Er. Oetting et al., PRIMARY SOCIALIZATION THEORY - CULTURE, ETHNICITY, AND CULTURAL IDENTIFICATION - THE LINKS BETWEEN CULTURE AND SUBSTANCE USE - IV, Substance use & misuse, 33(10), 1998, pp. 2075-2107
Ethnicity, perceived membership in a cultural group, and cultural iden
tification, the strength of one's affiliation with a group, develop pr
imarily through interactions with the primary socialization sources, t
he family, the school, and peer clusters. Cultural norms for substance
use are also transmitted as part of these interactions. Substance use
differs across cultures; in different cultures some forms of substanc
e use are culturally required, others are tolerated, and others are sa
nctioned. Ethnicity and cultural identification, therefore, should rel
ate to substance use. However, primary socialization theory indicates
that simple relationships are not likely to be found for a number of r
easons: 1) All members of an ethnic group do not have the same level o
f cultural identification and may not, therefore, have the same confor
mance to substance use norms. 2) Primary socialization sources are emb
edded in subcultures, and subcultures have norms that may differ from
those of the larger ethnic group. 3) The individual may experience and
report differing levels of cultural identification and different subs
tance use norms in different social contexts. 4) For an individual, et
hnicity and cultural identification may derive from different primary
socialization sources than drug use norms.