Alcohol consumption in adolescence: the role of adolescents’ gender, parental control, and family dinners attendance in an Italian HBSC sample

ABSTRACT

Parental control and family dinners attendance may constitute protective factors against alcohol consumption during adolescence, with different patterns for boys and girls, though evidence thus far have produced mixed findings. The present study analyzed Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC, 2014) data from 906 adolescents living in Northern Italy (49% boys, M_years = 16.02, SD = 2.4) to examine: (a) gender differences in alcohol consumption frequency; (b) whether greater parental control would mediate gender differences in alcohol consumption over the last 30 days; (c) whether regular attendance of family dinners would strengthen the effect of parental control in decreasing adolescents’ alcohol consumption, functioning differently for boys and girls. Findings indicated that boys reported to attend family dinners more regularly, to consume alcohol more frequently, and to perceive greater paternal control, than girls. Conversely, girls perceived greater maternal control than boys. Both maternal and paternal control did mediate the relation between gender and alcohol consumption, decreasing adolescents’ drinking. Unexpectedly, family dinners attendance did not significantly moderate the effect of parental control on the monthly frequency of adolescents’ alcohol consumption. Results underline the protective role of parental control against adolescents’ alcohol consumption in both girls and boys, regardless of their family dinners attendance.

KEYWORDS:

• Adolescence
• parental control
• gender differences
• family dinners
• alcohol consumption

Acknowledgements

In Italy, the study was carried out with the coordination of the National HBSC Group and the Ministry of Health under the lead of Prof. Franco Cavallo (Principal Investigator for Italy). The study is part of the Project “Sistema di indagini sui rischi comportamentali in età 6–17 anni” promoted and financed by the Ministry of Health (capitolo 4393/2005-CCM). The Lombardy study was implemented thanks to the coordinated action of the HBSC Lombardy Group, which included the Regional Coordination HBSC study Lombardy: Corrado Celata e Liliana Coppola (Regione Lombardia DG Welfare); the MIUR (Ministry of Education, Universities and Research, Italy) – School Office Region Lombardy: Bruna Baggio; the Regional Research Group: Veronica Velasco, Marika Lavatelli, Giusi Gelmi, and Corrado Celata; the Health Protection Agency Referents: Bergamo Luca Biffi, Brescia Margherita Marella, Brianza Carlo Pellegrini, Ornella Perego, Insubria Walter De Agostini, Manuel Benedusi, Milano Città Metropolitana Corrado Celata, Paola Duregon, Alessandra Meconi, Celeste Zagheno, Montagna Valentina Salinetti, Marina Salada, Pavia Elisabetta Mauri, Val Padana Valter Drusetta, and Leone Armando Lisè; the Territory School Office Referents: UST Bergamo: Antonella Giannellini, UST Brescia: Federica Di Cosimo, UST Como: Laura Peruzzo, UST Cremona: Tullia Guerrini Rocco, UST Lecco: Jessica Sala, UST Lodi: Claudia Zoppi, UST Mantova: Barbara Artioli, UST Milano: Laura Stampini, UST Monza-Brianza: Maristella Colombo, UST Pavia: Emanuela Farina, UST Sondrio: Daniela Marchesi, and UST Varese: Linda Casalini.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This study did not receive any funding.