A Longitudinal Study of Risk–Taking Behavior in Adolescents with Learning Disabilities

Abstract

Risk taking may be regarded as a normative behavior in adolescence. Risk–taking behaviors may include alcohol, smoking, drug use, delinquency, and acts of aggression. Many studies have explored the relationship between adolescents and risk–taking behavior; however, only a few studies have examined this link in adolescents with learning disabilities. The purpose of this study was to compare the risk–taking behavior of adolescents with learning disabilities (N = 307) and without learning disabilities (N = 307) over time. Specifically, this study investigated changes over time in adolescents’ substance use, engagement in major and minor delinquency, acts of aggression, and gambling activities. Results indicated that, compared to their non–learning disabled peers, adolescents with learning disabilities engaged more frequently in some risk–taking behaviors including smoking, marijuana use, acts of delinquency, acts of aggression, and gambling. The results also indicate that for some risk–taking behaviors adolescents with and without learning disabilities differ in their trajectory of engagement. Implications of this study point to the importance of supporting adolescents with learning disabilities when they are faced with difficult decisions around risk taking.

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Allison

P. D.

(2002). Missing data. Thousand Oaks, CA : Sage.

Barkley

R. A.

(1990). Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder: A handbook for diagnosis and treatment. New York : Guilford.

Beitchman

J. H.

, Wilson

, Douglas

, Young

, & Adlaf

(2001). Substance use disorders in young adults with and without LD: Predictive and concurrent relationships. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 34, 317–332.

Bender

(2008). Learning disabilities: Characteristics, identification and teaching strategies. Toronto, Canada : Pearson Education.

Cosden

(2001). Risk and resilience for substance abuse among adolescents and adults with LD. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 34, 352–358.

Cosden

, Brown

, & Elliot

(2002). Development of self–understanding and self–esteem in children and adults with learning disabilities. In Wong

B. Y. L.

& Donahue

(Eds.), Social dimensions of learning disabilities (pp. 33–51). Mahwah, NJ : Erlbaum.

Crick

N. R.

, & Bigbee

M. A.

(1998). Relational and overt forms of peer victimization: A multi–informant approach. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 66, 337–347.

Disney

E. R.

, Elkins

I. J.

, McGue

, & Iacono

W. G.

(1999). Effects of ADHD, conduct disorder, and gender on substance use and abuse in adolescence. American Journal of Psychiatry, 156, 1515–1521.

Doren

, Bullis

, & Benz

M. R.

(1996). Predicting the arrest status of adolescents with disabilities in transition. The Journal of Special Education, 29, 363–380.

10.

Enders

C. K.

(2001). A primer on maximum likelihood algorithms available for use with missing data. Structural Equation Modelling, 8, 128–141.

11.

Gress

J. R.

, & Boss

(1996). Substance abuse differences among students receiving special education school services. Child Psychiatry & Human Development, 26, 235–246.

12.

Katims

D. S.

, Zapata

J. T.

, & Yin

(1996). Risk factors for substance use by Mexican American youth with and without learning disabilities. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 29(2), 213–219.

13.

Kauffman

J. M.

(2005). Characteristics of emotional and behavioural disorders in children and youth (8th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ : Prentice Hall.

14.

Lambert

N. M.

, & Hartsough

C. S.

(1998). Prospective study of tobacco smoking and substance dependencies among samples of ADHD and non–ADHD participants. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 31, 533–544.

15.

Maag

J. W.

, Irvin

D. M.

, Reid

, & Vasa

S. F.

,(1994). Prevalence and predictors of substance use: A comparison between adolescents with and without learning disabilities. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 27, 223–234.

16.

McCrystal

, Percy

, & Higgins

(2007). Substance use behaviors of young people with a moderate learning disabilities: A longitudinal study. The American Journal of Drug and Alcohol Abuse, 33(1), 155–161.

17.

McNamara

, Vervaeke

S. L.

, & Willoughby

(2008). Learning disabilities and risk–taking behavior in adolescents: A comparison of those with and without comorbid attention–deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 41, 561–574.

18.

Moffitt

T. E.

(1990). Juvenile delinquency and attention deficit disorder: Boys’ developmental trajectories from age 3 to age 15. Child Development, 61, 893–910.

19.

Molina

B. S. G.

, & Pelham

W. E.

(2003). Childhood predictors of adolescent substance use in a longitudinal study of children with ADHD. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 112, 497–507.

20.

Molina

B. S. G.

, & Pelham

W. E.

(2001). Substance use, substance abuse, and LD among adolescents with a childhood history of ADHD. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 34, 333–342.

21.

Murray

D. M.

, & Perry

C. L.

(1987). The measurement of substance use among adolescents. Addictive Behaviors, 12, 225–233.

22.

Olson

J. L.

, & Platt

J. C.

(2004). Teaching children and adolescents with special needs. Upper Saddles River, NJ : Pearson Prentice Hall.

23.

Rhodes

S. S.

, & Jasinski

D. R.

(1990). Learning disabilities in alcohol–dependent adults: A preliminary study. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 23, 551–556.

24.

Schafer

J. L.

, & Graham

J. W.

(2002). Missing data: Our view of the state of the art. Psychological Methods, 7, 147–177.

25.

Smith

C. R.

(2004). Learning disabilities: The interaction of students and their environments. Boston : Allyn and Bacon.

26.

Statistics Canada. (2001). Census of Canada. Ottawa, Canada : Author.

27.

Weinberg

N. Z.

(2001). Risk factors for adolescent substance abuse. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 34, 343–351.

28.

White

H. R.

(1991). Marijuana use and delinquency: A test of the “independent clause” hypothesis. Journal of Drug Issues, 21, 231–257.

29.

Willoughby

, Chlamers

, & Busseri

(2004). Where is the syndrome? Examining co–occurrence among multiple problem behaviors in adolescence. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 72, 1022–1037.

30.

Zabel

R. H.

, & Nigro

F. A.

(1999). Juvenile offenders with behavioral disorders, learning disabilities, and no disabilities: Self–reports of personal, family, and school characteristics. Behavioral Disorders, 25, 22–40.