Understanding controlled drinking behavior of Korean-American male workers: Testing Ajzen's Theory of Planned Behavior

Backgrounds: Group drinking and lenient law and policies regarding drinking were regarded as main reasons for excessive drinking among male workers in Korea. However, there has been no study explaining alcohol consumption of Korean-American male workers who are under different drinking cultures and law. Purpose: The purpose of the study was to identify predictors of controlled drinking behavior of Korean-American male workers based on Ajzen's Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB). Methods: This cross-sectional study included 219 Korean-American male workers who resided in San Francisco Bay Area and San Diego, California. The inclusion criteria of participation included individuals who reported social drinking, having lived in Korea until the age of 21 years, and lived in the United States for at least one year. The controlled drinking behavior was assessed by the Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test (AUDIT)-Korean version. Structural Equation Modeling was applied. Results: The participants were middle-aged (mean age = 43 years old), college educated (over 90%), and white collar (74%) workers. On average, the number of binge drinking during the previous month was 3.1 and the amount of alcohol consumption in the past week was 112.2g. Over 50% of them drank with Korean-American coworkers. The TPB explained 63% of the intention toward controlled drinking and 27% of controlled drinking behavior. Subjective norms and perceived behavior control (PBC) predicted intentions, but only PBC predicted controlled drinking behavior. Conclusion: Intervention programs to promote controlled drinking behavior in Korean-American male workers should incorporate strategies to increase their PBC.