Since 1975, the Monitoring the Future project has provided the nation with an important window through which to view these problems and thus gain a better understanding of their changing nature and some of the dynamics that explain them. This series of annual monographs has been the primary vehicle for disseminating many of the epidemiological findings from the study. These monographs have grown substantially in coverage and size over the years. This two-volume monograph reports the results of the twenty-sixth (2000) national survey of drug use and related attitudes and beliefs among American high school seniors, the twenty-first such survey of American college students, and the tenth such survey of eighth- and tenth-grade students. Results from the secondary school samples of eighth, tenth, and twelfth graders are contained in Volume 1, while the results from college students and young adults are reported in Volume II.
Volume I, dealing with secondary school students, is now preceded by an advance summary of its key findings, Monitoring the Future National Results on Adolescent Drug Use: Overview of Key Findings, 2000. That report can be viewed on the Web at http://www.monitoringthefuture.org or obtained free of charge by contacting the authors at the Institute for Social Research, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, 48106-1248. Two of the major topics included in this series of annual reports are (1) the prevalence and frequency of drug use among American secondary school students (specifically, in eighth, tenth, and twelfth grades) and (2) trends in use by those students. Distinctions are made among important demographic subgroups in these populations based on gender, college plans, region of the country, population density, parents' education, and race/ethnicity. Data on grade of first use, trends in use at lower grade levels, and intensity of drug use also are reported in three separate chapters. Key attitudes and beliefs about use of the various drugs have been demonstrated by this study to be important determinants of trends in use over time, Therefore. they are also tracked over time, as are students' perceptions of certain relevant aspects of the social environment-in particular, perceived availability, peer norms, use by friends, and exposure to use. (Extract of the publication.)