Faculty Articles
Alcohol Use among Latino Migrant Workers in South Florida
Publication Title
Drug and Alcohol Dependence
Publisher
Elsevier
ISSN
0376-8716
Publication Date
6-2015
Keywords
alcohol use and abuse, Latinos, migrant workers, prevention
Abstract
Background
A significant segment of the Latino migrant worker population in the United States is at high risk for alcohol abuse and related risk behaviors. Information about the prevalence of alcohol use and abuse and its association with sociodemographic and psychological variables is needed for designing effective intervention prevention strategies.
Methods
Cross-sectional data were drawn from a baseline assessment that was part of a randomized controlled trial of 278 Latino migrant workers (LMWs) conducted between 2008 and 2010.
Results
About one-third (32%) of participants engaged in heavy drinking in the past 30 days prior to baseline interview. More females than males reported no alcohol use in the past 30 days (53.5% vs. 20.5%). On the other hand, more males reported drinking every day or nearly (25.2% vs. 7.1%). Five factors—gender, country of origin, relationship status, living arrangements, and acculturation—were significantly associated with frequency of alcohol consumption. Multivariate analyses indicated that gender, country of origin, education attainment, relationship status, living arrangement, living with children, length of stay in the US, religious beliefs, acculturation, and depression were associated with frequent heavy drinking, alcohol abuse/dependence, and unprotected sex under the influence of alcohol.
Conclusions
There is significant variation in alcohol use among Latino migrant workers. Although a substantial proportion of this population abstains from alcohol, an equally substantial proportion report levels of alcohol use that pose significant risk. More research is needed to better understand drinking patters in this community in order to design prevention strategies specifically tailored for this population.
DOI
10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2015.03.025
Volume
151
First Page
241
Last Page
249
Disciplines
Medicine and Health Sciences | Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences
NSUWorks Citation
Sánchez, Jesús, "Alcohol Use among Latino Migrant Workers in South Florida" (2015). Faculty Articles. 355.
https://nsuworks.nova.edu/hpd_corx_facarticles/355
