Neighborhood Drug Demand and Risk of Foster Care Entries
Publication Date
1-1-2025
Document Type
Article
Publication Title
Journal of Drug Issues
DOI
10.1177/00220426251322713
Abstract
Parental drug abuse has been repeatedly associated with child maltreatment risk. Similarly, rates of drug demand in neighborhoods have been found to be positively associated with rates of child maltreatment. Demand for illicit drugs is difficult to measure as it is illegal behavior. Here, we use survey data from Sacramento, California to estimate demand for illicit drugs at the neighborhood level. Data were analyzed using Bayesian space-time conditional autoregressive models to assess associations between neighborhood drug market potentials and foster care entries. We find that higher drug demand was positively associated with increased drug-related foster care entries (RR 1.06, CI 1.02–1.10). Interventions at the policy level that decrease drug availability in high demand neighborhoods may also decrease rates of drug related foster care entries.
Keywords
Bayesian spatio-temporal analysis, child maltreatment, drug market potential demand, foster care entries
Department
Social Work
Recommended Citation
Holly Thurston, Bridget Freisthler, and Jennifer Price Wolf. "Neighborhood Drug Demand and Risk of Foster Care Entries" Journal of Drug Issues (2025). https://doi.org/10.1177/00220426251322713
