Self-control, symptomatology, and substance use precursors: test of a theoretical model in a community sample of 9-year-old children.

The authors tested a theoretical model of how self-control constructs are related to psychological symptomatology and variables that predispose to involvement versus noninvolvement in substance use: willingness to use, affiliation with peers who use, and efficacy for resisting use. Data were obtained from a sample of 332 children (mean age = 9.3 years) who were interviewed in households. Structural equation modeling showed that good self-control was related to more positive well-being and less externalizing symptomatology, whereas poor self-control was related to more externalizing and to more internalizing symptomatology. Externalizing had paths to willingness and peer use, well-being had inverse paths to these variables, and poor self-control had a direct effect to lower resistance efficacy. Multiple-group analyses indicated gender differences in paths from symptomatology to predisposing factors. Implications for understanding vulnerability to substance use are discussed.