Abstract
Aim
The multicultural study aimed at examining alcohol consumption change or drinking change of English, French and Chinese speaking immigrants in Ottawa and Gatineau, Canada, and identifying demographic factors that impact the change.
Subjects and methods
In all, 810 immigrants of three language sub-groups were recruited by purposive-sampling. Using self-reports, respondents answered questions regarding drinking change and demography in the Multicultural Lifestyle Change Questionnaire in either the English, French or Chinese versions. Data on drinking were analyzed statistically.
Results
The immigrants of different gender, language and category sub-groups exhibited different drinking rates, drinking rates before immigration, drinking rates after immigration, drinking change rates and drinking belief change rates. Drinking change (drinking behavior change + drinking belief change) was correlated positively with mother tongue and negatively with gender. Drinking behavior change was negatively correlated with gender and category of immigration. Mother tongue and gender significantly impacted drinking change. Gender significantly impacted drinking behavior change.
Conclusion
The immigrants of different sub-groups in Canada experienced different drinking change. Mother tongue and gender were main impacting factors. Culture and acculturation were important contributing factors. Data of immigrant drinking change may provide evidence for drinking policy-making and policy-revising in Canada.
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Acknowledgements
The authors appreciate lingual support of the bilingual teachers, Claude Couture and Denis Mascotto in Vision Avenir, Gatineau, Québec, Canada. Particularly, the authors are very grateful for the assistance of immigrant health expert, Dr. Brian Gushulak in Immigration Health Consultants in Canada.
Conflict of interest
The authors declare that they have no conflict of interests.
Funding statement
The Immigrant Alcohol Consumption or Drinking Change study was part of the principal researcher’s (correspondent author) DrPH (Doctor of Public Health) project (multicultural lifestyle-change research project in Canada, which included smoking change, drinking change, mood change, sleep change, physical activity change, dietary change and health status change of English, French and Chinese speaking immigrants in Ottawa and Gatineau, Canada). The research project was funded by the corresponding author.
Ethical approval
The Immigrant Drinking Change study was part of a multicultural lifestyle change research project that was approved by the Flinders University Social and Behavioural Research Ethics Committee in Australia in 2010 and by the Office of Research Ethics and Integrity, University of Ottawa in Canada in 2014.
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Tang, N., MacDougall, C. Alcohol consumption change of English, French and Chinese speaking immigrants in Ottawa and Gatineau, Canada. J Public Health 23, 157–164 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10389-015-0666-7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10389-015-0666-7