Review of Predicting Adolescent Drug Use: Utility Structure and Marijuana

Reviews the book, Predicting Adolescent Drug Use: Utility Structure and Marijuana by Karl E. Bauman (1980). I have problems "getting through" this type of book--one that summarizes in monograph form all the stages of a study done on a sample of about 2,000 junior high students in a circumscribed geographical area. The results of the study were not particularly helpful For nonusers of marijuana, the most positive effects (utility) expected from marijuana were related to the delivery of "direct and immediate psychological or physical satisfaction," whereas the most important negative consequences of marijuana use were "fear of doing strange or dangerous things and loss of control, negative sanctions by the police and parents, use of more harmful drugs, and addiction." (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)