Adolescents' substance-related risk perceptions: Antecedents,
mediatiors, and consequences.
Meg Gerrard, Frederick X. Gibbons, Linda S. Vande Lune, Nancy A.
Pexa, Michelle L. Gano
(2002) Risk Decision & Policy, 7, 175-191.
Examined the degree to which adolescents' absolute and comparative
perceptions of vulnerability to potential negative consequences of substance
use mediate the relation between traditional predictors of use and actual
substance use. 234 adolescents (aged
12-14 yrs), primarily African Americans, completed surveys concerning: (1)
parental communication; (2) risk-taking tendencies; (3) friends' substance use;
(4) perceived vulnerability; (5) substance behavior willingness; and (6)
substance use. Results show that
subjects (Ss) reported some substance use by peers, with smoking being more
prevalent than drinking or drug usage.
Ss' primary caregiver communicated about the 3 kinds of substances
approximately equally. Absolute risk
perceptions mediated the relations between: (1) parental communication about
substances; (2) peer substance use and risk-taking tendency; and (3) subsequent
adolescent use. Comparative risk perceptions,
however, were only weakly related to these 3 predictors, and did not predict
subsequent use. Behavioral willingness
mediated the relation between risk perceptions and behavior.