Opposite-gender parental monitoring can reduce drinking problems, study says

By Staff Writer

A new study reveals that parental monitoring of opposite-gender children may help curb alcohol consumption among young people.

The report is one of the first to examine the link between parenting style, monitoring and drinking behaviors among their children. Researchers from Baylor University surveyed 581 college students, questioning them about their alcohol-related problems. In addition, they questioned them about the parenting styles of their mothers and fathers.

They found that opposite-gender parental monitoring was associated with lower levels of impulsive behavior and drinking problems among those surveyed. Thus, mothers who keep close tabs on their sons. and fathers who check up on their daughters may help steer their children away from unhealthy decision making.

Researchers suggested that this trend shows that young people are interested in how members of the opposite gender view and value certain behaviors.

The study also concluded that having a strict, no-nonsense household with many rules does not necessarily lead to healthier behaviors among children. Participants who had authoritarian parents exhibited drinking habits that were similar to those who had permissive guardians.

Problem teens who consume alcohol may benefit from boarding schools, which provide a strict yet supportive environment for adolescents.