Protective role of personal competence skills in adolescent substance use:Psychological well-being as a mediating factor

Adolescents who use a variety of cognitive and behavioral self-management s trategies have been shown to report reduced rates of early-stage substance use, but little is known about how these personal competence skills may be protective. In a series of structural equation models, this study examined the association between competence skills and substance use over a 3-year p eriod among 849 suburban junior high school students, and whether psycholog ical distress, well-being, or both mediated this relation. Findings indicat ed that well-being fully mediated the relation between early competence and later substance use, but distress did not. Youth with good competence skil ls reported greater subsequent well-being, which in turn predicted less lat er substance use. Findings suggest that competence skills protect youth by enhancing well-being and that prevention programs should aim to enhance com petence in order to promote resilience.