Perceptions of Family Alcohol Use in a Young Adult Sample

Yale J Biol Med. 2015 Sep 3;88(3):205-9. eCollection 2015 Sep.

Abstract

Perceptions of family alcohol use have been linked to adolescent alcohol use behaviors, yet there have been no studies that have assessed this relationship in young adults. This study examined perceptions of family alcohol use and their association with participants' self-reported alcohol use. Participants included 171 undergraduate students (mean age = 21.67, 71.9 percent female, 75.4 percent Caucasian). Participants completed measures assessing quantity and frequency of alcohol use, negative consequences of use, and sibling relationship quality. They also reported their perceptions of alcohol use for siblings and parents during a typical week. Perceptions of siblings' quantity of weekly alcohol use were significantly associated with participants' quantity of alcohol use (r = .21, p = .006) and frequency of alcohol use (r = .23, p = .002). Perceptions of parental alcohol use were not related to the participants' alcohol use patterns.

Keywords: alcohol use; perceptions; relationship quality; siblings.

Publication types

  • Multicenter Study

MeSH terms

  • Age Distribution
  • Alcohol Drinking / epidemiology*
  • Alcohol Drinking / psychology*
  • Attitude to Health*
  • Female
  • Health Behavior*
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Nuclear Family / psychology*
  • Prevalence
  • Risk Factors
  • Sex Distribution
  • Social Perception*
  • Surveys and Questionnaires
  • Washington / epidemiology
  • Young Adult