Select Findings & Publications
Our most recent findings highlight continuing disparities between reservation-area American Indian youth and the general population, but encouragingly, these disparities may be narrowing. In addition to individual and interpersonal factors like age at first use and peer models of use, the adversities many American Indian youth experience are strongly related to their decisions to use drugs. However, these young people also have many strengths that empower them to make health decisions, including positive family environments and cultural engagement.
Select OYOF Epidemiologic Findings Since 2020
The first overarching aim of Our Youth, Our Future is to provide robust and up-to-date information about substance use rates and patterns in reservation-area American Indian youth to inform needs assessments, substance use policy, and critical areas of intervention. Read more about the epidemiology and etiology of substance use among these young people:
The Tri-Ethnic Center collaborated with Monitoring the Future to add comparable COVID-19 specific items to the OYOF survey. In the first year following COVID-19 onset, significantly more reservation-area American Indian 8th graders with prior alcohol and/or cannabis use reported pre to post COVID increases in cannabis use and alcohol intoxication than the national sample. By contrast, over 60% of AI youth, significantly more than MTF, reported no change or decreases in negative emotions, demonstrating their robust resilience against the adversities posed by COVID-19.
Nicotine use among reservation-area American Indian adolescents compared with a national sample
As tobacco use rates among reservation-area American Indian youth have not been reported in two decades, the Tri-Ethnic Center collaborated with Monitoring the Future to compare recent nicotine use rates of reservation-area American Indian youth to those of the general population. Although smoking prevalence in American Indian 8th and 10th graders were higher than national levels, the findings suggest levels have declined markedly over the past 20 years. Nicotine vaping mirrored national levels. However, fewer American Indian youth reported vaping poses a serious health risk, suggesting a need for culturally-tailored education and continued monitoring.
Opioid Misuse among American Indian adolescents
This study compared 12-month and 30-day opioid use prevalence between reservation-area American Indian youth and their grade-matched peers in the Monitoring the Future national sample. Although rates were low, prevalence of opioid misuse, particularly oxycontin, heroin, and narcotics other than heroin, were highest among reservation-area American Indian youth. Significant resources are being deployed in Native communities to prevent and treat opioid misuse; thus, continued monitoring of opioid use trends will provide important information regarding the success of these efforts.
This study examined patterns of simultaneous cannabis and alcohol use among reservation-area American Indian adolescents who had used cannabis in the past 12 months. When compared to national findings, this study indicated more reservation-area American Indian youth engaged in patterns of simultaneous cannabis and alcohol use, especially heavier use, than national samples. Additionally, youth who identified as American Indian and one or more other ethnicities were more likely to engage in simultaneous use patterns than those who identified only as American Indian. These findings inform assessments of problematic use, prevention efforts, and future etiologic research.
OYOF Etiologic Findings
A second aim of the Our Youth, Our Future project is to identify important etiologic factors of substance use in Reservation-area American Indian youth. Our findings provide critical evidence on which to base effective prevention programming. Read more about the etiology of substance use within this group of young people:
The purpose of this study was to identify profiles of risk and resilience among reservation-area American Indian adolescents during COVID-19. Multiple profiles emerged, including a high resilience profile distinguished by strong connections to racial/ethnic identity and family closeness, reported the largest decreases in cannabis use pre- to post-COVID onset. The High-Risk profile, distinguished by markedly high adversity and maladaptive coping, reported the largest cannabis and alcohol use increases. These findings highlight the impact of adversity on substance use in this population, as well as the importance of cultural identity and family in reducing substance use behaviors.
The purpose of this study was to identify important predictors of discrete cannabis use patterns among reservation-area American Indian youth. Non-use was the largest pattern identified for both male and female youth, but a frequent use pattern also emerged. Use of cannabis to cope with stress was the strongest predictor of engagement in a frequent use pattern, particularly for male youth. Family factors were important protective-factors against frequent use, particularly for female youth. Improving stress-related coping skills, offering opportunities for healthy coping, and supporting positive family environments may be important targets for prevention efforts.
This study examined multi-level differences in student and school-composition risk and protective factors of binge drinking at the intersection of reservation-area adolescents’ sex and American Indian identity. This study found that the peer, family and school environments differentially influenced whether you were likely to report binge-drinking, and the extent to which they binge-drink at different intersections of their racial-ethnic identity and sex. This finding shows that school-wide prevention efforts in reservation-area schools should integrate culturally-responsive and gender-specific intervention components.
School-related promotive factors related to cannabis use among American Indian adolescents
This study used longitudinal Our Youth Our Future data (collected 2015 – 2019) to examine whether school-related promotive factors predicted 30-day cannabis use six months later. American Indian youth who reported greater school bonding, academic aspirations and persistence, and interest in school also reported using less cannabis six months later. However, these promotive factors deteriorated over time, suggesting prevention efforts should focus on reinforcing promotive school factors in American Indian youth.
Study Publications
Stanley, L.R., Harness, S., Swaim, R.C., & Beauvais, F (2014). Rates of substance use of American Indian students in 8th, 10th, and 12th grades living on or near reservations: Update, 2009-2012. Public Health Reports, 129, 156-163. PMCID: PMC3904895; https://doi.org/10.1177/003335491412900209
Stanley, L.R., & Swaim, R.C. (2015). Initiation of alcohol, marijuana, and inhalant use by American Indian and white youth living on or near reservations. Drug & Alcohol Dependence, 155, 90-96. PMCID: PMC4589171; https://doi.org/10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2015.08.009
Swaim, R.C. (2015). The moderating effects of perceived emotional benefits on early inhalant initiation among American Indian and white youth. American Journal on Addictions, 24, 554-560. PMCID: PMC4687020. https://doi.org/10.1111/ajad.12262
Swaim, R.C., & Stanley, L.R. (2016). Multivariate family factors and lifetime and current marijuana use among American Indian and white adolescents residing on or near reservations. Drug & Alcohol Dependence, 169, 92-100. PMCID: PMC5140847 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2016.09.028
Swaim, R.C. (2016). The moderating effects of perceived social benefits on inhalant initiation among American Indian and White youth. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 30, 398-405. PMCID: PMC4877243. https://doi.org/10.1037%2Fadb0000168
Prince, M. A., Swaim, R. C., Stanley, L. R., & Conner, B. T. (2017). Perceived harm as a mediator of the relationship between social norms and marijuana use and related consequences among American Indian youth. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 181, 102-107. PMCID: PMC5726270; https://doi.org/10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2017.09.021
Stanley, L.R., Swaim, R.C., & Dieterich, S.L. (2017). The role of norms in marijuana use among American Indian adolescents. Prevention Science, 18, 406-415. PMCID: PMC5471621; https://doi.org/10.1007/s11121-017-0768-2
Stanley, L.R., & Swaim, R.C. (2018). Latent classes of substance use among American Indian and white youth living on or near reservations. Public Health Reports, 133, 432-441. PMCID: PMC6055293; https://doi.org/10.1177/0033354918772053
Swaim, R.C. & Stanley, L.R. (2018). Substance use among American Indian youth on reservations with comparisons to a national sample of U.S. adolescents. JAMA Network Open, 1(1), May 31, 2018. PMCID: PMC6324282; https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2018.0382
Swaim, R.C., & Stanley, L.R. (2018). The effects of family conflict and anger on alcohol use among American Indian students: Mediating effects of perceived emotional benefits. Journal of Studies on Alcohol & Drugs, 79, 102-110. NIHMS 1031581; PMID: 29227238; https://doi.org/10.15288/jsad.2018.79.102
Davis, S. R., Prince, M. A., Hallgren, K. A., Johnson, N., Stanley, L. R., & Swaim, R. C. (2019). Classes of drinking motives among American Indian youth drinkers. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors. 33(4):392-400. Epub date: May 13, 2019. doi: 10.1037/adb0000469.; NIHMSID 1031451; https://doi.org/10.1037/adb0000469
Prince, M.A., O’Donnell, M.B., Stanley, L.R., & Swaim, R.C. (2019). Examination of recreational and spiritual peyote use among American Indian youth. Journal of Studies on Alcohol & Drugs, 80, 366-370. DOI: 10.1111/ajad.12894. https://doi.org/10.15288/jsad.2019.80.366
Swaim, R.C. & Stanley, L.R. (2019). Self-esteem, cultural identification and substance use among American Indian youth. Journal of Community Psychology, 47,1700-1713. NIHMS1040486. https://doi.org/10.1002/jcop.22225
Davis, S. R., Prince, M. A., Swaim, R. C., & Stanley, L. R. (2020). Comparing cannabis use motive item performance between American Indian and White youth. Drug and alcohol dependence, 213, 108086. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2020.108086 PMC7371535
Swaim, R.C., & Stanley, L.R. (2020). Predictors of substance use latent classes among American Indian students attending schools on or near reservations. American Journal on Addictions, 29, 27-34. PMID: 31041821; https://doi.org/10.1111/ajad.12894
Stanley, L.R., Swaim, R.C., Kaholokula, K., Kelly, K.J., Belcourt, A., & Allen J. (2020). The imperative for research to promote health equity in indigenous communities. Prevention Science, 21(Suppl 1), 13-21. PMCID: PMC5936666; https://doi.org/10.1007/s11121-017-0850-9
Gao, Y., Fleming, C.B., Stevens, A.L., Swaim, R.C. & Mason, A.W. (2021). Correlates of solitary alcohol and cannabis use among American Indian adolescents. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 229(Pt A), 109155. PMC8725319. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2021.109155
Stanley, L. R., Crabtree, M. A., & Swaim, R. C. (2021). Opioid misuse among American Indian adolescents. American Journal of Public Health, 111(3), 471–474. PMC7893342. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2020.306039
Crabtree, M. A., Stanley, L. R., Swaim, R. C., & Prince, M. A. (2022). Profiles of ecosystemic resilience and risk: American Indian adolescent substance use during the first year of the covid-19 crisis. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(18), 11228.PMC9517325. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph191811228
Henry, K. L., Crabtree, M. A., Swaim, R. C., & Stanley, L. R. (2022). School-related promotive factors related to cannabis use among American Indian adolescents. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 51(5), 1017–1029. PMC8995342. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-021-01554-5
Stanley, L. R., Crabtree, M. A., Swaim, R. C., & Prince, M. A. (2022). Self-reported illness experiences and psychosocial outcomes for reservation-area American Indian youth during covid-19. JAMA Network Open, 5(9), e2231764. PMC9475383. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2022.31764
Swaim, R. C., & Stanley, L. R. (2022). Latent class analysis and predictors of marijuana use among reservation-based American Indian high school students. Journal of Psychoactive Drugs, 54(2), 99–109. PMC8566322. https://doi.org/10.1080/02791072.2021.1918806
Crabtree, M. A., Emery, N. N., Stanley, L. R., Prince, M. A., & Swaim, R. C. (2023). Intersecting sex and American Indian identity moderates school and individual correlates of binge drinking among reservation-area adolescents. Journal of Psychopathology and Clinical Science, 132(5), 555–566. PMC10299812. https://doi.org/10.1037/abn0000817
Douglass, M. A., Crabtree, M. A., Stanley, L. R., Swaim, R. C., & Prince, M. A. (2023). Family ties: examining family functioning and alcohol use among American Indian youth. Drugs, Habits and Social Policy. 24. PMC11034930. https://doi.org/10.1108/DHS-06-2023-0022
Guo, Y., Swaim, R. C., & Mason, W. A. (2023). Protective factors in the relationship between perceived discrimination and risky drinking among American Indian adolescents. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 250, 109936. PMC11081532. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2023.109936
Haruyama, D., Prince, M.A., Swaim, R.C., & Chavez, E.L. (2023). The relationship between depressed affect, parental monitoring, and sex on cannabis use among American Indian youth. American Journal of Addictions, 32(4), 402-409. PMC10330835. https://doi.org/10.1111/ajad.13416
Swaim, R. C., Stanley, L. R., Miech, R. A., Patrick, M. E., Crabtree, M. A., & Prince, M. A. (2023). A comparison of Covid-19 outcomes between reservation-area American Indian and U.S. national students. AJPM focus, 2(1), 100046. PMC10099543. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.focus.2022.100046
Crabtree, M. A., Stanley, L. R., Miech, R. A., & Swaim, R. C. (2024). Nicotine use among reservation-area American Indian adolescents compared with a national sample. Drug and alcohol dependence, 257, 111124 PMCID: PMC11031341. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2024.111124
Douglass, M. A., Stanley, L. R., Karoly, H., Prince, M. A., Crabtree, M. A. & Swaim, R. C. (2024). Patterns of simultaneous and nonsimultaneous use of cannabis and alcohol among American Indian adolescents. Addiction Research & Theory. PMCID in process. https://doi.org/10.1080/16066359.2023.2275575.
Henry, K. L., Stanley, L. R., & Swaim, R. C. (2024). Risk and promotive factors related to cannabis use among American Indian adolescents. Prevention Science: The Official Journal of the Society for Prevention Research, 10.1007/s11121-024-01649-y. Advance online publication. PMID: 38451398. PMCID in process. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11121-024-01649-y
Henry, K. L., Stanley, L. R., & Swaim, R. C. (2024). Can high and consistent school-related protective factors prevent cannabis use among American Indian middle school students?. The Journal of School Health, 94(2), 138–147. PMC10840609. https://doi.org/10.1111/josh.13380
