Preventing Underage Alcohol Drinking
through Working with Parents
av
Nikolaus Koutakis
Akademisk avhandling
Avhandling för filosofie doktorsexamen i psykologi, som enligt beslut av rektor kommer att försvaras offentligt
fredag den 20 januari 2012 kl. 13.15, Hörsal T, Örebro universitet
Opponent: docent och leg. läkare Anna Sarkadi Akademiska sjukhuset, Uppsala
Örebro universitet Akademin för juridik, psykologi
och socialt arbete 701 82 ÖREBRO
Abstract
Nikolaus Koutakis (2011): Preventing Underage Alcohol Drinking through Working with Parents. Örebro Studies in Psychology 23, 168 pp.
An evaluation of an alcohol prevention program targeting parents in order to decrease drinking among 13-16-year-olds is reported. The evaluation is done through a quasi-experimental study with a matched control group and annual assessments directed to youths and their parents independently in a longitudinal intention to treat design. The implementation of the pro-gram is centered round three different schools located in inner city, public housing and small town areas. The participants of the study are 900 pupils entering junior high school and their parents.
The intervention was information and mailings directed to parents advis-ing them to maintain restrictive attitudes towards underage alcohol drink-ing and to encourage their youth’s involvement in organized leisure activi-ties. The implementation successfully influenced parents’ attitudes against underage drinking, but failed to increase youth participation in organized activities. At post-test in grade 9, youths in the intervention group reported less drunkenness and delinquency. Effect sizes were 0.35 for drunkenness and 0.38 for delinquency. Two sub-samples, early starters in drunkenness and early delinquents, were analyzed in addition to the over-all analysis. Results from those analyses yielded effect sizes of .52 for drunkenness and .32 for delinquency. The findings were similar for boys and girls. The ef-fects of the intervention were not moderated by community type. The main results were replicated using a latent growth curve analysis taking the clus-tered nature of the ÖPP data into account.
Conclusion: working via parents proved to be an effective way to reduce underage drinking as well as delinquency.
Keywords: Adolescents, adolescent drinking, alcohol, delinquency, evaluation, intention to treat, intervention, longitudinal, parental attitudes, prevention, ÖPP, Effekt.
Nikolaus Koutakis, School of Law, Psychology and Social work
