Drug Use

Drug use and associated consequences persist as a major public health problem.  PIRE researchers have a broad range of funded research projects and scientific investigators examining the causes, correlates and consequences of drug involvement.

A better understanding of population subgroups at increased risk for drug involvement and the circumstances under which drug use is promoted and sustained is a critical first step in the development of effective prevention and intervention strategies. Our approach to the study of drug involvement is grounded in the theory that behavior is both inherited and learned. Of greatest importance, it is malleable.

PIRE is at the forefront of multi-level and multi-modal approaches to studying drug use and providing the research base for prevention. PIRE researchers have done both primary and secondary research with a variety of populations including pregnant women, children and adolescents, high school and college students, young and emerging adults, club attendees, arrestees, and prison populations.  Our goal is to identify the individual, group and family-level factors that increase the risk of extra-medical and illicit drug use in these populations as well as clarify mechanisms by which drug use is maintained or suspended. 

The study of protective factors and mechanisms by which individuals and groups are at decreased risk for drug use is also central to our goal of developing effective strategies to impact local and national drug epidemics.

In addition to examining individual and group-level drug use, PIRE researchers have also undertaken a series of environmental studies to examine the geographic correlates of drug use and clarify how space, place, and time are related to drug taking and its associated consequences.  Our methods are varied and include biological, behavioral, and environmental assessments.