Establishing the basis for preventing early alcohol consumption: an analysis of the attitudes of adolescents from 12 to 14 years old

• Main Authors: Carlos Teira, Alicia Risso
• Format: Article
• Language: Spanish
• Published: Asociación Nacional de Psicología Evolutiva y Educativa de la Infancia Adolescencia Mayores y Discapacidad 2020-12-01
• Series: INFAD
• Subjects: prevención del uso de sustancias; adolescencia; actitudes de consumo de alcohol; comportamiento de consumo; educación sobre drogas
• Online Access: http://www.infad.eu/RevistaINFAD/OJS/index.php/IJODAEP/article/view/1969

At present, early alcohol consumption is a public health concern because of the problems it can cause in adolescents, be it physical, social or psychological. Therefore, the purpose of this work was to investigate the attitudes underlying the main reasons for alcohol consumption at the beginning of that stage of development, since they act as risk factors for premature consumption. For this purpose, it was taken a sample of 181 adolescents of both sexes living in the Autonomous Community of Galicia, between 12 and 14 years old. The data was collected through a questionnaire specifically designed to be covered online, whose questions were grouped into three motivational dimensions: socialization, improvement and coping. The analysis of its internal consistency showed high reliability. For the analysis of the results, means were contrasted with post hoc tests and the correlations were studied. It was observed that the variables significantly related to the affective evaluation of expectations or attitudes are age and previous exposure to consumption and, to a lesser extent, sex. In addition, it has been possible to detect the motivational dimensions and specific attitudinal itemsthat mayimplya greater risk of futureconsumption. With thisinformation it will be possibleto develop a methodological proposal for attitude modeling, which could be integrated into prevention programs aimed at avoiding early alcohol consumption.