The moderating role of risk-taking tendency and refusal assertiveness on social influences in alcohol use among inner-city adolescents.
OBJECTIVE
Many etiological models of adolescent alcohol use concentrate on the main effects of risk and protective factors. This study examined the moderating influence of risk-taking tendency and refusal assertiveness on perceived friends' drinking as associated with alcohol use among inner-city adolescents.


METHODS
Participants (N = 2,400; 54% female) completed questionnaires that included measures of risk-taking tendency, refusal assertiveness, perceived friends' drinking and alcohol use (drinking frequency, drinking amount and drunkenness).


RESULTS
Main effects for perceived friends' drinking, risk-taking tendency and refusal assertiveness were found for all three drinking measures, consistent with prior work. Furthermore, significant interactions were found between (1) risk-taking tendency and perceived friends' drinking and (2) refusal assertiveness and perceived friends' drinking.


CONCLUSIONS
High risk-taking tendency and low refusal assertiveness increased the impact of perceived friends' drinking on alcohol use among inner-city adolescents. This suggests that these factors are important components in preventing alcohol use.
Epstein
Jennifer A
JA
Institute for Prevention Research, Cornell University, Weill Medical College, New York, New York 10021, USA. jepstein@med.cornell.edu
Botvin
Gilbert J
GJ
D000293:Adolescent; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001242:Assertiveness; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010379:Peer Group; D015995:Prevalence; D012309:Risk-Taking; D014505:Urban Population / Q000706:statistics & numerical data