Abstract
BackgroundBinge drinking is a constant problem behavior in adolescents across Europe. Epidemiological investigations have been reported. However, epidemiological data on alcohol consumption of adolescents with different migration backgrounds are rare. Furthermore representative data on rural-urban comparison concerning alcohol consumption and binge drinking are lacking. The aims of the study are the investigation of alcohol consumption patterns with respect to a) urban-rural differences and b) differences according to migration background.MethodsIn the years 2007/2008, a representative written survey of N = 44,610 students in the 9th. grade of different school types in Germany was carried out (net sample). The return rate of questionnaires was 88% regarding all students whose teachers respectively school directors had agreed to participate in the study. Weighting factors were specified and used to make up for regional and school-type specific differences in return rates. 27.4% of the adolescents surveyed have a migration background, whereby the Turkish culture is the largest group followed by adolescents who emigrated from former Soviet Union states. The sample includes seven large cities (over 500,000 inhabitants) (12.2%), independent smaller cities ("urban districts") (19.0%) and rural areas ("rural districts") (68.8%).ResultsLife-time prevalence for alcohol consumption differs significantly between rural (93.7%) and urban areas (86.6% large cities; 89.1% smaller cities) with a higher prevalence in rural areas. The same accounts for 12-month prevalence for alcohol consumption. 57.3% of the rural, re-spectively 45.9% of the urban adolescents engaged in binge drinking in the 4 weeks prior to the survey. Students with migration background of the former Soviet Union showed mainly drinking behavior similar to that of German adolescents. Adolescents with Turkish roots had engaged in binge drinking in the last four weeks less frequently than adolescents of German descent (23.6% vs. 57.4%). However, in those adolescents who consumed alcohol in the last 4 weeks, binge drinking is very prominent across the cultural backgrounds.ConclusionsBinge drinking is a common problem behavior in German adolescents. Obviously adolescents with rural residence have fewer alternatives for engaging in interesting leisure activities than adolescents living in cities. This might be one reason for the more problematic consumption patterns there. Common expectations concerning drinking behavior of adolescents of certain cultural backgrounds ('migrants with Russian background drink more'/'migrants from Arabic respectively Oriental-Islamic countries drink less') are only partly affirmed. Possibly, the degree of acculturation to the permissive German alcohol culture plays a role here.
Highlights
Binge drinking is a constant problem behavior in adolescents across Europe
The first question which will be investigated in this work is: How can consumption patterns including binge drinking be described in adolescents with migration background in comparison to German adolescents? none of the above-mentioned representative data collections reports on possible consumption differences between rural and urban residence of the adolescents
A representative analysis showed that problematic alcohol consumption patterns are more common in adolescents living in rural than in urban settings
Summary
Binge drinking is a constant problem behavior in adolescents across Europe. Epidemiological investigations have been reported. Representative data on rural-urban comparison concerning alcohol consumption and binge drinking are lacking. Often the drinking behavior is associated with certain cultural or seasonal events, like “Spring Break” in the U.S.A., certain folk festivals like the Oktoberfest in Germany, “Botellóns” in Spain, or internet-organized (using social networks) spontaneous drinking parties on public places in France It seems, according to epidemiological data, that excessive alcohol consumption is not limited to one or two events per year but is a regular leisure time activity for many adolescents and university students [8]. Because of the lack of more detailed data concerning alcohol consumption patterns in adolescents with migration background in Germany in the representative studies cited, a closer look at it will be taken in this work. As a second question, consumption patterns are investigated in this work from the perspective of possible rural-urban differences
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
