Abstract
It is unknown if estimates of illicit drug use among young men who have sex with men and transgender women (YMSM/TW) may be biased due to historical distrust of research or reliable due to more accepting norms for use. Research is needed to examine the validity of drug use self-reports among YMSM/TW. Data came from an ongoing longitudinal study of YMSM/TW aged 16–29 living in Chicago (analytic N = 1029). Baseline urinalysis screens for marijuana, ecstasy, amphetamine, methamphetamine, cocaine, benzodiazepine, and opiate metabolites were compared to self-reported use within different recall periods using measures of concordance. Generalized estimating equations logistic regressions were conducted on three waves of data to identify predictors of disclosing past-6-month use of marijuana and non-marijuana drugs. Past-6-month self-reported use of all non-marijuana substances was <15%. There was excellent agreement between self-reported and drug-tested marijuana use. For other substances, sensitivities within the urinalysis detection window were <0.5 but increased with longer recall periods. Black participants had lower odds of disclosing non-marijuana drug use. Gender minority participants had lower odds of disclosing marijuana use. Participants with a history of arrest had higher odds of disclosing both marijuana and non-marijuana drug use. Wave and year of first research participation were non-significant, suggesting no systematic bias or increasing honesty associated with longer research participation. Programs that rely on self-identification of non-marijuana illicit substance use may be missing a substantial portion of drug-using YMSM/TW. Future epidemiological studies should work to reduce social desirability biases and include biomarker-based drug screenings to increase validity.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 6-14 |
| Number of pages | 9 |
| Journal | Addictive Behaviors |
| Volume | 88 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Jan 1 2019 |
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Keywords
- Drug testing
- Illicit drugs
- Measurement error
- Men who have sex with men
- Validity
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Medicine (miscellaneous)
- Clinical Psychology
- Toxicology
- Psychiatry and Mental health
Cite this
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Predictors of correspondence between self-reported substance use and urinalysis screening among a racially diverse cohort of young men who have sex with men and transgender women. / Li, Dennis H.; Janulis, Patrick Francis; Mustanski, Brian.
In: Addictive Behaviors, Vol. 88, 01.01.2019, p. 6-14.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
TY - JOUR
T1 - Predictors of correspondence between self-reported substance use and urinalysis screening among a racially diverse cohort of young men who have sex with men and transgender women
AU - Li, Dennis H.
AU - Janulis, Patrick Francis
AU - Mustanski, Brian
PY - 2019/1/1
Y1 - 2019/1/1
N2 - It is unknown if estimates of illicit drug use among young men who have sex with men and transgender women (YMSM/TW) may be biased due to historical distrust of research or reliable due to more accepting norms for use. Research is needed to examine the validity of drug use self-reports among YMSM/TW. Data came from an ongoing longitudinal study of YMSM/TW aged 16–29 living in Chicago (analytic N = 1029). Baseline urinalysis screens for marijuana, ecstasy, amphetamine, methamphetamine, cocaine, benzodiazepine, and opiate metabolites were compared to self-reported use within different recall periods using measures of concordance. Generalized estimating equations logistic regressions were conducted on three waves of data to identify predictors of disclosing past-6-month use of marijuana and non-marijuana drugs. Past-6-month self-reported use of all non-marijuana substances was <15%. There was excellent agreement between self-reported and drug-tested marijuana use. For other substances, sensitivities within the urinalysis detection window were <0.5 but increased with longer recall periods. Black participants had lower odds of disclosing non-marijuana drug use. Gender minority participants had lower odds of disclosing marijuana use. Participants with a history of arrest had higher odds of disclosing both marijuana and non-marijuana drug use. Wave and year of first research participation were non-significant, suggesting no systematic bias or increasing honesty associated with longer research participation. Programs that rely on self-identification of non-marijuana illicit substance use may be missing a substantial portion of drug-using YMSM/TW. Future epidemiological studies should work to reduce social desirability biases and include biomarker-based drug screenings to increase validity.
AB - It is unknown if estimates of illicit drug use among young men who have sex with men and transgender women (YMSM/TW) may be biased due to historical distrust of research or reliable due to more accepting norms for use. Research is needed to examine the validity of drug use self-reports among YMSM/TW. Data came from an ongoing longitudinal study of YMSM/TW aged 16–29 living in Chicago (analytic N = 1029). Baseline urinalysis screens for marijuana, ecstasy, amphetamine, methamphetamine, cocaine, benzodiazepine, and opiate metabolites were compared to self-reported use within different recall periods using measures of concordance. Generalized estimating equations logistic regressions were conducted on three waves of data to identify predictors of disclosing past-6-month use of marijuana and non-marijuana drugs. Past-6-month self-reported use of all non-marijuana substances was <15%. There was excellent agreement between self-reported and drug-tested marijuana use. For other substances, sensitivities within the urinalysis detection window were <0.5 but increased with longer recall periods. Black participants had lower odds of disclosing non-marijuana drug use. Gender minority participants had lower odds of disclosing marijuana use. Participants with a history of arrest had higher odds of disclosing both marijuana and non-marijuana drug use. Wave and year of first research participation were non-significant, suggesting no systematic bias or increasing honesty associated with longer research participation. Programs that rely on self-identification of non-marijuana illicit substance use may be missing a substantial portion of drug-using YMSM/TW. Future epidemiological studies should work to reduce social desirability biases and include biomarker-based drug screenings to increase validity.
KW - Drug testing
KW - Illicit drugs
KW - Measurement error
KW - Men who have sex with men
KW - Validity
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85051103941&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85051103941&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.addbeh.2018.08.004
DO - 10.1016/j.addbeh.2018.08.004
M3 - Article
VL - 88
SP - 6
EP - 14
JO - Addictive Behaviors
JF - Addictive Behaviors
SN - 0306-4603
ER -