Criminological Theories: Nontraditional Voices and Themes.

Book review of Criminological Theories: Nontraditional Voices and Themes.” by Imogene L. Moyer

Comparing teen substance use in northern New Hampshire to rural use nationwide

Using data administered in 2011 from the Carsey Institute’s Coös Youth Study and the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, this brief compares teen substance use patterns in New Hampshire’s most rural county to patterns among rural youth nationwide. Author Karen Van Gundy reports that about half of the teens in Coös County and in rural areas nationwide reported using any substance in the previous year. Alcohol use was reported most often, followed by tobacco or marijuana, and other illicit substances. Rural boys nationwide reported using tobacco at significantly higher rates than Coös boys and girls and rural girls nationwide, while Coös boys reported significantly higher rates of frequent use (that is, three or more times weekly) of marijuana or any substance than Coös girls and rural boys and girls nationwide. Previous research has shown that teens who use marijuana are more “stressed out,” and that such stress can increase their risk for other illicit drug abuse in young adulthood. Van Gundy suggests that substance abuse policies and practices that prevent, reduce, or buffer the stresses faced by Coös teens can also enhance their general well-being as they make the transition to adulthood

Mental health among northern New Hampshire young adults: depression and substance problems higher than nationwide

This brief uses data on depressive and substance abuse symptoms from two surveys administered in 2011—the Coös Youth Study and the National Survey on Drug Use and Health—to compare mental health patterns among young adults in Coös County, New Hampshire, to patterns among rural young adults nationwide. The analyses focus on 214 Coös young adults and 1,477 young adult respondents, ages 18 to 21, who were living in non-metropolitan areas in 2011 and who provided usable data on depressive and substance abuse symptoms. Author Karen Van Gundy reports that Coös County young adults are more likely than rural young adults nationwide to suffer from symptoms of depression and substance abuse, and these patterns vary by sex. Coös young women tend to experience more depressive symptoms than their national counterparts, and Coös young men tend to experience more substance abuse symptoms than their national counterparts. Van Gundy concludes that programs fostering community attachment could lessen adult substance abuse in Coös County and that combined or co-occurring symptoms of depression and substance abuse in Coös County require careful consideration

Substance abuse in rural and small town America

Alcohol abuse exceeds illicit drug abuse in rural America and is a serious problem among rural youth, as highlighted here. The report also confirms that the abuse of stimulants, including methamphetamine, is high among certain rural populations, particularly among the rural unemployed

Mental Health Among Northern New Hampshire Young Adults

The highest rates of mental disorder are observed in young adulthood, and in the United States, young adult women suffer from higher rates of major depressive disorder and lower rates of substance use disorder than do young adult men. National estimates in 2010 find that, although rural (non-metropolitan) rates are similar to non-rural (metropolitan) rates nationwide, sex differences in depressive and substance abuse disorders are less apparent in rural America. Whereas non-rural young women show higher rates of depressive disorder than non-rural young men, such rates are comparable for rural young women and men nationwide. Likewise, rural young men abuse alcohol at higher rates than rural young women, but unlike their non-rural counterparts, rural young men are no more likely than rural young women to abuse tobacco, marijuana, or other illicit substances. Within rural contexts, then, it would appear that depressive and substance abuse disorders are more or less equally distributed across sex

Northern New Hampshire Youth in a Changing Rural Economy: A Ten-Year Perspective

The Coös Youth Study was a ten-year research project about growing up in a rural county undergoing transformative economic and demographic changes. The study addressed how these changes affected youths’ well-being as well as their plans to stay in the region, pursue opportunities elsewhere, permanently relocate, or return to their home communities with new skills and new ideas. In this report, the authors describe their findings and point to specific areas for action to support and retain North Country youth. The study was sponsored by the Neil and Louise Tillotson Fund of the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation as one component of the long-term research collaboration Tracking Change in the North Country

Perceived Community Cohesion and the Stress Process in Youth

Using survey data from two youth samples, one rural and one urban, we examine the role and significance of perceived community cohesion in the stress process. In particular, we assess the extent to which community attachment and detachment are related to depressed mood, problem substance use, and delinquency net of social statuses, stress exposure, and personal attributes. In addition, we explore the degree to which those dimensions of community cohesion explain or condition the links between the above stress-process components (e.g., social statuses, stress exposure, and personal attributes) and well-being. We find remarkably similar results across samples: community attachment is related to lower odds of problem substance use and delinquency; community detachment is related to higher levels of depressed mood, problem substance use, and delinquency; and community attachment buffers the link between stress and problem substance use. With respect to depressed mood, however, the rural youth show greater vulnerability to stress than the urban youth and unique benefits from community attachment compared to the latter. Our findings highlight the roles of community attachment and detachment in the stress process and underscore the importance of each for youth well-being in rural and urban settings

Simple Guide to Using Generative Artificial Intelligence Writing Tools in Research & Scholarship at UNH

While Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies have existed for years, the recent arrival of widespread generative AI writing tools such as ChatGPT has provoked varied reactions in the scholarly community worldwide. Undoubtedly easy access to such tools may help to level the scholarly playing field for certain groups, particularly those with limited writing skills or proficiency with English as the primary language for written and oral communication of research and scholarship. There are, however, concerns about these tools, including, but not limited to, the accuracy, consistency, and bias of the information generated, appropriate acknowledgement of source material, and the tools’ lack of ability to reason or to understand meaning when generating output. This simple guide was developed to assist researchers and trainees to understand the fundamental issues with these technologies regarding research integrity

Gender, the assertion of autonomy, and the stress process in young adulthood

Using data from a study of young adults in south Florida, I apply the stress process model to investigating relationships between gender, stressful events, the assertion of autonomy, and two outcomes: depression and criminal behavior. As in prior research, findings suggest that women average higher depression, men average higher criminal behavior, and exposure to stressful events increases risk for both outcomes. Gender differences in outcomes, however, are not explained by gender differences in vulnerability nor in exposure to stress. The assertion of autonomy - a traditionally masculine quality - reduces risk for depression for both women and men, increases risk for crime among men, and reduces risk for crime among women. Autonomy, however, neither mediates the effects of gender nor moderates the effects of stress on either outcome. Results speak to the limits of examining single outcomes, and qualify conditions under which gendered qualities such as autonomy may act as psychosocial resources or detriments in the stress process

Comparing Teen Substance Use in Northern New Hampshire to Rural Use Nationwide

Recent national estimates show that rates of substance use disorder are essentially the same for rural (nonmetropolitan) and urban (metropolitan) teens, with one exception: rural teens are nearly twice as likely to suffer from tobacco dependence than their urban counterparts. It is not known, however, how substance use patterns among teens in rural New Hampshire compare to rural teens nationwide. In an effort to compare teen substance use patterns in New Hampshire's most rural county to patterns among rural youth nationwide, this brief uses data from two surveys administered in 2011