Etiology of alcohol use among Hispanic adolescents - Sex-specific effects of social influences to drink and problem behaviors

Background: Hispanic adolescents seem to be at greater risk for alcohol use ; a greater understanding of the factors that predict alcohol use among His panic youth is needed. Social influences to drink and other problem behavio rs often predict adolescent alcohol use. However, most past research has co ncentrated on samples of predominantly white adolescents residing in suburb an areas. Objectives: To determine which demographic factors, social influences, and problem behaviors are associated with alcohol use among Hispanic adolescent s and to eludicate the difference in the origins of alcohol use depending o n sex. Design: Cross-sectional study. Setting: Middle schools in New York City. Participants: This study focuses on 1410 adolescents in grade 7 from inner- city schools who identified themselves as Hispanic at the baseline assessme nt of an investigation of alcohol and other drug use. Main Outcome Measures: Alcohol initiation, alcohol consumption, and future drinking. Results: The findings showed that social influences to drink and reported p roblem behaviors were associated with alcohol use across and within sex gro ups. In particular, friends' drinking was related to alcohol initiation, co nsumption, and plans to drink in the future across sexes and within both se x groups. Other predictors (mother's drinking, siblings' drinking, ease of obtaining alcohol, deviance, cigarette smoking, and marijuana use) exhibite d sex-specific effects. Conclusion: These findings lend support to teaching social resistance skill s to improve Hispanic adolescents' ability to resist social influences to d rink and use other drugs.