The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA

Abstract #55543

Mary A. Toborg, MPA, Michael G. Meyer, and Sharon A. Denham, RN, DSN. Toborg Associates, Inc., 1129 Twentieth Street, N.W., Suite 108, Washington, DC 20036-3403

In Appalachia, women generally assume primary responsibility for family health. For this reason, messages to prevent alcohol use among youth may fare best if mothers provide them. 83 youth and 72 women from the Appalachian portions of five states participated in 18 focus groups to develop alcohol prevention messages for adolescents. Three focus groups with a total of 24 youth aged 11-13 occurred in Meigs County, OH; Huntington, WV; and Covington, VA. Three groups with 29 mothers of youth aged 11-13 occurred in those same communities. Three focus groups with 37 youth aged 14-16 occurred in Stroudsburg, PA; Williamson, WV; and Asheville, NC. Three groups with 20 mothers of youth aged 14-16 occurred in the same communities. Three focus groups with 22 youth aged 17-18 occurred in Cheshire, OH; Williamson, WV; and Abingdon, VA. Three groups with 23 mothers of youth aged 17-18 occurred in the same three communities. Analyses of the 18 focus groups revealed numerous developmental and cultural issues. Prominent among these were boredom among youth, the functional value of cars within these largely rural communities, the existence of fixed but isolated locations as venues to consume alcohol, parental tolerance of alcohol consumption relative to use of other substances, greater parental concern about drinking by girls than by boys, relatively more lenient attitudes among fathers than mothers toward alcohol consumption, pessimism in adults and youth concerning the ability to prevent alcohol use, and low literacy and educational levels reflected in a lack of knowledge about alcohol-related problems.

Learning Objectives:

• Understand the culturally congruent, developmentally specific attitudes and perceptions of Appalachian youth aged 11-13, 14-16, and 17-18 and their mothers toward adolescent alcohol prevention.

Keywords: Adolescents, Alcohol

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.