Students who are popular in high school are more likely to engage in teen alcohol abuse, according to an expert at the University of North Carolina.
- Dr. Joseph Allen has been following a group of teenagers since they were 13 years old, who are now freshmen in college.
- He found that the ones best liked by their peer group in high school were more likely to drink and abuse drugs.
- Dr. Allen thought this might no longer be the case once they entered college, because peers are more academically homogeneous in college.
- However, he found that popular students are still more likely to drink at higher levels in college than their less popular peers.
"Popular kids are well-socialized, and being part of well-socialized as an adolescent includes such things as drinking," he said.
Posted By: Aspen Education Group