Girls are most likely to have been offered drugs by a female friend or family member.
Although the most common strategy for rejecting these offers is a simple refusal, boys are more likely than girls to explain their refusal. The social settings and nature of drug offers also differ by gender, the researchers say. For girls, these offers are usually made in a private setting such as a friend's home. The strategies used to resist drug offers appear to have gender-based influences, Dr. Moon notes. Boys are often socialized in a way that makes a simple 'no' unacceptable.