual-level factors. A secondary purpose of this study is to determine the relation between key neighborhood characteristics and the medical consequences of drug use, particularly fatal drug overdose. Recent work has shown that neighborhood characteristics are associated with the likelihood of drug use, abuse, and dependence and that research focusing exclusively on individual patterns of drug use is insufficient to fully explain inter-individual drug use behavior. Here we propose a systematic collection of data to characterize neighborhoods in a large metropolitan area and to test key hypotheses that may explain inter-individual variability in drug use behavior and its consequences. Understanding how neighborhood factors affect drug use risk behavior can guide interventions that aim to mitigate drug use and its consequences, to create a social environment that better facilitates users to seek treatment, and to improve overall population health. In order to achieve the aims of this study we will use data from three sources: (i) We will collect data on individual drug use behavior (focusing on cigarette, alcohol, and marijuana use) through a random digit-dial phone survey of 5,000 New York City residents, geo-coding and mapping each respondent to their neighborhood of residence; (ii) we will compile a contextual database characterizing New York City neighborhoods using information collected in the survey and using archival data (collected from the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, Department of City Planning, Police Department, US Census and other sources); and (iii) we will combine this data with data from a NIDA funded study of drug overdose over time (DA 06534; principal investigator: Tardiff, a consultant on this project). We will test key hypotheses about the relations between neighborhood characteristics and drug use, abuse, and dependence using multi-level hierarchical models. We have recently completed several studies of New York City neighborhoods that serve as preliminary exploration of the key hypotheses of this study. This, coupled with our studies involving telephone interviews with 6,000+ New Yorkers is assurance that the aims of this study can be achieved.