Annual Meeting of the Society for Prevention Research, June 1, 2017 Perceived familial permissiveness towards alcohol and high-risk drinking behaviors among college students Jessica Duncan Cance, MPH, PhD Substance Abuse Prevention Specialist Child and Adolescent Services Annual Meeting of the Society for Prevention Research, June 1, 2017

Disclaimer This presentation is supported by Texas Health and Human Services. The views and opinions expressed are those of the presenter and do not necessarily represent the views of HHS.

Society for Prevention Research 2017 Background High-risk alcohol use among college students remains a significant public health issue Society for Prevention Research 2017

Society for Prevention Research 2017 “…this is what they want to know: Are you a Good Parent or a Get-Real Parent?” Society for Prevention Research 2017

Society for Prevention Research 2017 Background Extensive research supports the importance of familial attitudes towards drinking and alcohol use among adolescents Less is known about the role of familial permissiveness towards alcohol use and drinking when youth transition to college Theory of Planned Behavior – subjective norms Society for Prevention Research 2017

Society for Prevention Research 2017 Purpose To understand how perceived parental permissiveness towards alcohol use in high school is associated with high-risk drinking behaviors among Texas college students Society for Prevention Research 2017

Society for Prevention Research 2017 Source of Data 2015 Texas Survey of Substance Use among College Students (N=20,152) Undergraduates ages 18 to 26 attending public and private universities, colleges, and community colleges in Texas 64% Female 85% White, 38% Hispanic/Latino i-stage cluster designed study Society for Prevention Research 2017

Perceived Parental Permissiveness “Which of the following statements best describes how your family felt about drinking alcohol when you were growing up?” Didn’t approve Accepted light drinking, didn’t approve heavy drinking Accepted heavy drinking No agreement about drinking in the family Any acceptance (light or heavy) was combined, no agreement was excluded from analyses (approximately 13%) Society for Prevention Research 2017

High-Risk Drinking Behaviors Past month binge drinking Past month drunkenness Past year consequences associated with drinking Past year drinking and driving 4/5 drinks Drink enough to feel drunk Consequences included feeling hungover, scholastic consequences such as missing class or being behind in schoolwork, unplanned or unprotected sex, getting in trouble with campus or law enforcement, getting hurt, damaging property, or needing medical treatment Society for Prevention Research 2017

Society for Prevention Research 2017 Control Variables Perceived closeness “How would you describe your relationship with your parents?” Demographics Gender Race/ethnicity Year in school Great – we get along nearly all the time Good – we get along most of the time So-So – we get along sometimes Not too good – we don’t get along most of the time Terrible – we don’t get along at all Society for Prevention Research 2017

Society for Prevention Research 2017 Analyses Series of logistic regression models using SAS 9.4 Survey analysis procedures used to account for intracampus clustering Society for Prevention Research 2017

Society for Prevention Research 2017 Results 4/5 drinks – 39% Drink enough to feel drunk – 38% Society for Prevention Research 2017

Society for Prevention Research 2017 Results Perceived parental permissiveness towards alcohol use was significantly related to all high-risk drinking behaviors OR (95% CI) Heavy Drinking 1.498 (1.327 – 1.690) Binge Drinking 1.806 (1.642 – 1.987) Drunkenness 1.842 (1.699 – 1.996) Drinking and Driving 1.658 (1.473 – 1.865) Experienced Drinking-Related Consequences 1.710 (1.587 – 1.842) Heavy drinking: 1.498 (1.327 – 1.690) Binge drinking: 1.806 (1.642 – 1.987) Drunkenness: 1.842 (1.699 – 1.996) Drinking/driving: 1.658 (1.473 – 1.865) Any consequence: 1.710 (1.587 – 1.842) Changed drinking since starting college: 1.019 (.906 – 1.147) Society for Prevention Research 2017

Society for Prevention Research 2017 Conclusions Perceptions of family attitudes towards alcohol use matter Efforts to reduce risky alcohol use should consider the continued importance of the family context Perceptions that family members are permissive of drinking are related to high-risk drinking among college students Questions? Society for Prevention Research 2017

Thank you Jessica.Cance@hhsc.state.tx.us