Risk factors for alcohol use among Slovenian adolescents

Background: Alcohol is one of the most commonly used substances among Slovenian adolescents. According to international studies, many individual and social factors may influence alcohol use at a young age, but little is known about these risk factors among Slovenian adolescents. The aim of this study was to examine risk factors for lifetime alcohol use among adolescents, investigating differences by socioeconomic status of the school area. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted. Baseline self-reported data from 2946 12-14-year-old adolescents of 44 schools who participated in the evaluation of the Unplugged Prevention Program in Slovenia was used. Socio-demographic characteristics, parental and friends’ alcohol use, parental permissiveness, parental monitoring, family climate, beliefs, self-esteem, and skills were studied as risk factors for alcohol use through quantitative analysis using multiple regression logistic models. Results: Parental permissiveness to drink was the strongest risk factors for lifetime drinking followed by friends who drink. Socioeconomic status of the school area, age, gender, parental drinking, positive beliefs toward alcohol, self-esteem, decision-making skills, and refusal skills on alcohol were also associated with the risk of lifetime drinking. Differences by socioeconomic status of the school area were observed. Friends drinking, low self-esteem and low refusal skills were associated with lifetime drinking among adolescents of high SES schools, while parental drinking and parental permissiveness to drink had the strongest association with lifetime drinking among adolescents of low SES schools. Conclusions: Prevention programs should address the identified factors to prevent early drinking initiation. Parental factors should be in focus for preventive program toward adolescents of low SES schools, while friends’ factors should be in focus for preventive program toward adolescents of high SES schools