Early life stress may disrupt child inhibitory control, which can cascade into behavioral and peer problem behavior in childhood and, in turn, heighten the risk for early adolescent substance use, according to a recent study that tested a developmental cascade model. Data came from the Early Steps Multisite study, a community sample of at‐risk families in the metropolitan US areas of Pittsburgh, PA; Eugene, OR; and Charlottesville, VA, with children aged 2 at the start of the study and 14 at the last measurement (n=364). Researchers found:

• Early stressful life events and negative parent‐child interaction assessed at ages 2 to 5 were negatively related to inhibitory control at ages 7 and 8.
• Low levels of inhibitory control were prognostic of childhood problem behavior at ages 9 and 10.
• Finally, late childhood problem behavior was associated with substance use at age 14.
• Parental drug use was directly related to substance use at age 14.