Miller P, Chomcynova P, Beck F., Predicting Teenage Beliefs Concerning the Harm alcohol and Cannabis Use may do in Eight European Countries, The Journal of Substance Use, 1475-9942, First published on 15 June 2009.

Abstract :
Data are from the European School Survey Project on Alcohol and other Drugs (ESPAD) in eight countries (Sweden, United Kingdom, France, Malta, Slovenia, Hungary, Bulgaria, and the Czech Republic) in spring 2003. Two scales were constructed, measuring beliefs that alcohol and cannabis harm people. Relationships of these scales with measures of parental control, parental attitudes, respondent’s own drug use, friend’s drug use, and gender were assessed within each country. Both at the country and the individual level, subject’s own drug use showed strong inverse relationships with risk perceptions. Parental control and parental attitudes also showed associations with risk perception but these seemed largely mediated by the parental influence on subject’s own use and by choice of friends. In countries with low prevalence of drug use the extent to which the predictor variables accounted for risk perceptions was lowest. Also the predictor variables showed greater associations with cannabis risk perception than with alcohol risk perception.

Keywords : Alcohol ; drugs ; teenagers ; Europe ; survey

 Andersson B, Miller P, Beck F., Chomynova P., The Prevalences of and Perceived Risks from drug use among Teenagers in 33 European Countries, The Journal of Substance Use, 14 (3 & 4) June 2009, 189-196.

Abstract :
The study examines data from teenagers from 35 countries taking part in surveys conducted within the European School Survey Project on Alcohol and Other Drugs (ESPAD). The main hypothesis tested was that the higher the prevalence of use of a particular drug the fewer will be the respondents who perceive great harm in using it. The hypothesis was tested for cannabis, alcohol, ecstasy, and inhalants, and was strongly confirmed for the former two in the data from the 1999 and 2003 surveys. For cannabis, the perceived risk of harm changed in the expected direction as prevalence changed between 1999 and 2003. The results, although always in the expected direction, were inconclusive regarding ecstasy and inhalants.

Keywords : Teenagers ; European Survey ; perceived risks of substance use.

 Elekes Z., Miller P, Chomynova P., Beck F., Changes in perceived risk of different substance use by ranking order of drug attitudes in different ESPAD-countries, The Journal of Substance Use, 14 (3 & 4) June 2009, 197-210.

Abstract :
Data from the surveys in eight countries of the European Schools Project on Alcohol and other Drugs in the years 1995, 1999, and 2003 were available. Changes over time in the perceptions of the risk of using alcohol, cigarettes, cocaine, marijuana, LSD, amphetamines, ecstasy, and inhalants were assessed. On average the overall proportions of the samples seeing use of these substances as ’very risky’ fell between 1995 and 2003 in all eight countries as prevalences rose slightly in most of the countries. However, there was a tendency for the gap to widen over time between the proportions seeing regular use of illicit substances as very risky and the proportions seeing occasional use as very risky. Relative to other substances cigarette smoking and heavy weekend drinking were ranked more risky in 2003 than in 1995.

Keywords : European schools survey ; teenagers ; substance use ; changes

 Chomynova P, Miller P, Beck F., 2008, Perceived Risks of Alcohol and Illicit Drugs : Relation to Prevalence of Use on Individual and Country Level, The Journal of Substance Use, 14 (3 & 4) June 2009, 250-264.

Abstract :
Background : Individual experience with substance use is considered as one of the principal factors influencing risk perception and attitudes of young people towards substance use. The percentage of students perceiving moderate or great risks of substance use tends to fall across the groups with increasing prevalence of more risky patterns of substance use. Highest perceived risks of alcohol and illicit drugs use were found among abstainers and experimental alcohol consumers, while both experimental and regular drug users tend to perceive lower risks. Regular alcohol consumers perceive relatively high risks of illicit drug use, but they under-estimate the risks of alcohol consumption. Country differences were observed in the level of perceived risks.

Keywords : Substance use ; risk perception ; attitudes towards drug use ; alcohol ; cannabis ; ecstasy