Declines in Adolescent Substance Use After the COVID-19 Pandemic Onset: The Role of Initiation in Grades 7 and 9

Abstract

PurposeTo examine if the record declines in adolescent substance use after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic resulted from reduced levels of initiation, defined as any lifetime use. MethodsWe analyzed data from the nationally representative, cross-sectional, annual Monitoring the Future surveys of eighth, 10th, and 12th grade students from 2019 to 2022. Measures included past 12-month use of cannabis, nicotine vaping, and alcohol as well as self-reported grade of initiation of each substance. Analyses are based on randomly selected subsamples of students who received questions on both prevalence and grade of first use, resulting in a total sample size of 96,990 students. ResultsLevels of the past 12-month substance use were markedly lower after the onset of the pandemic, in 2021 and 2022. In eighth and 10th grade, levels were at least one-third lower for cannabis and nicotine vaping and 13%–31% lower for alcohol. In 12th grade, the decreases ranged from 9% to 23%. Lower levels of initiation in seventh grade in 2020-2021 accounted for half or more of the overall prevalence decreases in eighth grade in 2021- 2022. Lower levels of initiation in ninth grade in 2020-2021 accounted for 45% or more of the overall prevalence decreases in 10th grade in 2021-2022. Declines in 12th grade substance use prevalence were not consistently linked to lower initiation in earlier grades. DiscussionMuch of the declines in overall prevalence of adolescent substance use after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic trace back specifically to declines in substance use initiation in seventh and ninth grades.