Beyond Acculturation: A Study of Alcohol Use among Korean American Adolescents in California

Introduction: Drinking is highly prevalent in Korean society. Although limited evidence suggests that Korean immigrants reduce drinking as they acculturate into American society, little research has been conducted on alcohol use among Korean American adolescents.

Objectives: Two research questions are posed: 1) Does acculturation increase or decrease alcohol consumption among youth given that alcohol consumption is widespread in traditional Korean culture, and 2) do social, economic, and other patterns of reinforcement influence alcohol use.

Methods: Using convenience sampling procedures, paper and pencil questionnaires were administered to 202 teenagers of Korean descent in teenage hangouts in Orange and Los Angeles counties between November 2004 and April 2005.

Results: Cultural dimension of acculturation was unrelated to drinking. Affiliation with non-Korean peers was positively associated with increased amount of drinking per drinking session but not with other drinking outcomes. Current smoking and friends drinking were two most strong and consistent risk factors for drinking. Low scholastic achievement/aspirations was associated with a greatly increased risk for drinking and co-occurrence of drinking/smoking. Amount of spending money was positively associated with the frequency of drinking. Being a female was not associated with any measure of alcohol use.

Conclusions: The experience of immigrants and their children may be much more complex than a focus on acculturation can capture. A more integrative approach to investigate how alcohol is related to their overall lived experiences and what forces encourage or mitigate alcohol use might be useful.