BUFFALO, N.Y. -- New research results from the University at
Buffalo's Research Institute on Addictions (RIA) suggest that most
parents are aware of and accurately evaluate the extent of their
teenager's cigarette smoking, marijuana use, drinking and overall
Researchers also found that in cases where parents provided
lower estimates of substance use, parents were nearly twice as
likely to underestimate frequency of marijuana use and quantity of
alcohol use. Parents also were less likely to be aware of extent of
use by younger teens and of their children's use if they themselves
had personal problems or were using alcohol more frequently.
What is novel about these findings is that for the first time,
detailed statistics are available about parental knowledge of teen
substance use for families in which the teen's substance use is
causing the parent stress, but the teen is not necessarily in
treatment. Previous studies have been restricted to families with a
teen in substance-abuse treatment or families with no current
substance use issues.
For a six-month reporting period, 82 percent of parents
accurately evaluated the presence of teen cigarette smoking; the
parents' reports corresponded with the teens' reports of their own
smoking. Eighty-six percent of parents accurately evaluated the
presence of teen alcohol use, and 86 percent accurately reported
the presence of teen marijuana use. However, only 72 percent of the
parents in the RIA study accurately reported the presence of
illicit drug use (other than marijuana) by teens.
According to lead researcher Neil B. McGillicuddy, Ph.D., "This
study begins to dispel the notion that parents don't know the
extent to which their teens are using cigarettes, alcohol and
illicit drugs. It seems that, despite a few exceptions, many
parents do know the extent of their teenager's substance use.
Parents can use this knowledge to help themselves cope with teenage
substance use and the resulting stress on the family, as well as to
begin conversations with their teen about making changes."
McGillicuddy is a research scientist at RIA with extensive
background in treatment interventions for parents of
substance-abusing adolescents, interventions for partners of
addicted persons and treatment for alcohol and drug-abusing
This research was funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse
and published in the most recent issue of the Journal of Child
and Adolescent Substance Abuse.
For this study, 75 parents and their teenagers were interviewed
separately about the teens' recent use of cigarettes, alcohol,
marijuana and other illicit drugs. Parent-participants were, on
average, female (85 percent), 39 years of age with 13 years of
education. Teen-participants were, on average, male (61 percent),
16 years of age and not receiving substance abuse treatment (76
When parents' and teens' reports were discrepant, parents
provided lower estimates of substance use than teens. That is,
teens tended to report greater frequency and amount of substance
use. Although some of these discrepancies were small (for instance
regarding how often teens drank alcohol), others were substantial
(parents were nearly twice as likely to underestimate the frequency
of marijuana use and the quantity of alcohol use).
In addition, McGillicuddy and colleagues set out to find factors
that might explain the discrepancies in parent-teen reports of teen
substance use. Parents were less aware of the extent of the teen's
substance use if the teen was younger (about 14 or 15), and if the
parents did less monitoring of what their teens were doing after
school, during the evening and on weekends. Together, these
findings suggest that parents need to consider increasing their
monitoring of how teens spend their time and begin thinking about
substance use at a significantly younger age.
Lastly, parents who are caught up in their own issues or
problems, whether stressed, feeling depressed or using alcohol more
frequently, also made less accurate reports.
"What we would hope that people come away with from this study,
is that parents can be more aware of their teen's substance use,"
McGillicuddy explained, "by reducing their own alcohol use, giving
more attention to what their teen is doing 24/7, particularly if
the teen is younger, and taking steps to reduce their own
psychological distress. Participation in parenting programs,
especially those geared toward coping with an adolescent's
substance use, can give the parent important skills to deal with
teen behavior and have been found to reduce the parent's
McGillicuddy's colleagues on the study were Robert G. Rychtarik,
Ph.D., RIA senior research scientist and research associate
professor in the Department of Psychiatry in the UB School of
Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Elizabeth T. Morsheimer, Ed.M.,
senior academic advisor with UB's Student Advising Services, and
Michelle R. Burke-Storer, M.S., of the Urban Institute in
The Research Institute on Addictions has been a leader in the
study of addictions since 1970 and a research center of the
University at Buffalo since 1999.
The University at Buffalo is a premier research-intensive
public university, the largest and most comprehensive campus in the
State University of New York. UB's more than 28,000 students pursue
their academic interests through more than 300 undergraduate,
graduate and professional degree programs. Founded in 1846, the
University at Buffalo is a member of the Association of American