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CHAPTER 3
DEMOGRAPHICS
Table 3.1 compares the demographic characteristics of the substance abuse and non-affected samples. The typical substance abuse sample member was in her mid-thirties, African-American, not married, was the mother of 3 to 4 children, had not completed high school, and earned less than 50% of the poverty threshold. The typical non-affected sample member was in her late twenties, African-American, not married, was the mother of 2-3 children, had completed high school, and earned above 50% of the poverty threshold. Overall, the non-affected sample was significantly younger, had fewer children, and was more educated.
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| Substance Abuser (n=214) |
Nonsubstance Abuser (n=69) |
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|---|---|---|---|
| Agea | 36 (6.6) | 28(8.1) | |
| Race | |||
| African-American | 95 | 86 | |
| Hispanic | 3 | 10 | |
| Other | 2 | 4 | |
| Marital Status | |||
| Married | 2 | 3 | |
| Divorced/Widowed/Separated | 19 | 19 | |
| Never Married | 79 | 78 | |
| Childrena | 3.3 (1.9) | 2.8 (1.7) | |
| Education | |||
| High School or Greater | 44 | 57 | |
| Did Not Complete High School | 56 | 43 | |
| Income* | |||
| Extreme Poverty | 55 | 43 | |
| Poverty | 40 | 46 | |
| Low Income | 5 | 11 | |
| a Numbers represent:
mean (standard deviation). * The income classes are derived from the ratio of the family's income to the family's poverty threshold for a single parent family with three children. According to the U.S. Census 2000, $17,524 is the poverty threshold. Extreme poverty is less than 50 percent of the poverty threshold (<$8,762). Poverty is between 50 and 99 percent of the poverty threshold ($8,762-$17,349). Low income is between 100 and 199 percent of the poverty threshold ($17,349-$34,873). Percentages for this sample represent approximates. No participants in this sample had incomes above the low income threshold. |
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Figure 3.A compares cumulative total years receiving welfare benefits for the substance abuse and non-affected samples. The substance abuse sample spent significantly more total time on welfare than the non-affected sample. On average the substance abuse sample spent 12 years (SD=8.5) versus 5.8 years (SD=5.5) for the non-affected sample. Figure 3.A also indicates that groups differed for long and short stays on welfare. About 36% of substance abusers received welfare benefits for more than 15 years versus only 7% of the comparison sample. Conversely, 66% of the non-affected sample received welfare benefits less than six years versus 28% of the substance abuse sample.
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