NCJ Number
215188
Journal
Criminal Justice Studies Volume: 19 Issue: 2 Dated: June 2006 Pages: 171-192
Date Published
June 2006
Length
22 pages
Annotation
This study examined the effect of adolescents’ exposure to alcohol use and perceived disapproval of underage drinking on age of first alcohol use and subsequent drinking behavior.
Abstract
Results indicated that higher levels of alcohol exposure and lower levels of perceived disapproval were significantly associated with lower age of first alcohol use as well as greater frequency and higher levels of alcohol use among adolescents. Among the sample as a whole, the average age of first alcohol use was 13.8 years, suggesting that alcohol prevention programming should target children younger than 13 years of age. Alcohol preventing programming should also target parents and community members through the use of education campaigns about the impact of their own attitudes and behaviors toward alcohol use. Data were drawn from the 1999 National Household Survey on Drug Abuse (NHSDA), which gathered information from an independent, multistage area probability sample consisting of individuals from each of the 50 States and the District of Columbia. The current analysis is based on responses provided by 25,612 participants via a computer-assisted interview technique. Statistical data analyses included t-tests and correlation analyses. Future research should focus on how and when the shift occurs from parents being the primary influence in an adolescent’s decision to peers being the primary influence so that interventions can be more meaningfully targeted. Tables, notes, references