ABSTRACT

Objective

Opioid misuse has become an epidemic in the United States. In the present study, we examine potential malleable early childhood predictors of opioid misuse including whether childhood achievement, aggressive behavior, attention problems, and peer social preference/likability in first grade predicted opioid misuse and whether these relationships differed depending on participant sex.

Method

Data are drawn from three cohorts of participants (N = 1,585; 46.7% male) recruited in first grade as part of a series of elementary school-based, universal preventive interventions conducted in a Mid-Atlantic region of the US. In first grade, participants completed standardized achievement tests, teachers reported on attention problems, and peers nominated their classmates with respect to their aggressive behavior and social preference/likability. At approximately age 20, participants reported on their misuse of opioids defined as lifetime use of heroin or misuse of prescription opioids.

Results

Higher levels of peer nominations for aggressive behavior in first grade predicted a greater likelihood of opioid misuse. An interaction between participant sex and attention problems was observed such that females higher in attention problems were more likely to misuse opioids, particularly prescription opioids, than females lower in attention problems. An interaction was also found between participant sex and peer likability such that males lower in peer-nominated likability were more likely to misuse opioids relative to males higher in likability.

Conclusion

Given the malleable nature of attention problems, aggression, and social skills in early childhood, prevention programs that target these behaviors during this developmental period may attenuate risk for opioid misuse.

中文翻译：

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城市青年终生滥用阿片类药物的儿童早期行为和学业前因

摘要

客观的

阿片类药物滥用已成为美国的流行病。在本研究中，我们检查了阿片类药物滥用的潜在可塑性早期儿童预测因素，包括童年成就、攻击行为、注意力问题和一年级的同伴社会偏好/好感是否预测了阿片类药物滥用，以及这些关系是否因参与者性别而异。

方法

数据来自一年级招募的三组参与者（N = 1,585；46.7% 为男性），这些参与者是在美国中大西洋地区进行的一系列基于小学的普遍预防干预措施的一部分。在一年级，参与者完成了标准化成绩测试，老师报告了注意力问题，同龄人根据他们的攻击行为和社会偏好/好感提名他们的同学。在大约 20 岁时，参与者报告了他们滥用阿片类药物的情况，这些阿片类药物被定义为终生使用海洛因或滥用处方阿片类药物。

结果

一年级攻击性行为的同龄人提名水平更高预示着滥用阿片类药物的可能性更大。观察到参与者性别和注意力问题之间的相互作用，因此注意力问题较多的女性比注意力问题较少的女性更容易滥用阿片类药物，尤其是处方类阿片类药物。还发现参与者性别和同伴喜爱度之间存在相互作用，因此相对于喜爱度较高的男性，同伴喜爱度较低的男性更有可能滥用阿片类药物。

结论

鉴于儿童早期注意力问题、攻击性和社交技能的可塑性，针对这一发育时期这些行为的预防计划可能会降低阿片类药物滥用的风险。