The pattern of results presented in this paper demonstrates that the influence of factors differs throughout the stages of drug use progression. Research relating to early onset of drug use often calls for earlier detection and intervention (Chen et al., 2009), and the current findings have two key implications for prevention. Firstly, as factors play different roles across drug involvement, interventions may benefit from tailoring to stages of drug use. Secondly, targeting of interventions may improve by considering the consistency and differences in associated factors across the stages of drug use. Using the results of the present study may facilitate identification of populations who will benefit from targeted or indicated prevention strategies (National Research Council (US) and Institute of Medicine (US) Committee on the Prevention of Mental Disorders and Substance Abuse Among Children, Youth, and Young Adults: Research Advances and Promising Interventions, 2009).
