Differences in Substance Use and Receipt of Substance Abuse Prevention Education and Services, by Demographic Characteristics

Reported substance use varied by demographic characteristics. However, reported receipt of substance abuse prevention education and services did not differ significantly by gender, race or ethnicity, age, or household income.

Gender
In contrast to findings for the general population, where males were more likely than females to report smoking and drinking,¹⁹ there were no significant gender differences in percentages who reported smoking, average number of cigarettes smoked, or use of alcohol among young adults with disabilities.

Males with disabilities were more likely than females to report having used marijuana in the past 30 days (20 percent vs. 9 percent, p < .05). Males also were more likely to report using marijuana 10 times or more in the past 30 days (9 percent vs. 1 percent, p < .01). There were no significant gender differences in reported cocaine or other illegal drug use. These findings parallel those in the general population, where reported marijuana use also was higher for males than females, but where reported cocaine and other illegal drug use did not differ by gender.

Race or Ethnicity
Among young adults with disabilities, neither the reported prevalence of cigarette smoking nor the average number of cigarettes smoked per day differed by race or ethnicity.²⁰ In terms of daily cigarette use, White young adults were more likely to report smoking cigarettes every day in the past 30 days than were African American (11 percent, p < .05) and Hispanic young adults with disabilities (10 percent, p < .05). In the general population, prevalence and frequency of reported cigarette smoking were higher for White young adults than for their African American or Hispanic peers. Additionally, the reported average number of cigarettes smoked per day was higher among White young adults than among those who were African American.

Reported use of alcohol, marijuana, cocaine, or other illegal drugs did not differ significantly by race or ethnicity among young adults with disabilities. In contrast, White young adults in the general population reported a higher rate of marijuana use than Hispanic young adults, and higher rates of alcohol and other illegal drug use than their African American or Hispanic peers.

Age
Young adults with disabilities did not show a significant difference by age for reported cigarette smoking, average number of cigarettes smoked per day, or alcohol, marijuana, cocaine, or other illegal drug use. In contrast, in the general population, reported substance use varied by age group, with those 20 to 21 years old reporting a higher rate of alcohol use than those 18 to 19 years old, and 19-year-olds reporting a higher rate of marijuana use than those 20 to 21 years old and a higher rate of any illegal drug use than those 18 and 20 to 21 years old.

Household Income
Young adults with disabilities from households with annual incomes²¹ exceeding $50,000 were more likely to report drinking alcohol than were those from lower income households (incomes of $25,000 or less; 56 percent vs. 38 percent, p < .05). In contrast, in the general population,²² the rate of reported alcohol use was higher among young adults from the lowest and highest income level households than among those from middle income level households.

The reported use of marijuana, cocaine, or other illegal drugs did not differ by household income level for young adults with disabilities or their peers in the general population.

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