TY - JOUR
T1 - Religiosity and substance use among Asian American college students
T2 - Moderated effects of race and acculturation
AU - Luk, Jeremy W.
AU - Emery, Rebecca L.
AU - Karyadi, Kenny A.
AU - Patock-Peckham, Julie
AU - King, Kevin M.
N1 - Funding Information:
This research was supported in part by a research grant from ABMRF/The Foundation for Alcohol Research awarded to Kevin King and a National Research Service Award from National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism ( F31 AA020700 ) awarded to Jeremy Luk. Earlier versions of Study 1 and Study 2 analyses were respectively presented at the 2010 Society for Research on Adolescence biennial meeting, Philadelphia, PA, and the 2011 Annual Meeting of the Research Society on Alcoholism, Atlanta, GA.
PY - 2013/6/1
Y1 - 2013/6/1
N2 - Background: Religiosity is a well-established protective factor against substance use among Caucasians, but limited research has examined its role among Asian Americans. The purposes of this study were (1) to examine whether the associations between religiosity and substance use outcomes differed across Caucasians and Asian Americans, and (2) to test whether acculturation moderated the associations between religiosity and substance use outcomes among Asian Americans. Method: We utilized a large and diverse cross-sectional sample of 839 college students to test whether race moderated the associations between religiosity and substance use outcomes (Study 1). We then replicated and extended our findings in a separate college sample of 340 Asian Americans, and examined the moderating role of acculturation on the associations between religiosity and substance use outcomes (Study 2). Results: Controlling for age, gender, and paternal education, religiosity was protective against alcohol use, alcohol problems, and marijuana use among Caucasians but was unrelated to these outcomes among Asian Americans in Study 1. In Study 2, religiosity was protective against alcohol problems only at high levels of acculturation. Moreover, religiosity was protective against marijuana use at both high and mean levels of acculturation, but not at low levels of acculturation. Conclusions: The protective effects of religiosity on alcohol use and problems varied across Caucasian and Asian American college students, and religiosity protected against alcohol problems and marijuana use only among more acculturated Asian Americans. These findings underscore the need to examine culturally-specific correlates of substance use outcomes among Asian Americans.
AB - Background: Religiosity is a well-established protective factor against substance use among Caucasians, but limited research has examined its role among Asian Americans. The purposes of this study were (1) to examine whether the associations between religiosity and substance use outcomes differed across Caucasians and Asian Americans, and (2) to test whether acculturation moderated the associations between religiosity and substance use outcomes among Asian Americans. Method: We utilized a large and diverse cross-sectional sample of 839 college students to test whether race moderated the associations between religiosity and substance use outcomes (Study 1). We then replicated and extended our findings in a separate college sample of 340 Asian Americans, and examined the moderating role of acculturation on the associations between religiosity and substance use outcomes (Study 2). Results: Controlling for age, gender, and paternal education, religiosity was protective against alcohol use, alcohol problems, and marijuana use among Caucasians but was unrelated to these outcomes among Asian Americans in Study 1. In Study 2, religiosity was protective against alcohol problems only at high levels of acculturation. Moreover, religiosity was protective against marijuana use at both high and mean levels of acculturation, but not at low levels of acculturation. Conclusions: The protective effects of religiosity on alcohol use and problems varied across Caucasian and Asian American college students, and religiosity protected against alcohol problems and marijuana use only among more acculturated Asian Americans. These findings underscore the need to examine culturally-specific correlates of substance use outcomes among Asian Americans.
KW - Acculturation
KW - Alcohol problems
KW - Asian American
KW - Marijuana use
KW - Religiosity
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U2 - 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2012.10.023
DO - 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2012.10.023
M3 - Article
C2 - 23182409
AN - SCOPUS:84877043117
SN - 0376-8716
VL - 130
SP - 142
EP - 149
JO - Drug and alcohol dependence
JF - Drug and alcohol dependence
IS - 1-3
ER -