Screening for risk: A revised salient factor score (SFS 81)

Since 1972, the United States Parole Commission has used an actuarial device as an aid in assessing parole prognosis in conjunction with explicit decision guildelines. This article describes the most recent revision of the actuarial device used by the commission. This device (SFS 81) is examined and compared with the device previously used (SFS 76) on five dimensions: validity, stability, reliability, simplicity, and ethical concerns.     

Functions of drinking for Native American and White youth

Despite long concern in the United States over alcohol consumption by adolescents and problems associated with drinking among Native Americans, few studies have dealt with the functions of drinking for Native American and White youth. The findings presented here are based on responses to a self-report questionnaire administered to ninth- through twelfth-grade students at two high schools in Fremont County, Wyoming — the county where the great majority of Wyoming's Native American population resides. Based on work by Jessor, Carman and Grossman, 30 items concerning positive-social, personal-effect, and experiential reasons for drinking were examined. Although there are some statistically significant differences in responses to individual items and statistically significant differences between Indian and White males and females on the Personal-Effect and Positive-Social categories of items, the functions of drinking appear to be quite similar for these Indian and White youth.Received his Ph.D. in sociology from Yale University in 1966. Current research interest is determining the impact of a heroin treatment program on the incidence and prevalence of heroin use in Cheyenne, Wyoming.     

Adolescents’ time use: Effects on substance use,delinquency and sexual activity

Using an integration of social control theory and the routine activity perspective, adolescent time use was examined for effects on problem behaviors. We examined a wide variety of time use categories, including homework, extracurricular activities, sports time, alone time, paid work, housework, television watching, as well as indices of family time and peer time, for their effects on heavy alcohol use, cigarette smoking, illicit drug use, delinquency and sexual activity. The study employed a representative household sample of adolescents (n=606) and took into account important sociodemographic factors – gender, age, race (Black and White), and socioeconomic status. The most important predictors of adolescent problem behaviors were family time and peer time. Family time serves as a protective factor against all five problem behaviors while peer time is a highly significant risk factor for all five problem behaviors. Ph.D. in Sociology from the University at Buffalo. She is a Senior Research Scientist at the Research Institute on Addictions, University at Buffalo, 1021 Main Street, Buffalo, The State University of New York 14203. Her research interests include family influences on the development of adolescent substance use, gambling, and other problem behaviors M.A. in Mathematics from the University of Rochester. He is Project Manager/Data Analyst at the Research Institute on Addictions, University at Buffalo, 1021 Main Street, The State University of New York 14203. His current research interests include advanced data analysis techniques for studies of alcohol, other substance use and gambling behaviors among youth and adults. Ph.D. in Psychology from the University at Buffalo. He is a Senior Research Scientist at the Research Institute on Addictions, University at Buffalo, 1021 Main Street, The State University of New York 14203. His research interests include the substance abuse/crime nexus, the epidemiology of substance abuse, and the etiology and epidemiology of pathological gambling. Ph.D. in Sociology from Yale University. He is Professor and Chair in the Department of Sociology, University at Buffalo, 430 Park Hall, Buffalo, The State University of New York, 14260. His research interests include interpersonal relations in adolescent, family, friendship, and work groups. M.S. in Epidemiology from the University at Buffalo. She is a retired Research Scientist from the Research Institute on Addictions, University at Buffalo, 1021 Main Street, The State University of New York 14203. Her research interests include alcohol and other substance use among adolescents and families