1 Doct oral St udent at t he Gr aduat e Pr ogram in Psychology, e- m ail: em m ppsic@scl.t er ra.com .br ; 2 Psychologist , Pr ofessor, Depar t am ent of Psychology and Educat ion. Facult y of Philophy, Sciences and Let t er s of Ribeir ão Pr et o, Univer sit y of São Paulo, Br azil, e- m ail: m asant os@ffclrp.usp.br
D isponible e n ca st e lla no/ D isponíve l e m língua por t ugue sa SciELO Br a sil w w w .scie lo.br / r la e
ADOLESCEN CE AN D THE CON SUMPTI ON OF PSYCHOACTI VE SUBSTAN CES: THE I MPACT
OF THE SOCI OECON OMI C STATUS
Elisângela Mar ia Machado Pr at t a1
Manoel Ant ônio dos Sant os2
Pr at t a EMM, San t os MA. Ad olescen ce an d t h e con su m p t ion of p sy ch oact iv e su b st an ces: t h e im p act of t h e
socioecon om ic st at u s. Rev Lat in o- am En fer m agem 2 0 0 7 set em br o- ou t u br o; 1 5 ( n ú m er o especial) : 8 0 6 - 1 1 .
Recent studies have pointed that it is necessary to define the impact of specific dimensions of the social-economic
context that can work as risk factors regarding drug addiction. This study aim ed to verify potential relationships between
the drug addiction during adolescence and the social-econom ic level. A total of 568 adolescents participated in this study
answering an anonym ous self-filled questionnaire. The analyses involved the description of the variable distribution in the
sam ple and statistical analyzes to determ ine the differences found. Contrary to the com m on sense, adolescents from the
higher social classes presented a significant higher perceptual of alcohol, tobacco, weed and solvent consum ption when
compared to their counterparts from lower social classes. These data suggest the importance of studies that seek to clarify
the possible influences of the social-econom ic status on the consum ption of drugs am ong adolescents.
DESCRI PTORS: adolescent ; subst ance- r elat ed disor der s; st r eet dr ugs; public healt h; healt h pr om ot ion
ADOLESCEN CI A Y EL USO DE SUBSTAN CI AS PSI COACTI VAS: EL I MPACTO DEL N I VEL
SOCI OECONÓMI CO
Est udios r ecient es han acent uado que es necesar io pr ecisar el im pact o de dim ensiones específicas del
con t ex t o socioecon óm ico q u e p u ed en f u n cion ar com o f act or es d e r iesg o en r elación al u so d e d r og as. El
obj et iv o de est a inv est igación fue v er ificar las posibles r elaciones ent r e el uso de dr ogas en la adolescencia y
el n iv el socioecon óm ico. Par t icipar on 5 6 8 adolescen t es, qu e con t est ar on a u n cu est ion ar io an ón im o de au t o
r elleno. Cont r ar io las ex pect at iv as del senso com ún, los adolescent es de las clases m ás alt as pr esent ar on un
por cent aj e per cept iblem ent e m ayor de uso del alcohol, t abaco, m ar ij uana y solvent es en la vida en com par ación
con sus par es de las clases m ás baj as. Est os dat os sugier en la im por t ancia de los est udios que buscan clar ificar
las influencias posibles del est ado socioeconóm ico en el consum o de dr ogas ent r e los adolescent es.
DESCRI PTORES: adolescente; trastornos relacionados con sustancias; drogas ilícitas; salud pública; promoción de la salud
ADOLESCÊN CI A E USO DE SUBSTÂN CI AS PSI COATI VAS: O I MPACTO DO N Í VEL
SOCI OECONÔMI CO
Estudos recentes têm enfatizado que é necessário precisar o im pacto de dim ensões específicas do contexto
socioeconôm ico que pode funcionar com o fat or de r isco em r elação ao uso de dr ogas. Obj et iv ou- se, com esse
estudo, verificar possíveis relações entre uso de drogas psicoativas na adolescência e nível socioeconôm ico. Participaram
568 adolescentes que responderam questionário anônim o de autopreenchim ento. As análises envolveram a descrição
da distribuição das variáveis na am ostra e análises estatísticas para determ inar as diferenças encontradas. Contrariando
ex p ect at i v as d o sen so com u m , ad ol escen t es d as cl asses m éd i a/ m éd i a su p er i or ap r esen t ar am p er cen t u al
significat ivam ent e m aior de uso, na vida, de álcool, t abaco, m aconha e solvent es, quando com parados com seus
pares das classes baixa/ baixa inferior. Esses dados sugerem a im port ância de est udos que busquem clarificar as
possíveis influências do st at us socioeconôm ico sobre o consum o de drogas ent re adolescent es.
DESCRI TORES: adolescen t e; t r an st or n os r elacion ados ao u so de su bst ân cias; dr ogas ilícit as; saú de pú blica;
I NTRODUCTI ON
C
ur r ent ly, t he st udy on hum an developm entp r e s e n t s s e v e r a l t h e o r e t i c a l - m e t h o d o l o g i c a l
per spect iv es, each of w hich seek s t o ex plain, fr om a
different focus, t he dim ensions t hat m ust be pr ior it ized
t o under st and an individual’s adapt ive pr ocesses along
t he evolut ion cycle. How ever, new st udies are needed
t h a t e m p h a si ze t h e d e v e l o p m e n t o f ch i l d r e n a n d
adolescent s ex posed t o adv er se sit uat ions, lik e t hose
living in pover t y for exam ple. Ther e is a need t o bet t er
under st and t he psy chosocial aspect s inv olv ed in t his
c o n t e x t , a s w e l l a s t h e i m p l i c a t i o n s o f t h e s e
ex p er i en ces a l o n g ch i l d r en ’ s a n d a d o l escen t s’ l i f e
cy cle( 1 ).
Pov er t y is an om n ip r esen t p h en om en on in
t h e g lob alized cap it alist w or ld w e liv e in , r each in g
alar m in g lev els in som e r egion s of t h e plan et . I t is
oft en ch ar act er ized as an ev olu t ion of t h e h ist or ical
an d st r u ct u r al r elat ion sh ip s of op p osit ion b et w een
classes’ int er est s and, t hus, r esult fr om an econom ic
phenom enon configured in t he social and polit ical issue
der ived fr om t he ant agonism of t he r elat ions bet w een
capit al and labor.
However, despit e t he t endency t o see povert y
at a m acro syst em ic level, reducing it t o t he m at erial
dim ension of econom ic m isery, t he effect s it generat es
on t h e r ou t in e of h u m an gr ou ps ar e im m en se. Th e
pov er t y condit ion can const it ut e a const ant and r eal
t hr eat t o child and adolescent w ell- being as it lim it s
t h eir dev elopm en t oppor t u n it ies, leadin g, in cer t ain
circum st ances, t o a sit uat ion of affect ive m isery( 1). This
is so because econom ic m isery is a pot ent ial generat or
o f a se r i e s o f r i sk co n t e x t s f o r t h e p sy ch o so ci a l
dev elopm ent of indiv iduals w ho ar e going t hr ough a
cognit ive and em ot ional m at urat ion process, const it ut ing
adverse fact ors relat ed t o social exclusion experiences.
Th e d i f f e r e n t si t u a t i o n s o f p r i v a t i o n o f m a t e r i a l
condit ions of subsist ence can lead t o severe rest rict ions
i n t h e su p p l y o f i n d i v i d u a l b a si c n eed s, i n cl u d i n g
affect iv e, cognit iv e and social ones.
I n t h e f am ily con t ex t , t h ese r isk elem en t s
reflect s on m arit al t ies and also cont ribut e t o increased
conflict s bet w een parent s and children, w hich direct ly
affect s t he r elat ionship dynam ics bet w een t hem( 1). The
lack of a qualit y fam ily r elat ionship int er fer es w it h a
p er son ’s h ealt h y d ev elop m en t p r ocess an d can b e
consider ed a r isk fact or for childr en and adolescent s
i n t e r m s o f , f o r i n s t a n c e , t h e a b u s i v e u s e o f
psy ch oact iv e su bst an ces an d delin qu en cy( 2 ).
Ch ildr en an d adolescen t s w h o ar e r aised in
an en v i r o n m en t t h at co n st i t u t es a t h r eat t o t h ei r
p sy ch o l o g i cal h eal t h can b eco m e v u l n er ab l e w h en
f acin g cer t ain r ou t in e sit u at ion s, especially adv er se
o c c u r r e n c e s . H o w e v e r, n o t a l l i n d i v i d u a l s w h o
experience risk sit uat ions also present em ot ional and/
o r b e h a v i o r a l p r o b l e m s( 1 ), w h i c h e v i d e n c e s t h e m u l t i d i m e n s i o n a l i t y a n d p l a s t i c i t y o f a d a p t i v e
p r o cesses.
I n t his sense, a phenom enon t hat per m eat es
t hese issues and t hat becam e a concer n, bot h t o t he
scient ific com m unit y as w ell as t o t he societ y in general,
especially in t he last decades of t he t w ent iet h cent ury,
is t he consum pt ion of dr ugs am ong adolescent s, w ho
have pr esent ed high pr evalence and incr easingly early
u se( 3 - 6 ). I n t h e f a ce o f t h i s r e a l i t y, t h e a b u se o f p s y c h o a c t i v e s u b s t a n c e s i n a d o l e s c e n c e h a s
const it ut ed a serious social and public healt h problem
in t he Brazilian realit y as w ell as in ot her count ries(
6-8)
, and has spr ead acr oss t he planet .
Ad d i t i o n a l l y, t h e f i r st co n t a ct w i t h d r u g s
g e n e r a l l y o ccu r s i n a d o l e sce n ce , a st a g e o f t h e
d ev elop in g cy cle m ar k ed b y m u lt ip le an d p r of ou n d
ch an g es at p h y sical an d m en t al lev el, w h ich m ak e
t he adolescent m or e vulnerable fr om t he psychological
and social point of view( 9- 11). How ever, despit e t he fact
t hat adolescent s ar e view ed as a r isk gr oup in t er m s
of psy ch oact iv e su bst an ce u se, t h e fact or s t h at can
m ak e t h em u se d r u g s ar e d iv er se. Th e m ain on es
ar e r elat ed t o in d iv id u al an d social ch ar act er ist ics,
t he lat t er of w hich includes t he collect iv eness, fam ily
and peer gr oups( 9).
Risk an d pr ot ect ion f act or s r egar din g dr u gs
use are relat ed t o six life dom ains ( individual, fam ily,
sch ool, m ed ia, f r ien d s, an d t h e com m u n it y ) , w h ich
present m ut ual relat ions. Each research on t his t hem e
em p h asizes cer t ain v ar iab les ( f or ex am p le, g en d er,
age, socioeconom ic lev el, school per for m ance, w or k ,
dr ugs use in t he fam ily, am ong ot her s)( 9).
Based on t his fr am ew or k, som e st udies w er e
per for m ed t o ver ify t he pot ent ial r elat ionship bet w een
social classes and t he use of psychoact ive subst ances
in adolescence( 9, 12). How ever, t he findings ev idenced
t h at t h er e w er e n o sign if ican t dif f er en ces r egar din g
alcoh ol an d t ob acco u se b et w een social classes( 1 2 ),
t h ou g h t h er e w er e som e d if f er en ces in t h e u se of
ot her subst ances( 8,13). A st udy ver ified t hat t he use of
t h ese su b st an ces i n l i f e w er e h i g h er am o n g m o r e
favored econom ic classes( 8). Anot her invest igat ion w it h
show ed t hat t he consum pt ion of illegal subst ances w as
higher am ong m iddle t han low er class adolescent s( 13).
I n t he face of t his scenar io, t his st udy aim ed
t o v er if y pot en t ial r elat ion sh ips bet w een t h e u se of
p s y c h o a c t i v e s u b s t a n c e s i n a d o l e s c e n c e a n d
socioecon om ic lev el.
MATERI AL AND MÉTHOD
Th is is an ep id em iolog ical, ex p lor at or y an d
d e scr i p t i v e cr o ss- se ct i o n a l su r v e y( 1 4 ). Th e t a r g e t populat ion w as com posed of adolescent s bet w een 14
an d 2 0 y ear s o l d , w h o w er e at t en d i n g p u b l i c an d
pr iv at e secondar y schools in São Car los, a cit y w it h
ar ound 192,923 inhabit ant s in t he int er ior of São Paulo,
Br azil. Becau se of t h e h ig h n u m b er of ad olescen t s
w h o m et t h e est ab l i sh ed p r o f i l e, a r ep r esen t at i v e
sam ple w as select ed f or t h is st u dy. For t h e sam ple
select ion , t h e m et h od of pr obabilist ic an d st r at if ied
( con sid er in g as st r at a d if f er en t r eg ion s of t h e cit y,
d e f i n e d b y ce r t a i n so ci o e co n o m i c ch a r a ct e r i st i cs,
w h e r e t h e s c h o o l s w e r e l o c a t e d ) s a m p l i n g b y
conglom er at es ( schools w er e select ed by pooling) w as
adopt ed( 14).
Aft er t he pr oj ect had been appr ov ed by t he
Re s e a r c h Et h i c s Co m m i t t e e a t t h e Fa c u l t y o f
Philosophy, Sciences and Languages of Ribeir ão Pr et o
- U S P ( p r o c e s s n º 0 1 0 / 2 0 0 1 - 2 0 0 1 . 1 . 6 . 5 9 . 1 ) ,
aut hor izat ion w as ask ed t o t he t eaching inst it ut ions.
Th e sam p le of ad olescen t s w h o p ar t icip at ed in t h e
st udy w as obt ained fr om t he list of schools pr ov ided
by t he Municipal Teaching Direct ory in t w o st ages: in
t he fir st st age, t he schools w er e pooled and, in t he
second, t he classes of t he pr ev iously pooled schools
w er e select ed .
A t ot al of 620 adolescent s answ er ed t he dat a
collect ion inst r um ent , and 52 w er e excluded fr om t he
final sam ple because: a) incom plet e quest ionnair e or
non under st anding of t he quest ions; b) age super ior
t o t he age lim it defined for t he st udy ( 20 year s old) .
Th u s, a t ot al of 5 6 8 ad olescen t s of b ot h g en d er s,
bet w een 1 4 an d 2 0 y ear s old, f r om dif f er en t social
segm ent s - evaluat ed accor ding t o socioeconom ic level
- , w ho w ere at t ending secondar y school, in t he schools
an d classes p r ev iou sly p ooled an d w er e au t h or ized
accor dingly by t heir par ent s or guar dians, w ho signed
t h e fr ee an d in for m ed con sen t t er m , par t icipat ed in
t he st udy. Besides t he t er m signed by t heir par ent s,
t he st udent s also signed a fr ee and infor m ed consent
t er m , dir ect ed t o t hem , in or der t o par t icipat e in t he
r esear ch . Th e st u d y w as car r ied ou t b et w een Ap r il
an d Decem ber, 2 0 0 2 .
A n a n o n y m o u s s e l f - a d m i n i s t e r e d
quest ionnair e w as used. I t w as com posed of 62 closed
q u e s t i o n s o n p a r t i c i p a n t s ’ g e n e r a l d a t a
( sociodem ogr aph ic dat a, su ch as gen der, age, lev el
of in st r u ct ion , am on g ot h er s) an d r eg ar d in g f am ily
o r g a n i z a t i o n ( p a r e n t s ’ p r o f e s s i o n a n d l e v e l o f
sch o o l i n g , f am i l y i n co m e, am o n g o t h er s) , b esi d es
quest ions t hat ev aluat ed t heir lev el of k now ledge on
psychoact ive subst ances and t he adolescent s’ opinions
about t he use of dr ugs and consum pt ion pat t er n. I t is
im por t ant t o st r ess t hat t he quest ions for m ulat ed about
t he use of subst ances w er e based on t he inst r um ent
p r o p o se d b y t h e Wo r l d H e a l t h Or g a n i z a t i o n a n d
adapt ed t o t h e Br azilian r ealit y( 1 4 ). Addit ion ally, t h e q u e s t i o n s r e g a r d i n g s o c i o e c o n o m i c l e v e l o f t h e
st u d en t s’ f am ilies w er e b ased on t h e q u est ion n air e
dev eloped and v alidat ed in 1 9 9 6( 15). The inst r um ent
w as pr eviously t est ed in a pilot st udy aim ing t o cor r ect
pot ent ial inadequacies and adj ust t he dat a collect ion
p r o ced u r e.
Th e qu est ion n air es w er e applied collect iv ely
i n cl ass, w i t h o u t t h e t each er ’ s p r esen ce, o n d ay s
p r e v i o u sl y a g r e e d w i t h t h e sch o o l , t e a ch e r s a n d
s t u d e n t s . W h e n n e c e s s a r y, t w o n e w v i s i t s w e r e
p e r f o r m e d t o t h e s c h o o l , a i m i n g t o a p p l y t h e
i n s t r u m e n t s t o s t u d e n t s a b s e n t d u r i n g t h e f i r s t
applicat ion, t hus dim inishing t he index of losses due
t o absence. Ther e w er e few cases w her e par ent s did
n ot au t h or ize t h e ad olescen t s’ p ar t icip at ion in t h e
st udy, and few st udent s w ho did not w ant t o par t icipat e.
Co n s i d e r i n g t h a t e a c h c l a s s h a d o n a v e r a g e 3 5
st udent s, appr oxim at ely one t o t w o st udent s w er e not
au t h or ized b y t h eir p ar en t s, w h ich is eq u iv alen t t o
3% or 6% of t ot al st udent s in each classr oom . On t he
ot h er sid e, a n u m b er t h at v ar ies b et w een t w o an d
t hr ee st udent s per classr oom chose not t o par t icipat e
i n t h e st u d y ( ap p r o x i m at el y 6 % t o 8 . 6 % o f each
cl assr o o m ) .
The aver age t im e t o apply t he inst r um ent w as
50 m in. Aft er it s com plet ion, t he adolescent s deposit ed
it in a sealed u r n . Th is p r oced u r e w as ad op t ed t o
r ein f or ce secr ecy an d an on y m it y, assu r in g g r eat er
r esu lt r eliabilit y.
D a t a a n a l y si s w a s p er f o r m ed t h r o u g h t h e
st at ist ical pr ogr am SPSS ( St at ist ical Pack age for t he
So ci a l Sci e n ce s ) . Fi r st , d e scr i p t i v e a n a l y si s w a s
dist r ibut ion of v ar iables in t he st udy sam ple; b)
Chi-square t est t o evaluat e pot ent ial associat ions bet w een
t h e d i f f er en t ca t eg o r y v a r i a b l es a d d r essed i n t h e
q u e st i o n n a i r e . Th e n , u n i v a r i a t e a n d m u l t i v a r i a t e
a n a l y se s w e r e p e r f o r m e d t h r o u g h t h e m e t h o d o f
m u lt ip le log ist ic r eg r ession , ad op t in g a con f id en ce
int er v al of 95% .
RESULTS
Psy ch oact iv e su bst an ces act dir ect ly on t h e
c e n t r a l n e r v o u s s y s t e m ( CN S ) a n d c a n c a u s e
behavioral, m ood, cognit ion and percept ion alt erat ions,
and can be of legal or illegal use. Accor ding t o t heir
m echanism of act ion in t he CNS, t hey can be classified
in t hree cat egories: ( a) depressor - cause reduct ion of
cerebral act ivit y, leading t o relaxat ion, such as alcohol
an d sedat iv es; ( b) st im u lan t - cau se an in cr ease in
cerebral act ivit y, m aking t he surveillance st at e prolong,
in clu d in g n icot in e, cocain e, am p h et am in es, am on g
ot hers; and ( c) dist urbing - dist urb t he CNS physiology,
w h ich can cau se d ist or t ed p er cep t ion of color s an d
for m s, besides delusions, illusions and hallucinat ions,
like in t he case of cannabis and LSD( 16).
Ta b l e 1 p r e s e n t s t h e a d o l e s c e n t s ’
ch ar act er i zat i o n acco r d i n g t o so ci o eco n o m i c l ev el .
Fr om t he 568 adolescent s par t icipat ing in t he st udy,
t h o s e w h o w e r e u s i n g o r h a d a l r e a d y u s e d
psy choact iv e subst ances w it hout m edical pr escr ipt ion
( n= 1 3 4 ) , ex cept for alcohol and t obacco, and t hose
w h o h a d n e v e r u s e d a n y k i n d o f p s y c h o a c t i v e
subst ance ( n= 5 7 ) w er e consider ed for t his analy sis,
aim ing t o v er ify significant differ ences.
Table 1 - Charact er izat ion of t he socioeconom ic level
o f t h e a d o l e s c e n t s p a r t i c i p a t i n g i n t h e s t u d y,
c o n s i d e r i n g u s e a n d n o u s e o f p s y c h o a c t i v e
su bst an ces. São Car los, 2 0 0 3
The socioeconom ic variable was calculated from
a com bination of the following socioeconom ic indicators:
incom e, num ber of fam ily m em bers, schooling, housing
and fam ily m em bers’ occupation(15). There are six specific
st rat a in t he classificat ion of social class, varying from
category A (upper class) to category F (inferior low class).
Re g a r d i n g t h e so ci o e co n o m i c v a r i a b l e ,
considering both groups, it was verified that category E
(inferior-high) presented the highest frequencies, followed
by cat egor y D ( m iddle- low ) . For bot h cat egor ies, t he
percent ages obt ained for t he group of non- users were
higher w hen com pared t o t he group of users, t hough
st at ist ically significant differ ences w er e not obser v ed.
However, in cat egory C ( m iddle) , t he frequency verified
for the group of users was higher when com pared to the
group of non- users ( 18.7% and 12.6% , respect ively) .
I n this case, the difference found between the two groups
of adolescents was statistically significant (p£0,05), which
allow s us t o say t hat t her e is a higher per cent age of
users from the m iddle class than non-users in this sam e
class, am ong t he adolescent s of t his sam ple.
Table 2 is focused on t he use of psychoact ive
subst ances in life by adolescent s, based on t he diverse
social st r at a r eached by t he st udy and t he differ ent
t y pes of subst ances focused on.
I t is evidenced by t he dat a t hat t he use in life
of alcohol is elevat ed in all social st rat a considered in
t h e st u d y, w h i l e t h er e a r e st a t i st i ca l l y si g n i f i ca n t
differences in som e cat egories. I n t his sense, t he dat a
r ev eal t h at t h e p er cen t ag e of u se of alcoh ol in lif e
w as sign if ican t h igh er am on g adolescen t s belon gin g
t o m id d le- h ig h an d m id d le classes ( 9 0 % an d 8 0 % ,
r e s p e c t i v e l y ) c o m p a r a t i v e l y t o t h e p e r c e n t a g e
obt ained by t he infer ior - high ( 65. 2% ) ( p< 0. 05) .
The t endency w as v er ified for t he use in life
of t obacco, w hose per cent age w as significant ly higher
am ong adolescent s fr om t he m iddle- high and m iddle
classes w h en com p ar ed w it h ad olescen t s f r om t h e
i n f e r i o r - h i g h cl a ss ( p < 0 , 0 5 ) . On t h e o t h e r si d e ,
adolescen t s f r om t h e in f er ior - low class pr esen t ed a
p er cen t a g e o f u se i n l i f e o f t o b a cco h i g h er w h en
com par ed t o t he gr oup of adolescent s w ho belong t o
m iddle class, w it h st at ist ically significant differ ences
( 35. 7% e 32% , r espect iv ely ) ( p< 0. 05) .
I t w as ob ser v ed t h at ad olescen t s f r om t h e
m i d d l e- h i g h cl ass p r esen t ed a si g n i f i can t l y h i g h er
p e r c e n t a g e o f c o n s u m p t i o n o f c a n n a b i s i n l i f e ,
com par ed t o adolescent s fr om t he infer ior - high class.
On t he ot her side, st at ist ically significant differ ences
w er e o b ser v ed b et w een t h e t w o g r o u p s. A h i g h er
* Adolescent s w ho r epor t ed t he use ( at least once in t heir lives) of any kind of psychoact ive subst ance ( except alcohol and t obacco) w it hout m edical pr escr ipt ion w er e included in t his cat egor y.
* * Statistically significant differences between the groups (Chi-square test) p< 0.05.
s c i t s i r e t c a r a h
C Non-user User*
F f% F f%
c i m o n o c e o i c o S
) L E S ( l e v e l
A - - 1 0.7 B 7 1.6 13 9.7 C 56 129 25 18.7** D 171 394 41 306 E 184 424 49 366 F 9 2.1 5 3.7
R
N 7 1.6 -
-l a t o
per cent age of use in life of cannabis by adolescent s
fr om t he infer ior - low class is found in com par ison t o
t hose belonging t o t he m iddle class ( p< 0.05) .
I t is im por t ant t o highlight t hat , in addit ion t o
t hese findings, t he use in life of solvent s pr esent ed a
h i g h e r p e r c e n t a g e a m o n g a d o l e s c e n t s f r o m t h e
m i d d l e - h i g h a n d m i d d l e c l a s s ( 4 0 % e 2 3 . 4 % ,
r espect iv ely ) w hen com par ed t o adolescent s inser t ed
in t he infer ior - high and infer ior - low ( 3. 4% e 14. 3% )
( p < 0 . 0 5 ) . Th e r e w e r e n o si g n i f i ca n t d i f f e r e n ce s
r egar ding t he use of t he r em aining subst ances am ong
t he gr oups consider ed in t his analy sis.
DI SCUSSI ON
The dat a obt ained in t his st udy differ in som e
aspect s fr om ot h er st u dies t h at focu sed on t h e t w o
variables in quest ion, t hat is, t he use of psychoact ive
su bst an ces in adolescen ce an d socioecon om ic lev el.
The r esult s ar e not conver gent w it h t he ones obt ained
in anot her st udy( 8), in w hich significant differ ences in
t he consum pt ion of psychoact ive subst ances and social
class w er e not found, at least r egar ding t he use in life
o f a l c o h o l a n d t o b a c c o , w h i l e s o m e s i g n i f i c a n t
differ ences w er e found in t he pr esent st udy.
s g u r d f o e p y T ) L E S ( l e v e L c i m o n o c e o i c o S r e p p U ) 1 = n ( h g i h -e l d d i M ) 0 2 = n ( e l d d i M ) 1 8 = n ( w o l -e l d d i M ) 2 1 2 = n ( h g i h -r o i r e f n I ) 3 3 2 = n ( w o l -r o i r e f n I ) 4 1 = n ( r e w s n a o N ) 7 = n (
f % F % f % f % f % f % f %
* s i b a n n a
C - - 6 30 11 13.5 16 7.5 21 9 4 28.6 - -s n e g o n i c u ll a
H - - - - 2 2.5 4 1.9 2 0.8 1 7.1 - -e n i a c o
C - - - 5 2.3 5 2.1 2 14.3 - -e n i m a t e h p m
A - - - 6 2.8 4 1.7 - - - -s c i g r e n il o h c i t n
A 1 100 - - - 1 0.4 - - - -* s t n e v l o
S 1 100 8 40 19 23.4 13 6.1 8 3.4 2 14.3 - -s r e z il i u q n a r
T - - - - 2 2.5 5 2.3 8 3.4 1 7.1 - -s e t a i p
O - - 1 5 3 3.7 14 6.6 16 6.9 1 7.1 - -s e v i t a d e
S - - - - 1 1,2 1 0.5 - - - -s d i o r e t s c il o b a n
A - - - - 4 4,9 3 1.4 1 0.4 - - - -* l o h o c l
Á 1 100 18 90 65 80 162 76.4 152 65.2 9 64.3 5 71.4 * o c c a b o
T - - 13 65 26 32 48 22.6 54 23 5 35.7 3 42.8
Table 2 - Use in life of psychoact ive subst ances by adolescent s as a funct ion of socio- econom ic level and of t he
differ ent dr ugs appr oached in t he st udy. São Car los, 2003
* St at ist ically significant differ ences bet w een gr oups, consider ing t he t ype of subst ance consum ed ( Chi- squar e t est ) , p< 0.05.
I n t h is sen se, t h e dat a obt ain ed also dif f er
fr om t he findings of ot her aut hor s( 12) w ho did not find
sig n if ican t d if f er en ces r eg ar d in g t h e u se of alcoh ol
and t obacco, considering t he dist r ibut ion of t he curr ent
consum pt ion of t hese subst ances am ong t he v ar ious
social st r at a.
How ever, in t er m s of t he use in life of illegal
subst ances, a st udy found t hat it w as higher am ong
t he m ost favor ed classes( 8), dat a consist ent w it h ot her
r esear cher s’ findings( 13). Accor ding t o t he aut hor s of
t his last st udy, per for m ed w it h 478 adolescent s fr om
pr im ar y an d secon dar y sch ools, t h e con su m pt ion of
illegal subst ances w as higher in t he m iddle class t han
in t h e low er class. Th is fact can be j u st ified by t h e
higher cost of t his k ind of subst ance, com par at iv ely
t o alcohol and t obacco, w hich m akes it s consum pt ion
m or e fr equent by adolescent s w it h higher acquisit iv e
p o w e r. O t h e r a u t h o r s( 1 2 ) a l s o n o t e d t h a t t h e con su m p t ion of illeg al su b st an ces is h ig h er am on g
t he bour geoisie ( upper and m iddle- high classes) .
I t is also im p or t an t t o h ig h lig h t t h at ot h er
aut hor s( 17) w ho have w or ked w it h t his issue ident ified,
b r o a d l y s p e a k i n g , t h a t t h e c o n s u m p t i o n o f
p sy ch oact iv e su b st an ces is h ig h er am on g st u d en t s
w it h higher t han am ong t hose w it h low er acquisit iv e
pow er, dat a t hat in cer t ain w ay cor r oborat e w it h t he
ot her findings obser v ed in lit er at ur e.
CONCLUSI ON
Regar ding t he socioeconom ic level, t his st udy
show s an incr eased pr obabilit y of using psy choact iv e
subst ances am ong adolescent s belonging t o t he m iddle
an d u p p er classes, p ar t icu lar ly in t er m s of alcoh ol
and t obacco. These dat a div er ge fr om ot her st udies
in t he area, w hich did not ident ify t he influence of t he
socioeconom ic st at us on t he consum pt ion of dr ugs.
Nev er t h eless, t h e d at a ob t ain ed in r elat ion
t o t his v ar iable point t o t he need for new st udies on
t h is issu e, aim in g t o u n der st an d in a m or e det ailed
w a y t h e s p e c i f i c i n f l u e n c e o f t h e f a m i l y ’ s
socioeconom ic condit ion on adolescent behav ior. This
invest igat ed in st udies t hat focus on t he consum pt ion
of psy choact iv e subst ances in adolescence, t he social
indexes t hat perm it t he char act er izat ion of t he fam ily’s
socioeconom ic level ar e evaluat ed by t he adolescent s
t hem selves, w ho oft en do not have pr ecise infor m at ion
about t hem ( incom e v ar iable for ex am ple) , r epor t ing
figures t hat do not accurat ely r epr esent r ealit y, w hich
can direct ly affect t he result s obt ained on t his quest ion.
Lik ew ise, a st u dy per f or m ed in ou r con t ex t
evidenced t he difficult y in operat ionalizing social classes
for applicat ion in epidem iological r esear ch, since t he
t opic in quest ion, in com binat ion wit h t he respondent s
( in t h is case ad olescen t s) , im p ose ot h er d if f icu lt ies
o r i g i n a t e d f r o m t h e n e e d t o u s e a s e l f - a p p l i e d
quest ionnair e, and also fr om t hese adolescent s’ lack
of inform at ion regarding t heir parent s’ j ob( 12).
I n addit ion, it is im por t ant t o st r ess t hat som e
st udies associat ed t he use of drugs in adolescence as
a w ay t o deal w it h adv er se sit uat ions pr esent in our
realit y. I n t he face of a societ y in process of accelerat ed
ch an g es, t h e d eg r ad at ion of f am ilies an d a v iolen t
w o r l d t h a t t en d s t o d en y m o r a l a n d ev en et h i ca l
v alues, dr ug addict ion em er ges t o t he adolescent , as
a st r at egy t o evade r ealit y and a pat h t hat , for som e,
s e e m s t o l e a d t o h a p p i n e s s( 1 8 , 1 9 ). H o w e v e r, t h e p r e se n t e d d a t a h i g h l i g h t t h a t t h e e x p e r i e n ce o f
adver se sit uat ions r elat ed t o pover t y does not pr esent
a l i n e a r a n d d i r e c t r e l a t i o n s h i p w i t h t h e u s e o f
p s y c h o a c t i v e s u b s t a n c e s i n a d o l e s c e n c e , s i n c e ,
now adays, t heir consum pt ion affect s all social classes,
w hile som e of t hem ar e m or e consum ed by t he m ost
f av or ed classes.
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