Lack of sex differences in knowledge of, attitudes about, and behaviors related to substance use in adolescents in a sample of high school students in the Northeastern USA

As part of an ongoing investigation, data were collected on behaviors and attitudes about substance abuse and general knowledge about substances for high school students (N = 1,103) during the 2002-2003 and 2003-2004 academic years. In preliminary analyses no meaningful sex differences were found for type or frequency of use, attitudes about substance use, or knowledge about substances. Lack of meaningful sex differences were evident even when comparisons by sex group were made within this ethnic minority population as well as within school Grades 10, 11, and 12. It is suggested that being a boy or a girl may have little to do with the American middle-class adolescents' choice to use substances. Findings should be understood to suggest possible cohort effects.