Masters Thesis

Understanding the Role of Traditional Bullying and Cyberbullying in Adolescent Substance Abuse

Objective: Previous studies suggest that experiencing traditional bullying at school and/or electronic bullying, also known as cyberbullying, in adolescence can have negative long-term health effects. This study aims to determine the risk factors associated with traditional bullying and cyberbullying in relation to adolescent substance abuse (past 30-day alcohol, marijuana, and tobacco use). Methods: Cross-sectional study; Student responses (N=14,765) from the 2017 National Sample Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System (YRBSS), which was conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The sample included Females 51.4%. Mean age of 15.96 (SD=21.26). Non-Hispanic Whites (43.4%); African Americans (19.4%); Multiple Race - Hispanics (14.6%); Hispanic/Latinos (10.7%); Asians (4.5%); American Indian/Alaskan Natives (0.9%); and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islanders (0.8%). Results: From the survey data, 18.2% of students responded that they have experienced traditional bullying and 14.5% of students responded that they have experienced cyberbullying. Regarding substance use in this population, 29.0% of students consumed alcohol in the past 30 days, followed by 19.8% and 19.3% of students who reported using marijuana and tobacco in the past 30 days, respectively. Logistic regression analysis was performed to assess the association between traditional bullying and cyberbullying exposure and the odds of substance use. After adjusting for covariates (age, gender, ethnicity, and sexual orientation), exposure to bullying and cyberbullying predicted increased odds of past 30-day alcohol ([AOR: 1.361, 95% CI: 1.227-1.510]; [AOR: 1.361, 95% CI: 1.227-1.510]), marijuana [AOR: 1.271, 95% CI: 1.139-1.419]; [AOR: 1.771, 95% CI: 1.579-1.987]), and tobacco ([AOR: 1.592, 95% CI: 1.418-1.789]; [AOR: 2.079, 95% CI: 1.837-2.353]) use in result findings. Conclusion: There is evidence that traditional and cyberbullying play an important role in adolescent substance use. Since this study was performed with cross-sectional national data, there could be additional benefit replicating this study with longitudinal data. This study could serve as a reference or a baseline for future studies that wish to examine adolescent substance use and related risks. Keywords: Adolescents, Traditional Bullying, Cyberbullying, Alcohol, Marijuana, Tobacco, Risks

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