Alcohol use among Dominican and Puerto Rican adolescents residing in New York city: Role of Hispanic group and gender

Hispanic groups are often aggregated when examining adolescent drinking. Th e objective of this study was to determine the roles of Hispanic group (Pue rto Rican versus Dominican) and gender in alcohol use among inner-city yout h. Sixth and seventh graders in 22 Hew York City schools who identified the mselves as Puerto Rican or Dominican completed self-report questionnaires a t two assessments (N = 849 at baseline; N = 678 at 1-year follow-up). Domin ican adolescents generally engaged in more alcohol use than Puerto Rican ad olescents. In a number of cases, gender moderated the effect of Hispanic gr oup on drinking. Specifically, Dominican boys reported greater use than Dom inican girls, but use was similar across gender for Puerto Rican adolescent s. These findings highlight the importance of considering Hispanic group an d gender when examining adolescent drinking.