The effect of school culture on substance use : a quantitative study focusing on upper elementary students attending Adventist schools in Canada

• Main Author: Jorgenson, Heidi Marie
• Other Authors: Lee, Se Woong
• Format: Thesis
• Language: English
• Published: University of Missouri--Columbia 2023
• Subjects: Canada; First Nations
• Online Access: https://hdl.handle.net/10355/96096; https://doi.org/10.32469/10355/96096

Adolescents are likely to experiment with risky behaviors, such as substance use, which can have implications lasting throughout their lives. Private schools, while not immune to substance use, tend to report lower levels of substance use among their students when compared to the adolescent population in general. This quantitative study focuses on Adventist Education, a private, Protestant school system, to determine if aspects of Adventist school culture (i.e., religious experiences and school connectedness) have a salubrious effect against the engagement in substance use for upper elementary students. The data comes from the Adventist School Culture and Value Inventory conducted at Adventist schools in Canada. This research revealed the importance of developing relationships with students as those relationships have a salubrious effect on substance use among students; however, these are not statistically significant results. A statistically significant correlation does exist between teacher modeling of Christian behavior and a lower engagement in substance use. A second statistically significant correlation raises awareness for the rate of substance use among students from the First Nations population. Includes bibliographical references.