The Effects of Alcohol and Illegal Drug Use on Initial Family Formation
Open Access
- Author:
- Ryan, Andrea Kay
- Graduate Program:
- Rural Sociology
- Degree:
- Doctor of Philosophy
- Document Type:
- Dissertation
- Date of Defense:
- May 16, 2008
- Committee Members:
- Diane K Mc Laughlin, Committee Chair/Co-Chair
Fern Kaley Willits, Committee Member
Leif Jensen, Committee Member
Darrell J Steffensmeier, Committee Member - Keywords:
- childbearing
premarital cohabitation
illegal drug use
adolescent alcohol use
fertility
premarital parenthood - Abstract:
- ABSTRACT Adolescent alcohol and illegal drug use creates problems for individuals, families, and society. Relatively young and frequent users risk lifelong physical and mental health problems and relatively low socioeconomic success. Adolescent substance use also has been linked to risky behaviors that lead to early and unwed pregnancy, teenage marriage, and premarital cohabitation. Role Strain Theory argues that illegal substance users take the atypical path into adult family roles and choose cohabitation or parenthood over marriage. This study assessed the influence of alcohol and illegal drug use on the choice of parenthood, cohabitation, not forming a family, or marriage as the first family type. It also examined whether the effects, if any, of substance use differed by gender, race/ethnicity, and residence. The sample consisted of the 4,011 14 to 16 year old respondents to the 1979 wave of the NLSY79 who had not formed a family before 1979. Multinomial Logistic Regression analysis was used to predict the likelihood that a subject was classified into each of three types of first families versus marriage. Indicators of the type of substance use by type and use of multiple types assessed the effects of polydrug use on first family type. Measures of the age at first alcohol, marijuana, or other illegal drug use; the frequency of alcohol or marijuana use in 1979; binge drinking; and familial alcoholism assessed the effects of characteristics of specific substances among users of those substances. First, the effects of alcohol and illegal drug use on first family type were assessed and then net of the effects of 27 control variables. Separate analyses that mirrored the analysis of the entire sample were performed for males and females, among racial/ethnic groups, and by rural and South regional residence. The statistical findings of the full sample analysis suggested that those who used alcohol and illegal drugs before forming their first adult families were much more likely to cohabit than marry as a first union and were less likely to become parents before first marriage. Age at first use and frequency of use did not predict group membership except among those who started at the youngest ages and used at the highest frequencies. Males’ family formation behavior appeared to be significantly more influenced by their marijuana use but not by their alcohol or other illegal drug use than their female counterparts. Substance use was not predictive of first family type among Blacks or Hispanics, was mildly predictive of parenthood or cohabitation as the first family type among American Indians, and was strongly predictive of cohabitation or parenthood versus marriage among non-Hispanic whites. First family type was significantly influenced by alcohol and illegal drug use among those living in the rural South, less so among those in the rural non-South, and did not significantly influence the odds of atypical family formation versus marriage among those in the two non-rural groups. While most research finds significant effects of alcohol and illegal drug use on the likelihood of premarital pregnancy, this analysis found little effect on parenthood. Since alcohol and illegal drug users are significantly more likely than non-users to resolve premarital pregnancy with elective abortion and to experience spontaneous abortion, further research that incorporates measures of abortion would clarify the relationship of substance use to childbearing.