UMD Theses and Dissertations
Permanent URI for this collectionhttp://hdl.handle.net/1903/3
New submissions to the thesis/dissertation collections are added automatically as they are received from the Graduate School. Currently, the Graduate School deposits all theses and dissertations from a given semester after the official graduation date. This means that there may be up to a 4 month delay in the appearance of a given thesis/dissertation in DRUM.
More information is available at Theses and Dissertations at University of Maryland Libraries.
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Item DESISTANCE FROM CRIME AND SUBSTANCE USE: A UNIVERSAL PROCESS OR BEHAVIOR-SPECIFIC?(2014) Weiss, Douglas Brian; Paternoster, Ray; Criminology and Criminal Justice; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Several prominent criminologists have suggested desistance from crime is in many ways similar to desistance from substance use. While a review of this literature supports this proposition in general, most of this research has focused on desistance from either crime or substance use rather than considering change across both behaviors. Indeed, those few studies that consider both behaviors often find individuals persist in substance use despite desistance from crime. Despite this discrepancy, there has yet to be a systematic comparison between desistance from these two behaviors. This dissertation seeks to address this gap by asking (1) whether the same set of social and psychological factors that distinguish crime desisters from persisters also differentiate heavy substance use desisters from persisters and (2) to what extent individuals who are desisting from crime are also desisting from heavy substance use. In addition to addressing these two primary research questions, a set of substance specific and subgroup analyses were performed to assess whether the results differ across substance type (alcohol, marijuana, and hard drugs) or along the demographics of race and gender. These analyses were performed using data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997 cohort. Desisters were identified using group-based trajectory modeling while multinomial logistic regression was used to examine the factors associated with desistance from each of these behaviors. The results of the analyses indicate that desistance from crime is associated with differences in social bonds and reduced levels of strain, while desistance from substance use is primarily associated with reduced levels of strain and individual personality differences. The substance specific analyses suggest different factors are associated with desistance from the use of different substances, while the race- and gender-specific analyses suggest differences across these demographics. The implications of these results for theories of desistance from crime and substance use are discussed as are the limitations of this dissertation and suggestions for future research.Item Preliminary Trial of a Behavioral Activation-Enhanced Smoking Cessation Program among Substance Users with Elevated Depressive Symptoms in Residential Treatment(2012) Banducci, Anne Nicole; Lejuez, Carl W; MacPherson, Laura; Psychology; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Individuals with elevated depressive symptoms and substance use disorders (SUDs) have particular difficulties quitting smoking and few treatments benefit these individuals. The current study compared five session BA-enhanced smoking cessation treatment + nicotine replacement therapy (BADAS) to smoking cessation treatment as usual (TAU; nicotine replacement therapy + Clearing the Air self-help manual). We hypothesized that participants in BADAS would be less likely to relapse, would have higher abstinence rates, would smoke fewer cigarettes, would exhibit decreases in depressive symptoms, and would have increases in environmental reward, as compared to TAU. Participants in residential treatment with elevated depressive symptoms and SUDs and were randomized to BADAS or to TAU. Participants in BADAS were significantly less likely to relapse during the first week post-quit; abstinence and cigarette consumption rates did not differ significantly across treatments. All participants displayed reductions in depressive symptoms and increases in activation; treatment condition was not significant.Item RISKY BEHAVIOR IN COLLEGE STUDENTS WITH ADHD(2008) Rooney, Mary; Chronis-Tuscano, Andrea M; Psychology; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)Individuals with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are more likely to engage in risky behavior across the lifespan than those without ADHD. College represents an important developmental phase during which the initiation and escalation of heavy drinking set the stage for lifelong difficulties with alcohol and other drugs (Maggs, 1997). The present study examined patterns of alcohol use, illicit drug use, risky sexual behavior, and risky driving behaviors among 39 college students with ADHD and 60 college students without ADHD. Results suggested that among college students, ADHD, CD, and their comorbidity were differentially associated with patterns of risky behavior. Results from the present study largely support the overarching view that individuals with ADHD engage in higher rates of risky behavior; however, specific findings were at times inconsistent with the existing literature on young adults with ADHD. Further research is needed to examine moderators of the association between ADHD and risky behavior.Item The Association of Early Conduct Problems and Early Marijuana Use in College Students(2007-12-06) Falls, Benjamin Jacob; Wish, Eric D; Criminology and Criminal Justice; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)While several studies have documented a strong association between early conduct problems and adolescent drug use, similar research has not been conducted among college students. The current study examines the association between early conduct problems and early marijuana use in a sample of 1,076 college students. A new early conduct problem scale is developed for purposes of analysis. Regression models are developed to test the strength of the association, holding constant covariates that have been shown in prior research to be related to marijuana use. Results reveal a significant positive association between early conduct problems and early marijuana use even after controlling for the covariates. The new scale produces results similar to a previously accepted scale studying early conduct problems in a non-college sample. The results have important prevention implications and suggest the importance of early interventions for reducing the risk for early marijuana use.