New Data Shows Fathers Missing Key Opportunity to Be More Active inPreventing Drug and Alcohol Use among their Kids New York, NY (June 16, 2009) –
New data from the 14th annual national survey of parents’ attitudes about teen drug and alcohol use by the nonprofit Partnership for a Drug-Free America and MetLife Foundation reveals dads take a much more passive role than moms when it comes to preventing substance abuse in their families.
As Father’s Day draws near, this new data underscores a unique opportunity for fathers to get more involved and engage further with their children on this critical health issue. New research from the Partnership/MetLife Foundation Parents Attitude Tracking Study (PATS) reveals dramatic differences between mothers and fathers:
· Fathers were nearly three times as likely to believe that drug education should take place in school (34 percent of fathers versus 10 percent of mothers)
. Additionally, fathers report having greater difficulty reconciling the desire to have their child see them as a friend with the need to set rules and monitor their teens. Fathers placed greater value on being their child’s friend (59 percent of fathers, 51 percent of mothers) although the majority of parents thought friendship with their child was important. Fathers were far more likely (18 percent) to report having difficulty enforcing rules about alcohol, cigarette or drug use than mothers (10 percent).
“Fathers have real power in influencing the decisions teens make for themselves, yet many dads find it difficult to talk with their kids about drugs and alcohol,” said Partnership President Steve Pasierb.
Visit the Partnership for Drug-Free America’s Parent Toolkit available for free download at http://www.drugfree.org/ for tips to help dads get the conversation going with their teens. For more information or to schedule an interview with an expert or to speak with a dad who can speak to the challenges of raising tweens and teens, please contact Candice Besson at candice_besson@drugfree.org or 212-973-3517.
About PATS: PATS is a nationally projectable survey of 1,004 parents of children in grades 4-12 and was conducted in-home by the Partnership with major funding beginning in 2008 from MetLife Foundation.
------------------------------------------------------------
The Partnership for a Drug-Free AmericaWorking with parents to prevent and get help for teen drug and alcohol abuse.
Posts
