Objectives: Findings from previous studies on socioeconomic inequalities in alcohol use among adolescents are not consistent. This study examined and compared the relationship between socioeconomic status and alcohol use of adolescents in China and Finland.
Methods: The sample included 2,005 Chinese and 1,685 Finnish 15-year-old school children. The associations between Family Affluence Scale (FAS) and alcohol use were examined separately in two countries through binary logistic regression.
Results: Chinese adolescents from the high FAS group were more likely to report experiencing monthly alcohol use (OR = 2.13) and early onset of alcohol use (OR = 1.55) (girls), and early onset of drunkenness (OR = 1.81) (boys). However, no statistically significant difference was found in three FAS groups for all four measures of alcohol use among Finnish adolescents.
Conclusions: This study indicated clear differences of socioeconomic inequalities in alcohol use between Chinese and Finnish adolescents. It suggested that interventions on adolescent alcohol use in China should be targeted on those who are from the high affluent family whereas in Finland efforts should be made to curb adolescents drinking across the socioeconomic spectrum.