Parental Interaction with College Students: The Moderating Effect of Parental Contact on the Influence of Perceived Peer Norms on Drinking During the Transition to College

The first year of college is an important and risky time when future heavy drinking patterns may be set. Whether due to freedom from parental control, increased access to alcohol, or an increase in the salience of peer groups, a number of studies have shown that students increase their alcohol consumption in their first year of college. Although peer norms have been found to be a particularly strong correlate of alcohol consumption by college students, research suggests that parents also have an impact on the behaviors of their children in college. This study investigated the relationship between nonspecific parental contact and college student drinking during the transition to college, whether the gender of parent or child affected this relationship, and whether parental contact may have a moderating effect on the influence of peers on individual drinking. More frequent mother–daughter contact was associated with reduced drinking, and maternal contact appeared to moderate the influence of peer norms. Father–daughter contact was not associated with drinking, nor was contact with either parent for males. That mere frequency of nonspecific mother–daughter contact could moderate the well-established and powerful relationship between peer norms and drinking suggests a potential low-cost intervention for highrisk female first year students that would require no specialized training on the part of parents or administration.