Testing the Question-Behavior Effect of Self-Administered Surveys Measuring Youth Drug Use

作者：Briney John S^*; Brown Eric C; Kuklinski Margaret R; Oesterle Sabrina; Hawkins J David

来源：Journal of Adolescent Health, 2017, 61(6): 743-746.

DOI：10.1016/j.jadohealth.2017.06.026

• Question-behavior effect
• Youth surveys
• Youth drug use

Purpose: Concern that asking about a specific behavior could elicit that behavior is often cited as a reason that communities and schools should not administer surveys about youth drug use. In this study, we investigated if this question-behavior effect exists related to substance use. We examined if simply asking a student about their current drug use leads to an increase in drug use 1 year later.
Method: This study tests the validity of the question-behavior effect on youth drug use in a longitudinal panel of 2,002 elementary school students. The sample of students was drawn from the Community Youth Development Study, a community-randomized test of the Communities That Care prevention system. If the prevalence of self-reported drug use in sixth grade in a sample surveyed in fifth and sixth grades was higher than in an accretion sample surveyed only in sixth grade, the difference could indicate a question-behavior effect.
Results: Results from logistic regression analyses did not provide any evidence of a question-behavior effect on 30-day or lifetime prevalence of alcohol, tobacco, inhalant, or marijuana use reported in sixth grade.
Conclusions: Asking youth about drug use in a survey did not increase the rates of self-reported drug use measured 1 year later. The absence of evidence of a question-behavior effect should ease concerns of communities and schools when administering surveys asking youth about their drug use.

• 出版日期2017-12