"Parents who accept drinking as just a normal part of college may be encouraging their kids to drink more, according to a study published in the journal Addictive Behaviors.
The researchers surveyed 687 Penn State students about their drinking habits and how much they believed their parents would approve of them drinking. The data was gathered at regular checkpoints across four years, from the last year of high school through the third year of college.
To learn more about these patterns, the researchers arranged students into four groups, including students with parents who…
- Consistently didn't approve of drinking
- Consistently approved of high levels of drinking
- Began approving of higher levels of drinking around age 21 parents
- Began approving of higher levels of drinking when the students started college
The results: the more students believed their parents approved of them drinking, the more alcohol they tended to drink. Many parents didn't approve of drinking in high school, but when they went to college or got closer to turning 21, “the parents' attitudes relaxed and students' drinking increased,” said Brian Calhoun, graduate student in human development and family studies and first author of the paper.
The findings show that parents can still play a role in providing positive feedback and encouraging their children to make healthy lifestyle choices, especially during the college years when drug and alcohol use often peaks. "One part of this can be supporting safe choices about drinking alcohol,” said Jennifer Maggs, professor of human development and family studies, “and not reinforcing or making jokes about college being a crazy time when everyone takes risks without consequences."
Conversation Goals During College
According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, it's important for parents to keep the lines of communication open through all four (or more) years of college. This regular communication will also make it easier to spot any sign of alcohol abuse, including:
According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, it's important for parents to keep the lines of communication open through all four (or more) years of college. This regular communication will also make it easier to spot any sign of alcohol abuse, including:
- Binge drinking
- Declining grades
- Changes in appearance
- Decrease in extracurricular college activities
- Shifts in sleeping patterns
- Mood swings
- Reckless behavior
- Changes in social circles or hanging out with others who abuse alcohol or drugs
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