ABSTRACT
The use of legal and illegal substances such as tobacco, alcohol, and other drugs by youngsters continues to be a major concern in the United States and other countries. A recent survey conducted in New York State substantiates that concern. By high school graduation, 75 percent of the youngsters studied had used alcohol, 46 percent had used tobacco, 24 percent had used marijuana, and 6 percent had used cocaine (Bry and Krinsley, 1990). Such figures actually represent a downward trend from the late 1970s when adolescent substance use was much higher (U.S. Public Health Service, 1995). A small jump in marijuana and other illicit drug use among teenagers occurred in 1993 and 1994, the latest years for which such data is available. However, 1994 figures still remain lower than for most previous years (Swan, 1995).
