Social influence predictors of alcohol use among New York Latino youth

We examined demographic and social influence predictors of adolescent drinking among New York City Latino adolescents, including specific Latino subgroups (i.e., Puerto Rican, Dominican, Colombian, and Ecuadorian). Sixth- and seventh-grade students (N = 3129) who identified themselves as Latino or Hispanic on the survey questionnaire comprised our Latino sample. The survey included self-reported frequency of alcohol use, demographic items, and measures of social influences for drinking. Logistic-regression analyses revealed that social influences (how many friends drink, attitudes of parents and friends toward respondent's drinking) are strong predictors of current drinking (defined as drinking at least once a month) for the overall sample of Latino youth, as well as for Puerto Rican youth and Dominican youth. Findings are discussed in terms of their implications for prevention.