Alcohol and Other Drug Resistance Strategies Employed by Rural Adolescents

Abstract

This study seeks to identify how rural adolescents make health decisions and utilize communication strategies to resist influence attempts in offers of alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs (ATOD). Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 113 adolescents from rural school districts to solicit information on ATOD norms, past ATOD experiences, and substance offer-response episodes. Rural youths' resistance strategies were similar to previous findings with urban adolescents - refuse, explain, avoid, and leave (the REAL typology) - while unique features of these strategies were identified including the importance of personal narratives, the articulation of a non-user identity, and being "accountable" to self and others.

Figures

Figure 1

REAL Strategies by Gender. This figure illustrates the percentages of males and females who employed each of the four refusal strategies out of the total number of each gender.

Figure 2

REAL Strategies by ATOD Use. This figure illustrates the percentages of participants who reportedly used or never used ATOD of those offered (n = 74) substances by their refusal strategy.