A. Geckova et Jp. Van Dijk, Peer impact on smoking, alcohol consumption, drug use and sports activities in adolescents, STUD PSYCHO, 43(2), 2001, pp. 113-123
The impact of peer behavior on smoking, alcohol consumption drug use and sp
orts pursuits by pals was followed on a sample of 2616 Slovak adolescents (
including 1370 boys, mean age 15 years) within the project Health Inequalit
ies in Adolescents. The data were collected in the form of questionnaires.
A difference of statistical significance in peer impact between the group o
f boys and girls was noted solely as regards alcohol consumption and sports
pursuits. Boys, when compared to girls, have more pals consuming alcohol a
t least once a week and also such as practice sport on a weekly basis. The
influence of peers or pals proved of statistical significance in all the co
nstellations followed (peer smoking - daily/experience with smoking, freque
ncy of smoking, attitude toward smoking, alcohol consumption by peers - at
least once a week/experience with alcohol consumption, frequency of alcohol
consumption, peer intoxication - at least once a month/experience with alc
ohol consumption, frequency of alcohol consumption, use of marijuana or has
hish by peers/experience with use of marijuana or hashish, attitude toward
drug use, sports pursuit by peers every week/frequency of sports pursuit).
The greater the number of risk behaving pals, the greater was the probabili
ty of the corresponding risk behavior occurring in the adolescents.