A new study concludes that parental involvement is more
important than the school environment in preventing or limiting
children’s use of alcohol or marijuana.
Researchers evaluated data from more than 10,000 students, parents,
teachers and school administrators. They looked at “family social
capital”—bonds between parents and children—as well as “school social
capital”—a school’s ability to provide a positive environment for
learning, Science Daily reports.
Measures of family social capital include trust, open communication
and active engagement in a child’s life, while school social capital
includes student involvement in extracurricular activities, teacher
morale and the teachers’ ability to address student needs.
“Parents play an important role in shaping the decisions their
children make when it comes to alcohol and marijuana,” study co-author
Dr. Toby Parcel of North Carolina State University said in a news release.
“To be clear, school programs that address alcohol and marijuana use
are definitely valuable, but the bonds parents form with their children
are more important. Ideally, we can have both.”
The researchers found students with high levels of family social
capital and low school social capital levels were less likely to have
used either marijuana or alcohol, or to have used them less frequently,
compared with students with high levels of school social capital and low
family social capital.
The study appears in Journal of Drug Issues.
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