Academic Journal
Profiles of stress and their associations with substance use among adults of color.
| Title: | Profiles of stress and their associations with substance use among adults of color. |
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| Authors: | Lee R; University of Southern California, Keck School of Medicine, Department of Population and Public Health Sciences, Los Angeles, CA, United States; California State University, Northridge, Department of Health Sciences, Northridge, CA, United States. Electronic address: rlee6472@usc.edu., Unger JB; University of Southern California, Keck School of Medicine, Department of Population and Public Health Sciences, Los Angeles, CA, United States., Arpawong TE; University of Southern California, Keck School of Medicine, Department of Population and Public Health Sciences, Los Angeles, CA, United States., Oh H; University of Southern California, Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work, Los Angeles, CA, United States., Bluthenthal R; University of Southern California, Keck School of Medicine, Department of Population and Public Health Sciences, Los Angeles, CA, United States., Sami M; California State University, Fullerton, Department of Public Health, Fullerton, CA, United States., Pagador A; University of Southern California, Keck School of Medicine, Department of Population and Public Health Sciences, Los Angeles, CA, United States., Blevins B; University of Southern California, Keck School of Medicine, Department of Population and Public Health Sciences, Los Angeles, CA, United States., Huh J; University of Southern California, Keck School of Medicine, Department of Population and Public Health Sciences, Los Angeles, CA, United States. |
| Source: | Drug and alcohol dependence [Drug Alcohol Depend] 2026 Aug 01; Vol. 285, pp. 113219. Date of Electronic Publication: 2026 May 26. |
| Publication Type: | Journal Article |
| Language: | English |
| Journal Info: | Publisher: Elsevier Country of Publication: Ireland NLM ID: 7513587 Publication Model: Print-Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1879-0046 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 03768716 NLM ISO Abbreviation: Drug Alcohol Depend Subsets: MEDLINE |
| Imprint Name(s): | Publication: Limerick : Elsevier Original Publication: Lausanne, Elsevier Sequoia. |
| MeSH Terms: | Substance-Related Disorders*/psychology , Substance-Related Disorders*/ethnology , Substance-Related Disorders*/epidemiology , Stress, Psychological*/psychology , Stress, Psychological*/ethnology , Black or African American*/psychology, United States/epidemiology ; Racism/psychology ; Hispanic or Latino/psychology ; Humans ; Female ; Male ; Adult ; Young Adult ; Middle Aged |
| Abstract: | Introduction: People of Color (POC) in the United States experience a variety of stressors stemming from multiple contextual domains; coping with such stressors has been linked to various substance use behaviors. However, person-centered studies identifying the distinct and related patterns of stress among POC are lacking and thus limiting for informing substance use intervention approaches. Methods: Latent profile analysis was performed to identify latent subgroups of stress profiles among racial/ethnic minority US adults who report current substance use (N = 964). We examined the associations between demographic characteristics and profile membership and simultaneously the associations between profile membership and substance use. Results: Four distinct stress profiles were identified: "Low Stress," "Normative Stress," "Racialized Stress," and "Multi-Domain High Stress". Mean levels of substance use were significantly higher among "Racialized Stress," "Normative Stress," and "Multi-Domain High Stress" compared to the "Low Stress" group. Conclusion: POC in the US experience a constellation of stressors rooted in systemic social inequities. The Racialized Stress profile, characterized by racial discrimination and cultural stress, represents a high-risk group for substance use despite not necessarily experiencing the highest levels of overall stress, suggesting that the type and combination of stressors (and not just their intensity) matters. Understanding these unique latent stress profiles and their associations with substance use is important to better characterize the lived experiences of POC and implement targeted interventions to help POC cope with and navigate these stressors. (Copyright © 2026. Published by Elsevier B.V.) |
| Competing Interests: | Declaration of Competing Interest The authors have no relevant financial or non-financial interests to disclose. |
| Contributed Indexing: | Keywords: Latent profile analysis; Racialized stress; Stress; Substance use |
| Entry Date(s): | Date Created: 20260603 Date Completed: 20260627 Latest Revision: 20260629 |
| Update Code: | 20260630 |
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2026.113219 |
| PMID: | 42235276 |
| Database: | MEDLINE |
| ISSN: | 1879-0046 |
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| DOI: | 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2026.113219 |