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Adolescent part-time work and heavy drinking in Finland
1Department of Sociology, University of Helsinki, Finland. anne.kouvonen@om.fi
Addiction (Abingdon, England)
|April 20, 2002
Summary
Part-time work among adolescents, especially working over 10 hours weekly, is linked to increased heavy drinking. Some typical child jobs may slightly reduce this risk, but overall, work does not protect teens from heavy alcohol consumption.
Area of Science:
- Adolescent Health
- Public Health
- Sociology of Youth
Background:
- Adolescent part-time employment is common, raising questions about its impact on health behaviors.
- Heavy drinking is a significant public health concern among young people.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between part-time work and heavy alcohol consumption in Finnish adolescents.
- To determine if the intensity and type of work influence the risk of heavy drinking.
Main Methods:
- Cross-sectional survey data from the 2000 School Health Promotion Survey (n=47,568).
- Finnish 8th and 9th graders (aged 14-16) completed self-administered questionnaires.
- Polychotomous logistic regression models analyzed the relationship between work characteristics and heavy drinking frequency.
Main Results:
- Adolescents working >10 hours/week showed increased risk and frequency of heavy drinking compared to non-workers.
- After adjusting for numerous covariates, intensive workers had nearly three times the odds of weekly drunkenness.
- Certain typical child labor roles were associated with a marginally decreased likelihood of heavy drinking.
Conclusions:
- Part-time work does not appear to protect Finnish adolescents from heavy drinking.
- The observed association may be mediated by unmeasured factors, necessitating further research.
- Clarifying the causal pathways between adolescent employment and alcohol use is crucial.