Federal Grant Award Summary

The University of California, San Diego received a $439,500 Project Grant from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) under the Drug Use and Addiction Research Programs (CFDA 93.279) to develop and validate a novel research paradigm for studying family dynamics in adolescent substance use. The award, effective March 1, 2026 through February 29, 2028, supports the collection of real-time, intensive longitudinal data on parent and youth behaviors before and after episodes of substance use. The study enrolls 90 adolescents who use substances to complete 28 consecutive days of four daily ecological momentary assessment (EMA) surveys, generating approximately 120 observations of family processes per family over a one-month period.

The grant deliverables focus on two primary aims: establishing validity, feasibility, and acceptability evidence for the novel episode-based paradigm through linkage to standard field measures and structured baseline/exit interviews, and refining the methodology for implementation in future large-scale data collection efforts. This research addresses a significant gap in addiction science by replacing traditional cross-sectional and longitudinal approaches that aggregate parenting behavior and substance use data over extended recall periods with a temporally sensitive methodology that captures discrete behavioral sequences and contextual factors in real-world settings, thereby enhancing translation relevance for clinical interventions targeting adolescent substance use prevention and treatment.