Baseline characteristics of substance-using young adults by foster care history (n=602)
| Variable | Total (n=602, 100%) | Foster care (n=45, 8%) | No foster care (n=557, 92%) | Test (p values) | |
| Demographics | |||||
| Age | (M/SD) | 25.8 (5.42) | 26.67 (5.29) | 25.72 (5.43) | F=1.26 |
| Gender | |||||
| Female | (% yes) | 259 (43%) | 26 (58%) | 233 (42%) | χ2=4.31* |
| Race | |||||
| Hispanic | (% yes) | 385 (64%) | 20 (44%) | 365 (65%) | χ2=19.10*** |
| Black | (% yes) | 138 (23%) | 22 (49%) | 116 (21%) | |
| White | (% yes) | 65 (11%) | 3 (7%) | 62 (11%) | |
| Other | (% yes) | 14 (2%) | 0 (0%) | 14 (5%) | |
| Education | |||||
| Years | (M/SD) | 12.76 (1.52) | 12.48 (1.58) | 12.78 (1.52) | F=1.52 |
| HIV/STI history | |||||
| Number of HIV/STI incidences | (M/SD) | 0.54 (1.22) | 1.13 (1.89) | 0.49 (1.13) | F=11.91*** |
| One or more HIV/STI diagnoses | (% yes) | 134 (22%) | 16 (36%) | 118 (21%) | χ2=5.00* |
| Sexual behaviours | |||||
| Age of first consensual sex | (M/SD) | 15.03 (2.18) | 14.42 (2.36) | 15.08 (2.17) | F=3.31t |
| Group sex participation history | (% yes) | 244 (41%) | 23 (51%) | 221 (40%) | χ2=2.26 |
| Purchased sex | (% yes) | 65 (11%) | 7 (16%) | 58 (10%) | χ2=1.14 |
| Traded/sold sex | (% yes) | 74 (12%) | 7 (16%) | 67 (12%) | χ2=0.48 |
| No. sexual partners† | (M/SD) | 5.32 (8.71) | 5.98 (9.51) | 5.27 (8.65) | F=0.28 |
| Condomless sex frequencies† | (M/SD) | 28.75 (49.90) | 42.82 (48.45) | 27.61 (50.00) | F=3.87* |
| Substance use-related measures | |||||
| Past 90-day frequencies: | |||||
| Alcohol | (M/SD) | 45.79 (25.53) | 51.33 (26.40) | 45.35 (25.43) | F=2.29 |
| Marijuana | (M/SD) | 60.12 (33.11) | 63.11 (31.36) | 59.87 (33.26) | F=0.40 |
| Cocaine | (M/SD) | 30.09 (26.14) | 36.84 (31.39) | 29.54 (25.63) | F=3.26 |
| Ecstasy | (M/SD) | 28.89 (23.37) | 40.53 (29.14) | 27.95 (22.61) | F=12.29*** |
| Methamphetamine | (M/SD) | 3.53 (12.18) | 4.56 (14.95) | 3.44 (11.94) | F=0.35 |
| LSD | (M/SD) | 4.98 (11.14) | 4.53 (9.72) | 5.02 (11.26) | F=0.08 |
| Other hallucinogens | (M/SD) | 5.78 (12.44) | 4.80 (13.22) | 5.86 (12.38) | F=0.30 |
| GHB | (M/SD) | 2.08 (9.25) | 0.87 (3.68) | 2.17 (9.55) | F=0.83 |
| Heroin | (M/SD) | 6.62 (19.85) | 7.13 (20.55) | 6.58 (19.81) | F=0.03 |
| Rx opioid | (M/SD) | 29.86 (28.67) | 36.40 (31.16) | 29.33 (28.43) | F=2.54 |
| Rx benzodiazepine | (M/SD) | 31.70 (29.53) | 37.33 (27.76) | 31.25 (29.65) | F=1.77 |
| Rx stimulant | (M/SD) | 10.15 (18.90) | 12.51 (21.05) | 9.96 (18.72) | F=0.76 |
| Substance dependence symptoms‡,§ | (M/SD) | 3.67 (2.39) | 4.24 (2.26) | 3.62 (2.40) | F=2.84t |
| High during sex almost all the time†,¶ | (% yes) | 218 (36%) | 22 (50%) | 196 (35%) | χ2=3.80* |
| Victimisation history | |||||
| Any victimisation | (% yes) | 447 (74%) | 36 (80%) | 411 (74%) | χ2= 0.84 |
| If yes, victimised as a minor | (% yes) | 351 (58%) | 29 (64%) | 322 (58%) | χ2= 0.73 |
| Physical victimisation | (% yes) | 264 (44%) | 23 (51%) | 241 (43%) | χ2=1.04 |
| Sexual victimisation†† | (% yes) | 110 (18%) | 14 (31%) | 96 (17%) | χ2=5.31* |
| Emotional victimisation†† | (% yes) | 322 (54%) | 29 (64%) | 293 (53%) | χ2=2.27 |
| Additional health and social problems | |||||
| Mental distress symptoms‡,§ | (M/SD) | 8.04 (6.73) | 9.76 (7.93) | 7.91 (6.61) | F=3.16t |
| Homelessness history | (% yes) | 299 (50%) | 35 (78%) | 264 (47%) | χ2=15.32**** |
*p<0.05; **p<0.01; ***p<0.001; ****p<0.0001; t=p<.10.
†Past 90 days.
‡Past year.
§n=1 no data.
¶n=3 no data
††n=2 no data.
GHB, Gamma hydroxybutyrate; LSD, Lysergic acid diethylamide; STI, sexually transmitted infection.