“Tell Me How Much Your Friends Consume”—Personal, Behavioral, Social, and Attitudinal Factors Associated with Alcohol and Cannabis Use among European School Students

Abstract

Background: Substance use in European adolescents remains a serious health concern. Assessing what affects adolescents’ substance use is crucial for implementing effective prevention. This study aims to examine alcohol and cannabis use-related behavioral, social, and attitudinal variables that might directly be considered to guide prevention responses for adolescents. Methods: Cross-sectional data of 78,554 15–16-year-old school students from the 2011 European School Survey Project on Alcohol and Other Drugs (ESPAD) from 26 European countries were analyzed. Self-reported drunkenness in the last 30 days and cannabis use in the last 12 months served as dependent variables. To investigate which factors are associated with risky substance use, multivariable logistic regressions were used. Results: 17.7% of respondents reported drunkenness in the last 30 days, and 14.9% used cannabis in the last 12 months. The most important predictor for risky substance use was the perception that most/all of their friends engaged in substance use behavior, followed by lack of parental support, low personal adherence to rules, and low school performance. Conclusion: Interventions addressing the perceived descriptive norms either directly or by changing environmental cues, opportunities, and regulations, as well as effective parenting and academic support may prevent and reduce risky substance use behavior among adolescents.

Money used in gaming is associated with problem gambling: Results of the ESPAD 2019 Finland

“…Going out with friends increased the risk of gambling, which suggests that gambling is a social activity, especially slot machines, which are the most prevalent game type used for gambling in Finland ( Salonen et al, 2020 ). From our data, we cannot show whether gambling takes place with peers, but the role of peers in risky adolescent behaviour should be noted, as previous studies suggest that having a gambling or substance-using friend increases the risk of these behaviours ( Dickson, Derevensky, & Gupta, 2008 ; Gunuc, 2017 ; Helmer et al, 2021 ). Active efforts in increasing parents’ as well as youth’s awareness and knowledge of gambling and risks related to it are important areas of preventive programmes.…”

“…Engagement in gambling activities is associated with the use of alcohol, tobacco and illicit substances (other than cannabis) ( Burleigh, Griffiths, Sumich, Stavropoulos, & Kuss, 2019 ; Kakihara & Tilton-Weaver, 2009 ). Peers also have an important role and a strong influence on risky adolescent behaviours such as substance use, gaming and gambling ( Derevensky, 2015 ; Gunuc, 2017 ; Helmer et al, 2021 ; Kristjansson, Sigfusdottir, & Allegrante, 2013 ; Zhaia et al, 2017 ). Furthermore, research in parenting styles has highlighted that consistency in parenting, parental monitoring and a positive relationship with parents are important factors protecting youth from problematic behaviours, including video gaming and gambling ( Canale et al, 2016 ; Kapetanovic, Bohlin, Skoog, & Gerdner, 2020 ; Kveton & Jelínek, 2016 ; Molinaro et al, 2018 ; Pisarska & Ostaszewski, 2020 ; Sobotková, Blatný, Jelínek, & Hrdlička, 2013 ).…”

Schulische Alkoholprävention mittels Virtual Reality

“…Ein besseres Verständnis dessen, was Jugendliche dazu veranlasst, Alkohol zu konsumieren, hat zu optimierten Präventionsprogrammen geführt. Als einer der bedeutendsten Gründe für den Beginn und die Beibehaltung des Alkoholkonsums gilt dabei Gruppendruck unter Jugendlichen [ 12 – 14 ]. Obwohl diverse, an sozialen Einflüssen einsetzende Präventionsprogramme in ihrer Wirkung keine einheitlichen Ergebnisse zeigen, werden solche Ansätze in Reviews hingegen insgesamt positiv bewertet [ 15 ].…”

Cannabis Use, Use Motives and Cannabis Use Disorder Among Berlin College Students

“…The reputation of Berlin as the capital of European nightlife and techno scene particularly attracts students interested in a lifestyle that is often related to drug use and substance use disorders (Ding, He, Shoptaw, Gao, & Detels, 2014; Kelly, Parsons, & Wells, 2006; Palamar, Griffin-Tomas, & Ompad, 2015). As a consequence, Berlin college students are particularly likely to use cannabis (Viohl et al, 2019) and might therefore be at high risk for CUD and use-related problems (Helmer et al, 2021).…”