SWYS 2001 News - Parenting Practices Linked to Teen Behavior

Teen Drinking Patterns vs Perceived Parental Attitudes

Southwest Wisconsin teens who report that their parents practice positive parenting are less likely to report that they are involved in risky behaviors like drug use and sexual intercourse. Initial analysis of the data from more than 5,700 teens surveyed by UW-Extension and UW-Platteville links six parenting practices with positive behaviors. The practices include providing love and support for teens, communicating parental values regarding appropriate teen behavior, eating three or more dinners a week as a family, parental monitoring, reporting teens to school officials for school code violations, and consistent communication and enforcement of consequences for violating family rules.

The Southwest Wisconsin Youth Survey (SWYS) survey was conducted by 19 of 31 school districts in the Cooperative Educational Service Agency (CESA) District 3 and the results are being reported by UW-Extension. More than 5,700 students in grades 7 through 12 in the school districts of Argyle, Barneveld, Benton, Belmont, Black Hawk, Cassville, Darlington, Dodgeville, Iowa-Grant, Lancaster, Mineral Point, Pecatonica, Platteville, Potosi, River Ridge, River Valley, Seneca, Shullsburg and Southwestern completed the survey in September of 2001. UW-Extension faculty in Grant, Iowa and Lafayette counties are involved in processing and presenting the findings.

"Fifty-five percent of teens ‘strongly agreed' with the statement ‘my family loves and gives me support when I need it' and another 34% ‘agreed' with the statement and 11% ‘disagreed'. Only 27% of those who ‘strongly agreed' had tried smoking, 41% of those who ‘agreed' had tried smoking and 56% of those who ‘disagreed' had tried smoking", reports Tom Schmitz Grant/Lafayette County Youth Development Educator. "When examining family love and support, similar relationships are found with use of alcohol and other drugs as well as sexual intercourse. Fourteen percent of the teens who strongly agree that their families love them and provide support when they need it report having tried marijuana, while 38% of teens who feel their families don't provide love and support report having tried marijuana."

The SWYS survey asked teens if their parents felt it was wrong for teens their age to smoke cigarettes, drink alcohol or have sexual intercourse. "It is not surprising that teens who felt their parents saw the behaviors as wrong for teens reported significantly lower rates for these behaviors, but the data shows that kids who weren't sure what their parents thought about these issues acted as though their parents thought the behavior was appropriate for teens their age", says Ruth Schriefer, Iowa County Family Living Agent. "For example, 35% of students who say their parents think it is wrong for teens their age to drink alcohol currently drink, while 78% of the teens who feel their parents think it is okay for them to use alcohol currently drink. Fifteen percent of teens are unsure what their parents think about the appropriateness of teen alcohol use and 71% of these currently drink alcohol." (See graph that follows.)

"Teens who eat three or more dinners per week with their entire family were also less likely to engage in negative behaviors", says Deb Ivey, Iowa County 4-H Youth Development Agent. "Unfortunately only 52% of teens report eating at least three meals a week with their family. The good news is the data shows that increasing the number of family dinners by even one per week seems to make a difference. For example, 33% of teens who eat one dinner a week with their family have had sexual intercourse, while only 27% of the teens who eat two meals a week with the family have had sexual intercourse."

"High levels of parental monitoring were also linked to lower levels of problem behavior," says Christina Kenney, Interim Family Living Agent in Grant County. "Essentially parental monitoring refers to parents knowing where their teen is, knowing their child's friends and the parents of the friends, having expectations as for the teen to call when the teen will be late and knowing their teen's plans ahead of time. Based on teen responses to a series of questions, the teens' parents were given a parental monitoring score and higher scores were related to lower rates of sexual intercourse, marijuana use, tobacco use and drinking. In fact, 17% of teens who report high levels of parental monitoring binge drank in the month previous to the survey while 58% of the teens who reported the lowest levels of parental monitoring binge drank in the month previous to the survey."

"Like parental monitoring, reporting teens to school officials for school code violations is about accountability", reports Schmitz. Teens were given four responses to pick from when asked, ‘if you violated a school code and your parents found out, what would they most likely do?' The responses involved reporting and not reporting violations to school officials and the assignment of consequences at home. "Nearly six in ten teens said their parents would not report them to school officials. What the data shows is the teens who feel their parents would not tell the school about a code violation report higher rates of alcohol, tobacco and other drug use as well as increased rates of sexual intercourse when compared to the teens who feel their parents would report a school code violation", adds Ivey.

"A scale was developed to measure teen perceptions of their parents' performance when it comes to enforcing family rules. Teens who say their parents consistently make them aware of and enforce consequences for breaking family rules also report lower rates of negative behaviors," says Schriefer. Kenney adds that "12% of teens whose parents ranked the highest on the scale currently smoke while 36% of teens whose parents ranked lowest on the scale currently smoke."

The SWYS survey was funded in large part by the Grant County Tobacco-Free Coalition, the Lafayette County Tobacco-Free Coalition and the Iowa County Tobacco Coalition. Other funders included Lafayette County Families First, participating school districts, the Department of Transportation, United Way of Iowa County, Iowa County Family Preservation and Support, UW-Extension Southern District Resource Management Team, the Biddick Foundation, the Alliant Foundation, and the Iowa County Domestic Violence Task Force.

A full report on the SWYS survey results is due out this spring. Schmitz, Kenney, Ivey and Schriefer are also giving community presentations on the data. For more information on the survey contact your local school district, Schmitz and Kenney at 723-2125 or Ivey and Schriefer at 935-0391.

Return to 2001 News Releases

Tom Schmitz, Grant/Lafayette County Youth Development Educator
Youth and Agriculture Center P.O. Box 31, Lancaster, WI 53813
Phone: 608-723-2125   Fax: 608:723-4315   
E-mail: thomas.schmitz@ces.uwex.edu