Parenting style, distress, and problematic alcohol use in Bhutan

Background: Bhutan is a small landlocked country located between India and China that is largely rural and Buddhist. As the nation develops and adopts more Western practices, the nature of the relationship between its young people and alcohol is developing as well. Objectives: The present study examines how problematic alcohol use relates to parenting styles and distress in a sample of predominantly tertiary students. Methods: For this study, 245 young adults completed self-report measures of parenting style, distress, and alcohol-related problems. Results: Strong correlations were found indicating that more dysfunctional parenting styles were associated with greater distress and problematic alcohol use. Further analyses to evaluate the relationship between parenting styles and alcohol use found no role for moderation but a significant mediation which indicated that more dysfunctional parenting styles were associated with greater distress which in turn was associated with greater problematic alcohol use. Conclusions: These findings replicate those found in Western countries and imply that the same vulnerabilities to problematic alcohol use are also present in Bhutan.