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The Relationship Between Parental and Offspring Drinking Habits
Abstract
The relationship between parental alcohol problems, age at which participants consumed alcohol, and amount of alcohol consumed in the past 12 months was investigated. The sample was drawn from the National Comorbidity Survey (Kessler, 2002). Participants who answered questions pertaining to parental alcohol problems, age at which alcohol was first consumed and amount of alcohol consumed in the past 12 months were included (N = 3395). Participants who started drinking at a younger age tended to have parents with alcohol problems. Also participants who had consumed the largest number of drinks in the past 12 months tended to have parents with alcohol problems. The findings are congruent to previous findings.
The Relationship Between Parental and Offspring Drinking Habits
In America, research estimates over 15 million people are dependent upon alcohol (http://www.drug-rehabs.org/alcohol-statistics.php). Among the dependent, 500,000 are between the ages of 9 and 12 (http://www.drug-rehabs.org/alcohol-statistics.php). Many risk factors may explain why more than 3% of alcoholics are children. Some of the risk factors that have been suggested to influence alcohol dependency among children are peer influence (Chassin, Curran, Hussong, & Colder, 1996), psychopathology (Sher, Walitzer, Wood & Brent, 1991), or parental alcoholism (Chassin, Pitts, DeLucia, & Todd, 1999; Chalder, Elgar, & Bennett, 2006; Chassin et al., 1996; Kuendig & Kuntsche, 2006; Chassin, Rogosch, & Barrera, 1991). Previous research has been focused on assessing whether parental alcoholism is a major predictor of child alcohol use and in what ways parental alcoholism affects the child. If a child has an alcoholic parent, the child could begin drinking at a younger age and continue to have alcohol problems in the future. In America, 43% of Americans have been witness to alcoholism within immediate families (http://www.drug-statistics.com/alcohol.htm). Researchers want to determine if children of alcoholics (COAs) are at a higher risk of alcoholism than children of non-alcoholics (non-COAs). Parental alcoholism is not only a major predictor of alcohol use in adolescents, but COAs have a higher risk of alcoholism than non-COAs (Chassin et al., 1999). Researchers are also very interested in finding other predictors of heavy drinking among adolescents, such as parental alcoholism and adolescents’ age when first consumed alcohol. Since COAs are at higher risk for alcohol dependency than non-COA peers, researchers have been exploring ways the drinking habits of COAs differ from non-COA peers (Chassin et al., 1999).
Previous research has a common trend; children of alcoholics have a higher risk of alcohol dependency than children of non-alcoholics (Chassin, et al., 1996). Children of alcoholics and demographically matching children of non-alcoholics were recruited from Arizona residencies by telephone surveys. Children of alcoholics had greater alcohol use and consumption over time than the children of non-alcoholics. The research generalizability was limited by the inclusion of only three time periods in which data was collected, a small number of alcoholic mothers, and the lack of alcoholism being divided into different levels. With more than three time periods, researchers could better understand when the adolescents’ drinking increased and if the adolescents’ drank in later years as well. Research should include a larger group of alcoholic mothers so generalization may be used for a larger population. By having different alcohol levels, such as multigenerational or single generational alcoholism, researchers can better determine what levels of alcoholism effect children more.
In another longitudinal research study, not only did COAs have a higher risk factor for alcohol dependency but the alcohol consumption of COAs was greater than that of non-COAs (Sher et al., 1991). Participants were first-time college students at a Midwestern state university, and the use of the college-aged sample may limit the generalizability of the findings. If the study encompassed others, the research would be generalizable to a larger population. If parents completed the questionnaires, for example, on alcohol dependency, results may have differed. Participants may have lied or were biased about the parental alcohol dependency, whereas the parents would have been truthful in the questions of alcohol dependency.
Other research discovered that COAs have a higher risk factor for alcohol dependence than non-COAs and older adolescents of alcoholics are affected more by parental alcoholism than younger adolescents (Chassin et al., 1991). Participants were recruited by wellness questionnaires and phone surveys in the state of Arizona, and both children and parents answered questionnaires. The research generalizability was limited by the lack of different levels of alcoholism, such as multigenerational or single generational. When there are different levels of alcoholism, the research can help identify if the alcoholism levels differ in their effects. Another limitation within the study was the lack of determining different features of parental alcoholism. For example, if there is a difference between multigenerational or single generational alcoholism.
Another longitudinal study posed the question of whether parental alcoholism increases the risk of child substance abuse (Chassin et al., 1999). Study participants were recruited by DUI records, wellness questionnaires, and telephone screenings. Children of alcoholics were more likely to have a lifelong diagnosis of alcohol abuse than non-COAs. Some limitations that hindered research generalizability were being unable to determine between genetics and environmental factors and a failure to address gender differences within the study. If researchers could determine what factors are genetic and which are environmental, research could focus more specifically on prevention. Knowing gender differences would allow researchers to see how parental alcoholism affects females and males including differences between the two.
In another research study, the researchers hypothesized that children of parents with alcohol problems will have higher alcohol consumption than peers (Chalder et al., 2006). A community sample, from South Whales, was recruited from nine secondary schools. The participants were surveyed in an assembly-hall on three different occasions. The research showed that children of alcoholics were more likely to drink than non-COAs. The research also found that unlike the non-COAs, children of alcoholics drink two times a week or more, have been seriously drunk in the past three months, drink to get seriously drunk and drink to forget problems,. This study compared the alcohol consumption of children of alcoholics and the non-COA peers. Another study explored the relationship of parental alcoholism on children but included family bonding as a variable, unlike this study.
One research study looked at another aspect of the effects of parental alcoholism on children. The study explored how family bonding and adolescent alcohol use is affected by parental drinking (Kuendig & Kuntsche, 2006). Participants were a cluster sample recruited from Swiss schools. Participants answered questions about the family and both the parent and adolescent drinking habits. Strong family bonds were related to lower adolescent alcohol use, even in families where parents had an alcohol problem. Creating a longitudinal study would allow researchers to see if the family bonding or adolescent alcohol consumption changed over time. Collecting data from parents allows researchers to have a direct source instead of a secondary source of information about the parental drinking. By understanding the importance of family bonding, researchers can find ways to reduce alcohol consumption in adolescents and increase family bonding. While this study explored family bonding, another study explored parental attitudes towards alcohol as a mediator to adolescent alcohol consumption.
A longitudinal study presented a hypothesis that stated children of alcoholics will drink more and have an increase in drinking over time unlike non-COAs (Colder, Chassin, Stice, & Curran, 1997). The study also hypothesized that parents who have positive attitudes towards alcohol will lead to an increase in alcohol drinking in children of alcoholics. The participants were recruited by community telephone surveys, HMO questionnaires and DUI records in three annual interviews. The research determined that the hypotheses were correct. Adolescents with alcoholic parents showed an increase in heavy drinking over time and parents who had positive attitudes toward alcohol had children who consumed more alcohol than parents with negative attitudes. Therefore, parents who drink and have positive attitudes towards alcohol will likely have children who will consume more alcohol. Using multiple measures over many time periods to retrieve information and a longer time span than just three years would allow researchers to examine how adolescents change over time, including changes in drinking habits. This study did not include other mediators such parenting and socialization,; the next study did include these mediators.
Another study looked at mediating factors upon child alcohol use and parental alcoholism (Chassin et al., 1993). Participants were recruited by wellness questionnaires and telephone surveys in the state of Arizona. Children of alcoholics were 2.17 more times likely to use alcohol than non-COAs. Also parental alcoholism and adolescent substance use were significantly related. If the parent had alcoholism the child is more likely to consume more than non-COA peers. Parenting as a mediator was assessed. Research showed that a decrease in parental monitoring can create problems for parental alcoholism and adolescent substance use. Therefore, if parents increased monitoring children, adolescent substance use is less likely to occur. Research is still unclear on the effects of genetics or environmental influences that may affect child alcohol use.
The present study hypothesized participants whose parents have alcohol problems drink at a younger age and drink more frequently than participants without parents who have alcohol problems. Using pre-existing data from the National Comorbidity Survey (Kessler, 2002), the present study compared parental drinking with the age at which the child first consumed alcohol and how many drinks the child has had in the past 12 months. Numerous research findings suggest that children with alcoholic parents have a higher likelihood of drinking more and are at higher risk for alcohol dependence (Chassin et al., 1999; Chalder et al., 2006). The current study expects to support previous research problems influence early childhood drinking.
Method
Participants
Participants were drawn from the National Comorbidity Survey (Kessler, 2002). The total sample included 3395 participants, aged 15 to 59 years (M = 31.82 years, SD = 10.514). The sample included 47.9% (n = 1626) males and 52.1% (n = 1769) females. The sample was predominately White (81.6%, n = 2770), followed by Black (9.9%, n =337), American Indian (1.5%, n =50), Asian (1.5%, n =51), and other (3.1%, n =104).
Procedure
Participants completed the National Comorbidity Survey between 1990 and 1992. Participants were recruited for the National Comorbidity Survey by face-to-face interviews and telephone interviews. The present study included respondents who answered questions about parental alcohol problems, the first age the participant consumed alcohol and how many alcoholic drinks the participant had consumed over the past 12 months.
The age at which the participant first drank alcohol was recoded into four groups: 13 years and younger, 14-20, 21 and older, and never. The question regarding the most number of drinks consumed by the participant within the past 12 months was grouped into: zero drinks, 1-4 drinks, 5-11 drinks, 12-19 drinks, and 20 or more drinks. The question regarding the parental alcohol problems was recoded into three groups: 0 parents, 1 parent, and 2 parents.
Results
A chi-square test-of-independence examined the relationship between parental alcohol problems and the age when the child first consumed alcohol. A significant relationship was found between parental alcohol problems and the age when the child first consumed alcohol, c²(6, N = 3395) = 39.32, p < .001, V = .076. Parents who did not drink were more likely to have children who never drank (8.1%) and less likely to have children who took the first drink at age 13 and under (17.0%) (see Table 1). When only one parent drinks, the children are more likely to have the first drink at the age of 13 and under (24.3%) and less likely to have children who never drink at all (4.8%) (see Figure 1).
Another chi-square test-of-independence examined the relationship between parental alcohol problems and the child’s alcohol consumption in the past 12 months. A significant relationship was found between parental alcohol problems and the child’s alcohol consumption, c²(8, N = 3395) = 18.144, p < .05, V = .052. Parents who did not drink had children who were more likely to not have consumed alcohol in the past 12 months (35.2%), and who were less likely to have had 5-11 drinks (22.8%) (see Table 2). When only one parent drinks, the children are less likely to have zero drinks in the past 12 months (29.9%) (see Figure 2).
Discussion
The present study hypothesized participants whose parents have alcohol problems drink at a younger age and drink more frequently than participants with parents who do not have alcohol problems. As previous research has shown, children of alcoholics are more likely to consume more alcohol then the children of non-alcohol parents (Chassin et al., 1999). Research found children of alcoholics also have a higher dependency upon alcohol than peers (Chassin et al., 1996). Children of alcoholics tend to consume greater amounts of alcohol in a week and tend to become seriously drunk more than the children of non-alcoholic parents (Chalder et al., 2006). Much of the previous research has shown that the hypothesis of the present study should be correct.
The results of the present study were significant. Participants who started drinking at a younger age tended to have parents with alcohol problems. The finding could be interpreted to mean that children who see the parents drinking alcohol on a regular basis could think that it was acceptable to drink, even at a young age. Also participants who had consumed the largest number of drinks in the past 12 months tended to have parents with alcohol problems. The findings may suggest that children of alcoholics become dependent upon alcohol too. The present study was unable to determine if the participants had alcohol problems.
The usefulness of these findings could be used in psychology and child development. Psychologists could find a way to reach the children at a young age and provide a safe haven or a better understanding of alcoholism. Counselors and schools could educate children on alcoholism and show that it is not acceptable and is a bad habit than can lead to devastating consequences. Understanding that children of alcoholics start consuming alcohol at a younger age can allow psychologists to tell the children they are at risk and how to prevent alcoholism in the child’s life. Psychologists can also educate the parents, recovering from alcoholism or still an alcoholic, in ways to show the child it is a bad habit to form.
In the present study there were some threats to validity. A threat to internal validity is selection. The ethnicity of the population of the study was primarily white. Therefore, the generalizing to all ethnicities would be incorrect. The generalizing of a population would be towards people who are ethnically white. Within the present study, there were many limitations of research generalizability. First, the present study did not examine the differences between genetics and environmental factors on parental and offspring drinking habits. By determining the differences between the two, researchers could find ways to prevent alcoholism. Second, the present study did not address gender differences. Future research could determine whether there is a difference between males and females in the parental and offspring drinking habits. Third, the present study did not test each parent to determine if each were classified as an alcoholic. The participants answered on their own understanding of the parent alcohol problem.
While the present study verified that participants whose parents have alcohol problems consume alcohol at a younger age and consume more alcohol than the peers within 12 months, there is much more research can find. If researchers see the limitations of research and try to address the limitations, psychologists could truly understand why parental alcoholism affects the offspring in a major way. Psychologists could help prevent offspring alcoholism by educating the parents and children. Future research needs to start addressing the limitations and find an answer so children of alcoholics do not have to suffer as the parents do.
References
Alcohol statistics. Retrieved October 29, 2007, from http://www.drug-rehabs.org/alcohol-statistics.php
Alcohol statistics. Retrieved October 29, 2007, from http://www.drug-statistics.com/alcohol.htm
Chalder, M., Elgar, F. J., & Bennett, P. (2006). Drinking and motivations to drink among adolescent children of parents with alcohol problems [Electronic version]. Alcohol and Alcoholism, 41, 107-113.
Chassin, L., Curran, P. J., & Hussong, A. M. (1997). The relation of parent alcoholism to adolescent substance use: a longitudinal follow-up study [Electronic version]. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 105, 70-80.
Chassin, L., Pillow, D., Curran, P. J., Molina, B., & Barrera, M. (1993). Relation of parental alcoholism to early adolescent substance use: A test of three mediating mechanisms [Electronic version]. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 102, 3-19.
Chassin, L., Pitts, S.C., DeLucia, C. & Todd, M. (1999). A longitudinal study of children of alcoholics: predicting young adult substance use disorders, anxiety, and depression [Electronic version]. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 108, 106-119.
Chassin, L., Rogosch, R., & Barrera, M. (1991). Substance use and symptomatology among adolescent children of alcoholics [Electronic version]. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 100, 449-463.
Colder, C.R., Chassin, L., & Stice, E. M. (1997). Alcohol expectancies as potential mediators of parent alcoholism effects on the development of adolescent heavy drinking [Electronic version]. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 7, 349-374.
Kessler, R. C. (2002). National comorbidity survey, 1990-1992 (ICPSR revision) [Data file]. Ann Arbor, MI: Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research [producer and distributor].
Kuendig, H. & Kuntsche, E. (2006). Family bonding and adolescent alcohol use: Moderating effect of living with excessive drinking parents [Electronic version]. Alcohol and Alcoholism, 41, 464-471.
Malpique, C., Barrias, P., Morais, L., Salgado, M., Pinto de Costa, I., & Rodriques, M. (1998). Violence and alcoholism in the family: How are the children affected [Electronic version]. Alcohol and Alcoholism, 33, 42-46.
Sher, K. J., Walitzer, K. S., Wood, P. K., & Brent, E. E. (1991) Characteristics of children of alcoholics: Putative risk factors, substance use and abuse, and psychopathology [Electronic version]. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 100, 427-448.
Zetteler, J. I., Stollery, B. T., Weinstein A. M., & Lingford-Hughes, A. R. (2006). Attentional bias for alcohol-related information in adolescents with alcohol-dependent parents [Electronic version]. Alcohol and Alcoholism, 41, 426-430.
Table 1
Parental Alcohol Problems by Age When Child First Drank
Age Child First Consumed Alcohol in Years
|
0-13 |
14-20 |
20 + |
never |
|
Parental Drinking Problem |
(n = 658) |
(n = 2215) |
(n = 288) |
(n = 234) |
Total |
No Parent Problem (n = 2320) |
|
|
|
|
|
| Row |
17.0% |
66.5% |
8.4% |
8.1% |
100.0% |
| Column |
60.0% |
69.7% |
67.7% |
79.9% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
One Parent has Problem (n = 944) |
|
|
|
|
|
| Row |
24.3% |
62.3% |
8.7% |
4.8% |
100.0% |
| Column |
34.8% |
26.5% |
28.5% |
19.2% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Both Parents have Problem (n = 131) |
|
|
|
|
|
| Row |
26.0% |
64.1% |
8.4% |
1.5% |
100.0% |
| Column |
5.2% |
3.8% |
3.8% |
0.9% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total |
100.0% |
100.0% |
100.0% |
100.0% |
|
Note. c²(6, N = 3395) = 39.32, p < .001.
Table 2
Parental Alcohol Problems by Amount of Drinks Consumed by Child in past 12 months
Amount of Drinks Consumed by Child in past 12 months
|
0 |
1-4 |
5-11 |
12-19 |
20 + |
|
Parental Drinking Problem |
(n = 1135) |
(n = 750) |
(n = 817) |
(n = 488) |
(n = 205) |
Total |
No Parent Problem (n = 2320) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Row |
35.2% |
22.4% |
22.8% |
14.1% |
5.6% |
100% |
| Column |
71.9% |
69.2% |
64.7% |
66.8% |
63.4% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
One Parent has Problem (n = 944) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Row |
29.9% |
21.1% |
26.3% |
15.6% |
7.2% |
100% |
| Column |
24.8% |
26.5% |
30.4% |
30.1% |
33.2% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Both Parents have Problem (n = 131) |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Row |
28.2% |
24.4% |
30.5% |
11.5% |
535.0% |
100% |
| Column |
3.3% |
4.3% |
4.9% |
3.1% |
3.4% |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total |
100% |
100% |
100% |
100% |
100% |
|
Note. c²(8, N = 3395) = 18.144, p < .05
Figure Caption
Figure 1. Percentage of participants who never drink and parent alcohol problems. Why is there a blank page after this sentence?
Figure Caption
Figure 2. Percentages of participants who have not consumed alcohol in the past 12 months and parental alcohol problems.
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