Labeling disorder--the relationship between conduct problems and drug use in adolescents.

OBJECTIVE: To verify how conduct disorder and conduct problems are associated with gender, age at onset of drug use and categories of drugs used.

METHOD: A test of association was conducted between the presence of comorbidity and gender. Mean age of first use of each drug was compared to mean age of first arrest, of first robbery/theft, and of first drug dealing.

RESULTS: In this sample, approximately 59% of adolescents had already robbed and/or stolen, 38.6% had already been arrested, 32.3% had prior history of drug dealing, 24.1% had depression, and 9.6% had conduct disorder. Prevalence of conduct problems was 65.2%. Tobacco, alcohol, marijuana and cocaine were used before the first robbery and/or theft, first drug dealing, and first arrest.

DISCUSSION: The fact that drug use onset preceded illegal acts suggests that the latter are the consequence of the consumption of the former, or perhaps, the consequence of "social invisibility" (feeling of not belonging to anything or to anybody) by which these youths undergo.

CONCLUSIONS: Labeling these youths as conduct-disordered adolescents may cloud a rather different reality, and it may submit them to more social isolation and stigmatization as well.