# Social Mechanisms of Early Alcohol and Substance Use Initiation and Progression to Problems

> **NIH NIH P60** · PACIFIC INSTITUTE FOR RES AND EVALUATION · 2021 · $371,971

## Abstract

ABSTRACT
The context in which early drinking occurs may be an important, but neglected, determinant of progression to risky
drinking behaviors and problems. Early initiation of drinking (i.e., early onset), especially of heavy drinking, has been
associated with a range of adverse outcomes for adolescents, including alcohol abuse and dependence, lower academic
achievement, risky sex, assaults, traffic crashes, and other substance use. The mechanisms underlying the associations
between early drinking onset and problems, however, are largely unknown. These associations may reflect neurological
or physiological changes resulting from early onset of drinking; the effects of common predisposing factors (e.g., genetic
susceptibility, impulsivity) that increase the likelihood of both early drinking and involvement in problem behaviors; or
differential exposure to and selection of drinking environments that enable and maintain heavy drinking and associated
problem outcomes. Importantly, some research suggests that early initiation to drinking may be attributable to
environmental, rather than genetic or other predisposing factors. No research, however, has investigated the contribution
of risky contexts to the development of early drinking onset and the progression to problems. To fill this research gap, we
will investigate the contexts in which early drinking, heavy drinking, and intoxication occur. We will obtain detailed
characteristics of those contexts to evaluate how they relate to the later development of drinking, other substance use, and
problems. The proposed study will use a mixed-method approach consisting of (a) a baseline and six follow-up surveys
over 3 years with 1,500 adolescents aged 12-16 years at baseline and (b) qualitative interviews with 25 early onset
drinkers recruited from the baseline survey. This longitudinal study will help to understand whether and how specific
contexts contribute to maintaining alcohol use over time and the development of alcohol-related problems among early
onset drinkers. This study will allow us to investigate why some youths who drink at an early age develop problems and
some do not. It will be guided by a socio-ecological developmental model that emphasizes the importance of social
interactions and drinking contexts for the development and maintenance of problem behaviors. The specific aims are to:
(a) assess the contexts in which the first occasions of drinking, heavy drinking, and intoxication occur and how
characteristics of these contexts contribute to continued drinking, heavy drinking, and problems; (b) assess whether and
how drinking contexts within the first year of drinking contribute to continued drinking, heavy drinking, other substance
use, co-use, and problems; (c) investigate the ongoing associations of social and other contextual characteristics,
including influences of close friends, venue-based social characteristics, adult supervision, and alcohol availability, with
drinking, other subs...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10064075
- **Project number:** 5P60AA006282-39
- **Recipient organization:** PACIFIC INSTITUTE FOR RES AND EVALUATION
- **Principal Investigator:** Sharon Lipperman-Kreda
- **Activity code:** P60 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $371,971
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 1983-09-29 → 2022-11-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10064075

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10064075, Social Mechanisms of Early Alcohol and Substance Use Initiation and Progression to Problems (5P60AA006282-39). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10064075. Licensed CC0.

---

*[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*