Mission and Overview

The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) is the lead Federal agency for the conduct of basic, clinical, and epidemiological research designed to improve the understanding, treatment, and prevention of drug abuse and addiction and the health consequences of these behaviors. This research is intended to increase knowledge and promote effective strategies to deal with health problems and issues associated with drug abuse. The NIDA mission applies to infants, children, and adolescents to a great extent, and in a variety of ways. An overview is provided below. Specific areas of research emphasis are described in the section entitled "Child and Adolescent Research: Areas of Interest".

NIDA sponsors a program of research on the health and development of children whose parents abuse illicit drugs. This effort is based on the following principles. Parental substance abuse has the potential to influence the development and the health of infants and children in many ways, via direct effects (e.g., prenatal drug exposure, postnatal passive drug exposure) and via indirect effects associated with drug abuse. Some of these indirect effects may be very specific (e.g., transmission of the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), from mother to infant) and some may be complexly-interwoven (e.g., violence in the home and the community, and dysfunctional parenting associated with substance abuse). Outcomes of interest range from fetal development to infant and child developmental functioning, to vulnerability to drug abuse among the children and adolescents.

NIDA also supports a program of research on the health and developmental consequences of youth drug abuse. This program primarily focuses on associations among substance abuse, co-morbid mental health disorders, social networks, and STD and HIV prevalence and risk-reduction, particularly in high-risk youth populations (e.g., street youth, incarcerated juveniles, injection drug users and their partners).

NIDA supports an ongoing program on the epidemiology of youth drug abuse, including studies of (a) drug use prevalence and incidence, (b) behavioral correlates of drug use, and (c) transitions from drug use to abuse. This research involves various methodologies (e.g., national surveys, ethnographic approaches) and populations (e.g., gender and ethnic factors).

NIDA has a history of support for projects relevant to the prevention of drug use among children and adolescents. These studies are (a) identifying risk factors for drug abuse among various subgroups of children/adolescents, (b) determining patterns of drug use, and (c) evaluating the effects of a variety of prevention strategies.

NIDA also has a history of supporting research on the treatment of drug abuse among adolescents. These investigations address a number of topics, including (a) comorbidity and treatment implications, (b) screening and diagnostic assessment for use in matching each youth to the most appropriate available treatment, (c) treatment modalities (e.g., family-based therapy, therapeutic community), (d) treatment program evaluation, and (e) aftercare program evaluation.

NIDA supports an ongoing program of research on drug abuse treatment services for adolescents. Research supported under this program takes a multidisciplinary approach in studying how individual and social factors, organizational structures and processes, financing mechanisms, and health technologies affect adolescents’ access to drug abuse treatment services and the quality, outcomes, and costs of those services. Cutting across these areas of investigation are various populations of particular interest to NIDA, including specific subgroups of drug-abusing adolescents (e.g., females; racial, ethnic, and cultural minorities; youth involved with the criminal justice system; adolescents with HIV/AIDS and other infectious diseases; youth with co-occurring disorders; runaway or emancipated youth); families with adolescents who use drugs (e.g., single parent, multi-generational, adoptive, homeless); organizations, agencies and institutions that serve adolescent drug users (e.g., community treatment programs, welfare agencies, homeless shelters, schools, hospitals), and communities in which adolescent drug users live (e.g., urban, suburban, rural, small town).

The NIDA HIV/AIDS program specific to infants, children, and adolescents includes research on drug abuse aspects of (a) mother-infant transmission and the course of pediatric HIV disease progression, (b) the spectrum of HIV disease and associated conditions and consequences among adolescents, and (c) the effectiveness of HIV risk-reduction strategies for young persons.

NIDA supports an ongoing program of drug use as it impacts on Special Populations (under represented populations [such as Native Americans, Hispanics, African Americans, and Asian Pacific Islanders], and others such as women, individuals with disabilities, children, vulnerable groups - such as the homeless, etc.) and the Health Disparities/Consequences of drug use within and across various groups (e.g. racial/ethic, SES, gender). This research portfolio address the adverse social, behavioral, and health consequences of drug abuse that focus on the magnitude, and/or impact of drug use within and across populations, identification of new improved measures, and the development of better theoretical models for addressing health disparities. Studies within this portfolio are encouraged to examine the differential use and or effects of drugs within and/or across these groups and the identification of strategies to reduce those disparities. Disparities are readily apparent in the reported rates of HIV/AIDS infection, TB, HCV, violence and victimization, incarceration, school drop out, morbidity rates, and stigmatization in ethnic minority communities, and this portfolio is expected to address some of these issues.

The NIDA Workgroup on Child and Adolescent Research is made up of staff members from across the Institute. The Workgroup Directory contains the name, branch/division/office, E-mail address, and phone number for each member of the group. One or more workgroup members are identified as contact persons for each topic listed in the section entitled "Child and Adolescent Research: Areas of Interest".