Indicators of Welfare Dependence: Teen Behavior Risk Factors

TEEN BEHAVIOR RISK FACTOR 5. NEVER-MARRIED FAMILY STATUS

This measure complements the measures of nonmarital births by showing the "stock" of children living with never-married women. Children living with never-married women are at increased risk of dependence.

The percent of children living with never-married women increased from 1984 to 1995 for all race groups. A larger percentage of black children lived in families headed by never-married women compared to other groups; the percentage for black children was almost three times higher than that for Hispanic children in 1995.
As shown in Table TEEN 5, the percentage of black and Hispanic children living in families headed by never-married women rose by about 50 percent from 1984 to 1995. Although the percentage of white children living in families headed by never-married women more than doubled (from 2 to 4 percent) over the same time period, the percentage for white children was significantly lower than for children in other racial groups.

Table TEEN 5. Percent of All Children Living in Families

Headed by Never-Married Women

Year	All	White	Black	Hispanic
1984	5.2	1.9	23.9	6.5
1986	5.9	2.4	26.6	7.2
1988	7.0	3.0	30.4	9.2
1990	7.0	3.0	29.6	8.7
1992	8.4	3.9	33.1	10.3
1994	9.0	4.5	32.9	12.0
1995	8.7	4.3	32.3	10.8

Note: Data are for all children under 18 who are not family heads.

Source: U.S. Bureau of the Census, "Marital Status and Living Arrangements," Current Population Reports, Series P20-399, 418, 433, 450, 468, 484 and 491, various years.

TEEN BEHAVIOR RISK FACTOR 6. DETACHED YOUTH

Teens who are neither in school nor working are likely to be at significant risk of dependence.

Table TEEN 6. Percentage of Youth Age 16 to 19 who are Neither in School nor Working

	1975	1980	1985	1990	1991	1992	1993	1994
Percent Age 16 - 19
Not in School and Not Working	12	11	11	10	10	10	9	10

Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, Trends in the Well-Being of America's Children and Youth: 1997. Table ES 3.6.

In 1975, 12 percent of youth age 16 to 19 were not in school and not working. This percentage gradually declined from 1975 (12 percent) to 1990 (10 percent) and remained fairly stable between 1990 to 1994.

TEEN BEHAVIOR RISK FACTOR 7. TEEN ALCOHOL AND SUBSTANCE ABUSE

Teen alcohol and substance abuse are important examples of teen problem behavior and may increase the risk of dependence.

Both binge and heavy alcohol use declined throughout most of the period, with binge use declining from 22 percent in 1985 to 7 percent in 1996.
As shown in Figure TEEN 7, marijuana use among teens declined fairly continuously from 1979 to 1992, then rose sharply from 1993 to 1995, before declining slightly in 1996.
As shown in Table TEEN 7, Cocaine use, though still only half of the lowest level in the 1980s, doubled from 1994 to 1996.

Table TEEN 7. Percent of Teens Age 12 to 17 who used Cocaine, Marijuana or Alcohol, Selected Years

	1979	1982	1985	1988	1990	1992	1994	1996
Cocaine	1.5	1.9	1.5	1.2	0.6	0.3	0.3	0.6
Marijuana	14.2	9.9	10.2	5.4	4.4	3.4	6.0	7.1
Binge	NA	NA	21.9	15.1	15.4	10.0	8.3	7.2
Heavy	NA	NA	9.5	4.0	4.4	3.4	2.5	2.9

Note: Cocaine and marijuana use is defined as use during the past month. "Binge" Alcohol Use is defined as drinking five or more drinks on the same occasion on at least one day in the past 30 days. "Occasion" means at the same time or within a couple hours of each other. Heavy Alcohol Use is defined as drinking five or more drinks on the same occasion on each of five or more days in the past 30 days; all Heavy Alcohol Users are also "Binge" Alcohol Users. Figure TEEN 7 contains data for all years between 1979 and 1996 though only selected years are shown in the table.

Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 1996 National Household Survey on Drug Abuse: Preliminary Estimates, 1997.

TEEN BEHAVIOR 8. TEEN VIOLENT CRIME ARRESTS

Teen crime data indicate serious adolescent problem behavior and may predict future dependence.

Violent crime arrest rates for youth age 15 were lower than the rates for older teens and this differential was much larger in 1994 than it was in 1965.
As shown in Table TEEN 8, arrest rates for violent crime for all youth age 10 to 18 increased substantially from 1965 to 1980 (from 58 to 163 per 100,000 teens). The arrest rate dropped to 139 per 100,000 teens in 1985 and rose again to 195 per 100,000 teens in 1991. After declining somewhat in 1992, the arrest rate again increased to 231 arrests per 100,000 teens in 1994.
Table TEEN 8 shows that violent crime arrest rates increased for both white and non-white youth during this period, however, the arrest rates for non-white youth fluctuated more over the time period and were substantially higher in all years.
Table TEEN 8 also shows that, as expected, violent crime arrest rates were consistently much higher among males than among females for all ages over the time period.

Table TEEN 8. Arrest Rates for Violent Crime for Youth Age 10 to 18,

1965 - 1994 (per 100,000 Teens)

	1965	1970	1975	1980	1985	1990	1991	1992	1993	1994
All Persons	58	101	136	163	139	184	195	188	220	231

Racial Categories
White	24	42	79	92	77	108	121	126	130	138
Non-White	259	436	431	492	400	488	486	534	568	584

Age Categories
Age 10 - 12	NA	NA	NA	47	56	71	77	81	86	92
Age 13 - 14	139	207	250	262	252	369	397	420	461	493
Age 15	245	364	483	505	446	670	720	725	829	858
Age 16	304	459	616	638	568	879	925	940	1031	1058
Age 17	305	519	663	739	662	986	1041	1001	1115	1119
Age 18	338	571	713	746	661	1023	1108	1092	1149	1167

Male
Age 10 - 12	NA	NA	NA	82	99	119	130	137	144	153
Age 13 - 14	242	351	420	446	424	602	652	681	740	788
Age 15	442	644	832	877	769	1137	1222	1210	1379	2414
Age 16	564	838	1102	1130	999	1525	1604	1621	1764	1798
Age 17	572	957	1201	1322	1180	1745	1841	1757	1944	1939
Age 18	638	1065	1299	1350	1194	1840	1996	1944	2038	2042

Female
Age 10 - 12	NA	NA	NA	10	12	19	20	23	25	27
Age 13 - 14	32	57	72	70	71	123	130	145	167	183
Age 15	40	73	119	117	108	177	192	214	249	272
Age 16	36	67	114	125	118	193	204	217	253	275
Age 17	30	66	105	130	118	179	188	195	233	247
Age 18	37	72	113	125	114	164	176	197	214	249

Note: Violent crime is the sum of murder, forcible rape, robbery and aggravated assault. Rates refer to the number of arrests made per 100,000 inhabitants belonging to the prescribed age group.

Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation, Trends in the Well-Being of America's Children and Youth: 1997. Table SD 1.6.

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