Keywords
scoping review, evidence synthesis, youth, gender, substance use, treatment, gender targeted
Abstract
Abstract Polysubstance use among young people has recently become the focus of popular media, public health interventions, and research due to alarming increases in polysubstance use-related morbidity and mortality in younger age groups in North America. Research also suggests that gender is an important factor to consider when trying to understand polysubstance use and to develop effective interventions for substance use in young people.
Cisgender and transgender women's experience of polysubstance use is contextualized by intersecting structural, social, and individual-level factors. For example, young cisgender women are more likely to be the victims of rape, incest, childhood sexual and emotional abuse relative to men/males and stigmatized for substance use due to societal expectations and gender-specific characteristics (e.g., as family caregivers, childcare, and pregnancy). Transgender women are more likely to experience family rejection, bullying, transphobia, violence, and poverty and have been shown to be two to four times more likely to use substances in their lifetimes and at earlier ages relative to cisgender peers. Transgender youth use substances to cope with isolation they experience as a result of stigmatized gender and sexual identities.
Research Question & Objectives
Considering data that demonstrates young cisgender and transgender women are vulnerable to polysubstance use, our research team sought to understand and characterize the substance use interventions that exist targeting young cisgender and transgender women. We also sought to characterize the interventions and identify gaps and areas for improvement.
Method
We undertook a scoping review of the available scientific literature. Our scoping review protocol was guided by the JDI Manual for Scoping Reviews (2020) and involved searches of six databases (CINAHL, APA PsycInfo, Medline, Social Services Abstracts, Web of Science (Science Citation Index Expanded), and Web of Science (Social Sciences Citation Index Expanded). All results were imported to EndNote and the results were deduplicated.
Results
N=17 studies were included in our full-text analysis. The results date ranges from the late 1980s to the present. N=10 studies were from the U.S. There was a significant focus on pregnant/perinatal interventions for cisgender women (N=6). Four of these interventions were variations of methadone maintenance therapy (MMT) for pregnant/perinatal young cisgender women. Additional included studies coalesced around several intervention ‘types’ including a web-based gender-specific intervention for young girls, adaptation of an in-person intervention (The Women’s Coop), and adaptation of Women’s Recovery Group (WRG) for young adult women. We found one substance use intervention targeted to gender and sexual minority youth.
Conclusion & Next Steps:
The next (current) steps in our analysis include reference list screening and content analysis of the studies to understand the justification for a gender-targeted approach. We also seek to understand how the interventions have been adapted to young people and the forms of engagement undertaken with cisgender and gender diverse participants. Thus far, it is evident there is an emphasis on harm reduction in the interventions which is promising, and a potential disproportionate emphasis on young cisgender and perinatal/pregnant women. We aim to further explore and critically reflect on these findings in our presentation.
Publication Date
3-25-2025
Original Citation
Nairn, S., Phillips, J. D., Jones, T., Rodriguez, C., and Schmill, D. (2025, March 21). Gender-targeted Substance Use Interventions for Young Cisgender Women and Transgender Women – A Scoping Review (Preliminary Results). Poster session presented at the 7th International Conference on Youth Mental Health, Vancouver, BC.
Document Type
Poster
Copyright Status
Author retained
Publication Version
Author's version
College
College of Sciences
Location
Orlando (Main) Campus
Department
Sociology
STARS Citation
Nairn, Stephanie A.; Phillips, Jason D.; Jones, Thomas; Rodriguez, Carolina; and Schmill, Debbie, "Gender-targeted Substance Use Interventions for Young Cisgender Women and Transgender Women – A Scoping Review (Preliminary Results)" (2025). Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works. 1318.
https://stars.library.ucf.edu/ucfscholar/1318