Research findings from the past 15 years indicate that drug use and mental health problems among adolescents from rural areas of the United States have equaled or exceeded those of nonrural youth. These comparisons, however, have typically been made on community samples, leaving a gap in knowledge regarding rural versus nonrural youth enrolled in substance abuse treatment. To address this gap in research, this study examines differences between juvenile-justice-involved rural and nonrural adolescents enrolled in drug treatment on substance abuse and mental health problems at treatment entry and at 3, 6, 12, and 30 months following treatment entry.
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