How other people's alcohol and drug use harms families and communities
Official title: Secondhand Harms from Alcohol & Drugs: Impacts on Families and Communities across the US
Funded at Public Health Institute · NIH-11127452 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project measures how other people's alcohol and drug use hurts children, partners, families, and communities across the United States.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Public Health Institute NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Oakland, United States) |
| Project start | September 20, 2021 |
| Project end | June 30, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $706,247 |
| NIH project number | 5R01AA029001-05 |
| Project ID | NIH-11127452 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal participants are U.S. adults who have been affected by someone else's alcohol or drug use, including parents, partners, family members, friends, coworkers, or neighbors.
✕Less likely to help
People who have not experienced harm from others' substance use or those seeking treatment for their own substance use disorder may not directly benefit from this survey.
What this research studies
The team will conduct a nationally representative 2023 survey asking adults about harms they experienced from others' use of alcohol, tobacco, cannabis, opioid painkillers, heroin, cocaine, and methamphetamine. Respondents provide geocoded self-reports so researchers can map where harms occur and relate them to local policies and multiple-substance use. The survey examines who causes harms (partners, family, friends, coworkers, strangers), how often and how severe those harms are, and the mental and physical health impacts on victims. Results build on earlier national work about alcohol's harms to others and aim to fill gaps about secondhand harms from other drugs.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the findings could inform policies and programs to reduce harms and better support people hurt by others' substance use.
How similar studies have gone: Previous national research has documented alcohol's harms to others, but comprehensive representative data on harms from other drugs is largely novel.
Where this research is happening
-
Public Health Institute
Oakland, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Kerr, William C. — Public Health Institute
- Study coordinator: Kerr, William C.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.