Are changes in attitudes towards school associated with declining youth drinking? A multi-level analysis of 37 countries

Abstract Background Changes in adolescents’ attitudes towards school are a potential explanation for recent declines in young people’s alcohol consumption. However, this has not been tested using multi-national survey data, which would permit stronger causal inferences by ruling out other country-specific explanations. This study, therefore, uses an international survey of schoolchildren to examine the associations between changing attitudes towards school and adolescent alcohol consumption. Methods We used data from 247 325 15-year-olds across 37 countries participating in four waves of the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children study (2001/02–2013/14). Attitudes towards school were assessed using two measures—self-reported pressure from schoolwork and whether respondents like school. Outcome measures were weekly alcohol consumption and having been drunk twice in one’s lifetime. We used whole population and gender-specific hierarchical linear probability models to assess the relationship between attitudes and alcohol outcomes within countries over time. Results Country-level changes over time in liking school were not associated with changes in alcohol consumption. However, a 10% increase in feeling pressured by schoolwork was associated with a 1.8% decline in drunkenness [95% confidence interval (CI): −3.2% to −0.3%] and weakly associated with a 1.7% decline in weekly drinking (95% CI: −3.6% to 0.2%). Among girls only, increases in feeling pressured by schoolwork were associated with a 2.1% decline in weekly drinking (95% CI: −3.7% to −0.6%) and a 2.4% decline in drunkenness (95% CI: −3.8% to −1.1%). Conclusion Changes in attitudes towards school may have played a minor role in the decline in alcohol consumption among adolescent girls only.