Childhood Risk Factors for Early-Onset Drinking

Abstract

ABSTRACT. Objective:There is relatively little research on the childhood antecedent predictors of early-onset alcohol use. This study examined an array of psychosocial variables assessed at age 10 and refl ecting Problem Behavior Theory as potential antecedent risk factors for the initiation of alcohol use at age 14 or younger. Method: A sample of 452 children (238 girls) ages 8 or 10 and their families was drawn from Allegheny County, PA, using targeted-age directory sampling and random-digit dialing procedures. Children and parents were interviewed using computer-assisted interviews. Logistic regression analyses were used to examine the age-10 univariate and multivariate predictors of the initiation of alcohol use by age 14 or younger. Results: Twentyfi ve percent of the sample reported having more than a sip or a taste of alcohol in their life by age 14. Sex, race, and age cohort did not relate to early drinking status. Children with two parents were less likely to initiate drinking early. Early initiation of drinking related signifi cantly to an array of antecedent risk factors (personality, social environment, and behavioral) assessed at age 10 that refl ect psychosocial proneness for problem behavior. In the multivariate model, the variables most predictive of early-onset drinking were having a single parent, sipping or tasting alcohol by age 10, having parents who also started drinking at an early age, and parental drinking frequency. † Correspondence may be sent to John E. Donovan at the above address or via email at: donovanje@upmc.edu. S TARTING TO DRINK ALCOHOL in early adolescence or younger is associated with a greater likelihood of developing both problem drinking in adolescence (Ellickson et al., 2001(Ellickson et al., , 2003Gruber et al., 1996;Hawkins et al., 1997;Horton, 2007;Pedersen and Skrondal, 1998;Warner et al., 2007) and alcohol abuse or dependence in adulthood (DeWit et al., 2000;Grant and Dawson, 1997;Hingson et al., 2006). Early initiation of drinking is also associated with a variety of other problematic outcomes later in adolescence and in young adulthood, including academic problems, dropping out of high school, delinquent behavior, fi ghting after drinking, illicit drug use, prescription drug misuse, substance use disorders, employment problems, risky sexual behavior, pregnancy, unintentional injuries, drinking and driving, and alcohol-and other drug-related motor vehicle crashes (Ellickson et al

Parents Who Supply Sips of Alcohol in Early Adolescence: A Prospective Study of Risk Factors

“…Likewise, the associations between lenient alcohol rules and home alcohol access on parental supply may increase adolescent perception of parental alcohol permissiveness, which increases the risk of early drinking initiation. 16 This study has a number of strengths. The sample comprised a large-scale cohort of young adolescents and 1 of their parents, recruited across a range of sites, and Australia is a multicultural country increasing generalizability of the results.…”

“…[5][6][7] By age 13, up to 60% of adolescents have had a sip/taste of alcohol 5,[8][9][10][11][12][13][14] ; sipping is more prevalent than drinking in this age group. 5,6,10,15 Sipping is associated with increased risk of early adolescent drinking and binge drinking, 12,16 but the area of sipping is under-researched. Despite recommendations that parents avoid providing alcohol to children, 15 parents remain a major supplier of alcohol to adolescent children, including sips.…”

The Relationships of Parental Alcohol Versus Tobacco and Marijuana Use With Early Adolescent Onset of Alcohol Use

“…These range from sips or tastes (Donovan & Molina, 2008) to defi nitions including regular drinking (Donovan, 2004), depending on the study purpose. Whereas onset of sips is an important issue as predictive of later use (Donovan & Molina, 2011), a large proportion of relatively young children would be defi ned as having experienced onset by this criteria (35% of 8-year-olds and 48% of 10-year-olds; Donovan & Molina, 2008), and it may be a number of years before such children progress to a full drink. Thus, for the present study, use of a full drink was deemed a more appropriate defi nition of onset, indicating use beyond very minimal levels.…”

A Parenting Program to Promote an Alcohol-Free Childhood: Influence on Parents’ Readiness to Prevent Child Sipping

“…The program aimed to train parents to instill and reinforce attitudinal and behavioral norms against any underage use of alcohol, including sipping or tasting by children. The need for such a parenting program is underscored by studies showing that it is common for children to be exposed to actual alcohol use through parental allowance of child sipping or tasting (Andrews et al, 2003;Bush & Iannotti, 1992;Donovan & Molina, 2008;Jackson et al, 2012) and that such early exposure can increase risk of alcohol use and problem drinking during adolescence (Donovan & Molina, 2011;Jackson et al, 2015;Zucker et al, 2008). Key goals of the parenting program were to modify psychological factors (e.g., parental attitude about child sipping) and modify alcoholspecific parenting practices (e.g., offering sips of alcohol to children).…”