The Relationship between Alcohol Drinking Indicators and Self-Rated Mental Health (SRMH): Standardized European Alcohol Survey (SEAS).

Given that the self-perception of mental health is an important predictor of health outcomes and wellbeing, it is important to identify the indicators of mental health associated with alcohol consumption in order to reduce alcohol-related harms. This study used data from the cross-sectional RARHA SEAS survey (2015) in the Croatian general population, aged 18-64 years (n = 1500). Several aspects of drinking behaviors and alcohol-related harms were measured, as well as personal and sociodemographic factors. Logistic regression found a significant association between alcohol's harm to others (AHTO) and poor self-rated mental health (SRMH) (OR = 0.752; 95% CI 0.601-0.941) in the total sample, as well as in the group of participants who rarely drank alcohol (OR = 0.504; 95% CI 0.322-0.787) in the last 12 months. More frequent consumers reported poor SRMH if they had at least one harmful effect from drinking (OR 0.538; 95% CI 0.295-0.980). Younger age, higher education, professional activity, and living with someone else in a household contributed to better SRMH. AHTO has been identified as a strong predictor of poor SRMH in the general population. Targeted public health and preventive measures are needed with specific approaches for different types of alcohol consumers.

Gender Differences in the Prediction of Alcohol Intoxication among Adolescents.

BACKGROUND: Alcohol is one of the most commonly consumed substances in adolescence and can lead to many (mental) health problems. This study aimed to examine social determinants related to family, peers and school achievement as risk factors for alcohol intoxication (AI) among adolescents and to examine whether these risk factors differ in their prediction of AI concerning potential gender differences. METHODS: The data used in this study were obtained from the cross-sectional "European School Survey Project on Alcohol and Other Drugs" and involved 2558 participants who were turning 16 in the year of the research. Multinomial and binary logistic regressions were performed for each AI indicator (lifetime, in the last 12 months, in the last 30 days and heavy episodic drinking (HED) in the last 30 days) in relation to gender. RESULTS: School achievement, parental knowledge, peer pressure (for alcohol consumption and for AI) were found to be consistent predictors for varying AI among adolescents. High school achievement was found to be a protective factor for all AI indicators explored in our study, regardless of gender. Peer pressure made a more pronounced contribution to AI experience among boys, while parental knowledge demonstrated a more protective nature with regards to AI among girls. CONCLUSION: Overall, results indicate that social determinants as predictors of AI among adolescents are consistent across various AI indicators and confirm gender specific predictors for AI. These findings indicate the possible benefit of involving parents in preventive programs and of using a gender perspective regarding observed differences.

Croatian validation of the Compulsive Internet Use Scale.

Due to a growing need for the assessment of excessive Internet use and its potentially adverse effects, many Internet addiction assessment instruments have been developed. The aim of the present study was to analyse the factorial structure and psychometric properties of the Croatian version of one of the most commonly used instruments in this area, the Compulsive Internet Use Scale (CIUS). Data was collected in Croatia as part of the European School Survey Project on Alcohol and Other Drugs (ESPAD) in 2015 with students turning 16 years in the year of data collection (n = 2558). To evaluate the factorial structure of the CIUS, four models were tested using confirmatory factor analysis. A one-factor model with five correlated errors demonstrated overall best fit. The Croatian version of the 14-item CIUS demonstrated high internal consistency. There was a statistically significant and positive correlation between the CIUS and Internet use time, and a higher score on the CIUS was correlated with higher self-perceived problems related to social media use and gaming. This study demonstrated that the Croatian version of the CIUS offers high construct validity and reliability and can be adequately used in assessing unspecific compulsive Internet use among adolescents. Additionally, results support the use of shortened forms of the CIUS.