August 31, 2001

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, nearly two-thirds of American teenagers try illegal drug use before graduating from high school. But, according to Kris Bjelde, parenting resource coordinator with the NDSU Extension Service-Cass County, and Sean Brotherson, extension family science specialist at North Dakota State University, there are many protective factors parents should be aware of that can reduce teen experimentation with harmful substances.

"An awareness of practices that can really make a difference in teen involvement in risk behaviors, such as drug or alcohol use, provides some reassurance to concerned parents," notes Brotherson.

The National Longitudinal Study on Adolescent Health, the most comprehensive and complex study ever of youth and risk behavior, included 90,000 adolescent (7-12th graders) surveys and 20,000 parent and teen in-home interviews. The study found strong evidence that adolescents who express a sense of connectedness to parents and family are at reduced risk for unhealthy behavior.

What does "connectedness" mean? Brotherson says, "It basically means ‘I belong,’ or that ‘I feel noticed and cared about.’ Teens are often searching for identity and need to feel a connection, but that can occur in both positive and negative ways."

A feeling of connectedness for youth is not only important among parents and family, but among other groups as well. The adolescent health study also showed that protective factors for teenagers included a feeling of connectedness to other adults or their school. In connectedness to other adults, youth feel noticed and cared about by a teacher, coach, parent of a best friend, or other adult with a meaningful role in their life. In connectedness to school, youth feel they belong at school, are cared about by others, and may be involved in extracurricular activities.

"Adults and peers in the school setting have a big influence on a teenager’s self-esteem," says Bjelde, "and positive connections in those groups help them to avoid negative behaviors."

Parents want to avoid constant lecturing of their children, but they should let them know clearly what their standards and expectations are, Bjelde says. The study found that teenagers who clearly perceive parental disapproval of risky behavior are more likely to avoid or delay it. However, youth who feel connectedness to the parent are three times more likely to perceive such disapproval. In general, high expectations about behavior are protective factors for teenagers, including parents, school, and community, where "permission giving" attitudes or "normalization" are avoided.

The Add Health study, as it is commonly called, suggests at least three protective parental behaviors that were shown to be significant in an adolescent’s life. First, youth who share five to seven dinner meals a week at home are significantly less likely to use drugs or be sexually active than those sharing a dinner meal at home less than five times a week.

"It’s not just eating dinner, it’s the communication, sharing of feelings, and give-and-take of advice that is important," suggests Brotherson.

Second, parents who involve youth in joint decision making about their own lives had children who were much less likely to be involved in unhealthy behaviors. Third, supervision of a youth’s behavior, called "parental monitoring," was very important to reducing the risk of youth involvement in risk behaviors. This was accomplished through such practices as setting curfews, approving choice of friends, monitoring media, etc. Parental monitoring has the most impact on reducing substance use and first sexual activity.

A teenager’s friends also play an important role. Positive peer relationships equal protection for adolescents. Youth often fit into a "friendship framework" that includes best friends, close friends, a clique, a leading crowd and the school. Best friends are much less influential than the network of close friends they hand out with - the peer "culture." Older friends and high-risk male friends significantly increase an adolescent’s risk; low risk male and female friends decrease risk for an adolescent.

Bjelde points out, "Friends can exert either a positive or negative influence on youth, so it’s important to know what groups they are spending time with when they are out."

A final area of influence is youth religiosity. This is consistently a strong protective factor, and it refers to the degree a youth values religion and is religiously observant. "Religious involvement tends to provide a clear code for moral behavior and often a supportive peer network to reinforce behavior," says Brotherson.

Although parents and other community members may become anxious about the specter of drug or alcohol use, this study suggests that they do not have to give up in the face of such challenges. These findings indicate that a familial and social context that embodies stability and predictability fosters the healthy development of youth.

For more information about this study, contact Dr. Sean Brotherson of the NDSU Extension Service at (701) 231-6143. To receive additional parenting for prevention information or resources, or to find out about upcoming Positive Parenting of Teens classes or Walking the Talk classes, contact Kris Bjelde at the Parenting Resource Center, NDSU Extension Service-Cass County at (701) 241-5700.

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Source: Sean Brotherson, ( 701) 231-6143, sbrother@ndsuext.nodak.edu and Kris Bjelde (701) 241-5700), kbjelde@ndsuext.nodak.edu

Editor: Gary Moran, (701) 231-7865, gmoran@ndsuext.nodak.edu