Citation

Erickson JH. Am. J. Crim. Justice 2022; ePub(ePub): ePub.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2022, College of Law Enforcement, Eastern Kentucky University, Publisher Holtzbrinck Springer Nature Publishing Group)

DOI

10.1007/s12103-022-09699-0

PMID

36467593

PMCID

PMC9685152

Abstract

Social bond theory has received significant empirical support in examinations of drug use for decades. However, research utilizing the theory has often been fragmented and has not incorporated all four dimensions of the social bond. Additionally, much of this research has collapsed drug use into categories rather than examining specific forms of drug use. These concerns confuse the theoretical and practical insights that may be derived from such analyses. I utilize Monitoring the Future (2019) data to examine social bonding wholistically as latent classes in line with the concept of the social bond described by Hirschi (1969) and estimate the effect of the classes on specific forms of drug use. I find there are four distinct classes of social bonding among U.S. seniors most clearly differentiated by levels of attachment and commitment. Logistic regression results indicated different classes of social bonding were associated with different forms of drug use. I discuss the theoretical implications of the results and how they can be applied for criminal justice practitioners.

Language: en

Keywords

Alcohol; Cannabis; Cigarettes; Polydrug Use; Social Bond Theory