Asian American and White College Students' Heavy Episodic Drinking Behaviors and Alcohol-Related Problems

Abstract

ABSTRACTBackground: Heavy episodic drinking (HED) and alcohol-related problems appears to be a growing problem among young adult Asian Americans. One promising factor that helps explain within-group differences among Asian American includes nativity. Nativity refers to whether an individual was born in (i.e., second generation or higher) or outside (i.e., first generation) of the United States. Despite this theoretically promising variable, there has been a paucity of literature examining comparing drinking patterns between first and second generation Asians Americans and White college men. Objectives: The current study examined the relationship between HED and alcohol-related problems among first- and second-generation Asian American, and White college male students. Interaction between race and the variables in HED and alcohol-related problems models were also investigated. Method: A total of 630 men were recruited of which 489 were Asian American men (407 second generation and 82 first generation) and 148 White students attending a public university in southern California (USA) were recruited. Results: Results revealed no differences in HED rates between second-generation Asian American and White male college students; however, White students reported higher rates of HED compared to first-generation Asian Americans. No differences in alcohol-related problems were found between all three groups. There were no significant interactions between racial groups, drinking to cope, Greek/fraternity status, and descriptive norms on the alcohol outcomes. Conclusion/importance: Second-generation Asian American young adult men reported similar HED and rates of alcohol-related problems as White men. The present findings suggest that alcohol-related problems among Asian American men are a larger public health concern than previously believed.