title: Examining differences in drinking patterns among Jewish and Arab university students in Israel.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Worldwide there is a dearth of studies examining drinking patterns in Arabs and how these compare to other populations. The few studies that exist have suggested distinct drinking patterns in Arabs, with not only high rates of abstinence but also high rates of heavy drinking among current drinkers. No studies have yet examined potential socio-cognitive mechanisms that may contribute to this distinct drinking pattern. Israel represents a unique and valuable resource for studying Arab population drinking patterns because Israeli Arabs are nonimmigrants living in areas where exposure to Western lifestyles, including alcohol consumption, is prevalent. The current study was set out to examine differences in alcohol consumption in a convenience sample of 1310 Jewish and Arab students from Israeli universities and colleges and to explore alcohol expectancies as potential mediators of ethno-religious differences.
  
  
  METHODS
  Logistic regressions were used to produce odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals to test differences between Jewish and Arab students on binary outcomes (lifetime, last month, and heavy drinking). Mediation of ethno-religious differences by alcohol expectancies was tested with bootstrapping procedures.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Results show that while Israeli Arab students tend to be more likely to abstain from alcohol than Israeli Jewish students, among current drinkers, Israeli Arab students are at a particular high risk of heavy drinking. Results also show that this is partly mediated by the expectancy that alcohol only influences the drinker at high levels of intake.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The current study confirms distinct Arab drinking patterns found in previous studies. The present study is the first demonstration that drinking expectations mediate ethno-religious differences in heavy drinking among Israeli Arabs and Jews. This work contributes to the understanding of ethno-religious group differences in harmful drinking, potentially informing future etiologic research and public health interventions aimed at reducing alcohol-related harm.
authors.affiliation: a School of Public Health , University of Haifa , Haifa , Israel.
authors.forename: Sharon R
authors.initials: SR
authors.lastname: Sznitman
authors.forename: Shiran
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bord
authors.forename: Wafa
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Elias
authors.forename: Anat
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gesser-Edelsburg
authors.forename: Yoram
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Shiftan
authors.forename: Orna
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Baron-Epel
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000067292:Alcohol Drinking in College / Q000208:ethnology*; D018912:Arabs / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D017144:Focus Groups; D015438:Health Behavior; D006801:Humans; D007514:Islam; D007557:Israel; D007585:Jews / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D008297:Male; D012309:Risk-Taking; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Arab and Jewish Israeli populations; alcohol expectancies; alcohol use; ethno-religious groups; university students