title: Family harmony as a protective factor against adolescent tobacco and alcohol use in Wuhan, China.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the association between family harmony (FH) and tobacco and alcohol use (TAU) in Chinese adolescents.
  
  
  METHODS
  Participants completed a survey in 1998 as part of a larger study of adolescent health in Wuhan, China. Analyses were performed on subjects for whom complete data were available (n = 183; 50.8% male; mean age = 13.17 yrs, std dev = 0.59). Structural equation modeling was utilized to quantify the relationships between the FH, TAU, depression, and academic aptitude factors.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The conceptualized structural equation model was found to have a good fit to the data (CFI = 0.995; chi2 = 39.57 df = 38; p = 40). FH was a significant predictor of TAU (beta = -0.42, p < 0.05) and was protective. FH' was also negatively related to depression (r = -0.24, p < 0.05) and positively related to academic achievement/aptitude (r = 0.35, p < 0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These central findings highlight the value and importance placed on FH within the Chinese culture. Future prevention programs may benefit by taking into account FH as a potential mediator of TAU in adolescents in China.
authors.affiliation: Institute for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Research, University of Southern California, Alhambra, California, USA. dtrinidad@ucsd.edu
authors.forename: Dennis R
authors.initials: DR
authors.lastname: Trinidad
authors.forename: Chih-Ping
authors.initials: CP
authors.lastname: Chou
authors.forename: Jennifer B
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Unger
authors.forename: C Anderson
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Johnson
authors.forename: Yan
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Li
mesh_terms: D000124:Achievement; D000293:Adolescent; D000294:Adolescent Behavior / Q000208:ethnology*; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000208:ethnology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D002648:Child; D002681:China / Q000453:epidemiology; D003469:Culture; D003863:Depression / Q000208:ethnology; D005195:Family Relations / Q000208:ethnology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012907:Smoking / Q000208:ethnology; D000074606:Smoking Prevention; D013334:Students / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires