The Differential Effects of Exposure to “Youth-Oriented” Magazines on Adolescent Alcohol Use

Abstract

This study examines the effects of exposure to “youth-oriented” magazines on normative beliefs about teenage drinking, drinking expectancies, and drinking frequency during the past 30 days among a group of 972 seventh- and eighth-grade students from two Western U.S. states. Three magazine categories were considered: music/entertainment, sports, and men's lifestyle. Structural equation modeling was used to test the simultaneous influences (direct and indirect) of magazine exposure, religiosity, parental drinking, and the number of best friends who drink on the three outcome variables (normative beliefs, expectancies, and current drinking). Exposure to each magazine type was tested in a separate model. Men's lifestyle magazine reading frequency was positively associated (both directly and indirectly) with all three outcomes. Music and entertainment magazine reading was positively linked to normative beliefs and drinking expectancies, but was unrelated to drinking frequency in the past 30 days. Sports magazine reading was unrelated to the three outcomes.

Keywords

Alcohol advertising adolescents magazines drinking expectancies teenage drinking

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