Parents who partied raise kids who party

A new survey released today found that parents’ personal past experiences with alcohol and drugs at prom and graduation parties influences the rules they set for their own teens.

Partnership for a Drug-Free America and MetLife Foundation commissioned the survey which found:

*  Among parents who drank or used drugs, 66 percent  set a ‘zero-tolerance policy’ for their teens

* Among parents who did not drink or use drugs, 87 percent set ‘zero-tolerance’ rules for their children.

The survey also questioned the children and found a correlation between expectations and behavior:

* Among the teens whose parents set the strictest rules, 16 percent reported they were likely to use drugs or alcohol at prom or graduation parties.

*Among the teens whose parents didn’t set these boundaries, 45 percent reported they were likely to drink or use drugs at these parties.

Steve Pasierb, president and CEO of the Partnership responded to the results in a  press release: “Parents can’t let past drug use or personal experiences at their prom parties influence their attitudes toward their kids’ use today,” he said. “The drug abuse landscape teens face today – which includes abuse of prescription and over-the-counter medicines – is drastically different than when today’s parents were teens. We know that parents are the greatest point of leverage in preventing drug and alcohol abuse, and this survey reinforces the fact that kids live up to parents’ expectations as well as down to them.”

Read the entire release here.

So, should parents who partied as teens set tougher rules for their own children or is that hypocritical parenting?