Youth Risk-Taking Behavior in Brazil: Drug Use and Teenage Pregnancies / Institute for the Study of Labor, September 2007
http://ftp.iza.org/dp3030.pdf
Ana Rute Cardoso; Dorte Verner
IZA Discussion Papers No. 3030
"The aim of this paper is to study interactions among different types of risktaking behaviour by youth, namely drug use and teenage pregnancy. We check the impact of factors such as exposure to mass media, the existence of support networks, self-esteem, or the occurrence of violence at home and in the neighbourhood, on the probability of risk-taking behavior. A bivariate probit model is estimated. Findings indicate that reliance on support networks and exposure to mass media are associated with a lower probability of either type of risk behaviour. Living in a violent home increased drug consumption. Race does not have a significant impact on either type of behaviour."