One reason for heaving drinking in college may be due to no parental oversight and it being the first time students are away from parents. The current study uses a daily diary method to test whether meeting with a parent face-to-face reduces social influences on drinking behavior.
Undergraduate students were recruited who had used alcohol at least twice in the previous 30 days and had never been treated for alcohol problems. Participants completed a daily survey about activities for 30 days with 1168 completing at least 15 daily diary surveys. Students first indicated the 5 people who they meet face-to-face most often and to identify their relationship. They would report who they met with on their daily survey each night. Alcohol consumption was assessed by asking how many alcohol drinks participants had in a social setting or along the previous night. They were also asked how many drinks the people they were with had drank.
34% of the participants listed a parent as one of their top 5 contact. Students who lived with family were more likely to report lower average alcohol consumption with themselves and others. Women were found to be more likely to list a parent along with drinking less and perceiving others as drinking less. Overall, participants who listed a parent drank less and those meeting with parents more often also drank less. One more important finding was that on evenings students met with parents, they drank less alcohol and the association between their peer’s consumption and their own was weakened. These findings show the evidence that parents influence young adults and may be helpful in future interventions.
Take Away: The current study uses a daily diary method to test whether meeting with a parent face-to-face reduces social influences on drinking behavior. Undergraduate students were recruited who had used alcohol at least twice in the previous 30 days and 1168 completed a daily survey about activities for 30 days. Students indicated the 5 people who they meet face-to-face most often and report who they met with on their daily survey. Alcohol consumption each day was also assessed along with peer alcohol consumptions. 34% of the participants listed a parent as one of their top 5 contact. Students who lived with family were more likely to report lower average alcohol consumption with themselves and others. Participants who listed a parent drank less and those meeting with parents more often also drank less. These findings show the evidence that parents influence young adults and may be helpful in future interventions.