Problematic familial alcohol use and heavy episodic drinking among upper secondary students: a moderator analysis of teacher-rated school ethos.

Problematic familial alcohol use was associated with an increased likelihood of heavy episodic drinking among upper secondary students (OR 1.36, 95% CI 1.12-1.65). Cross-level interactions revealed that the association was weaker among students attending schools with higher levels of teacher-rated ethos. This was true for overall school ethos (OR 0.79, 95% CI 0.65-0.97) and for four of five studied sub-dimensions of ethos: staff stability (OR 0.78, 95% CI 0.65-0.95); teacher morale (OR 0.79, 95% CI 0.65-0.97); student focus (OR 0.80, 95% CI 0.65-0.97); and academic atmosphere (OR 0.79, 95% CI 0.65-0.96). The sub-dimension "structure and order for dealing with unwanted behaviour" did however not moderate the association between problematic familial alcohol use and heavy episodic drinking (OR 0.95, 95% CI 0.77-1.18).