Prevalence and correlates of sipping alcohol in a prospective middle school sample.
Research documents an association between early use of alcohol and adverse outcomes. Most studies on drinking initiation exclude sipping or confound sips with consumption of a full drink. However, even a few sips of alcohol can constitute a meaningful experience for naïve drinkers. Prior research with this project indicated that sipping before middle school predicted subsequent adverse outcomes (at high-school entry), even controlling for child externalizing and sensation seeking and parent alcohol use. The present study extends our prior work by examining the correlates of early sipping and sipping onset. The sample was comprised of 1,023 6th, 7th, and 8th graders (52% female; 24% non-White, and 12% Hispanic). Participants completed Web-based surveys on 5 occasions over the course of 2 years. The prevalence of sipping at Wave 1 was 37%, with 29% of never-sippers initiating sipping within 2 years. Sipping was associated with stronger alcohol-related cognitions and low school engagement as well as contextual influences in the peer, sibling, and parent domains. Sipping onset among never-sippers was prospectively predicted by sensation seeking and problem behavior as well as parental and sibling influences. More important, mere availability of alcohol was a strong correlate both concurrently and prospectively. Further analyses demonstrated that youth who sipped alcohol with parental permission had a lower profile of risk and healthier relationships with parents as compared with youth who reported unsanctioned sipping. Findings point to the importance of considering fine-grained early drinking behavior and call for further attention to sipping in research on initiation of alcohol use.
Center for Alcohol and Addiction Studies, Brown University.
Kristina M
KM
Jackson
Center for Alcohol and Addiction Studies, Brown University.
Suzanne M
SM
Colby
Center for Alcohol and Addiction Studies, Brown University.
Nancy P
NP
Barnett
Center for Alcohol and Addiction Studies, Brown University.
Caitlin C
CC
Abar
D000293:Adolescent; D001741:Black or African American / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000208:ethnology / Q000523:psychology; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006630:Hispanic or Latino / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010290:Parents; D010379:Peer Group; D010551:Personality; D015995:Prevalence; D000066553:Problem Behavior / Q000523:psychology; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012574:Schools; D066262:Social Norms; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D000066608:Underage Drinking / Q000208:ethnology / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D044465:White People / Q000706:statistics & numerical data