European Americans (Flory, Lynam, Milich, Leukefeld, & Clayton, 2004; McCarthy, Miller, Smith, & Smith, 2001). It is possible that the inconsistency in findings may be in part due to differences in which additional variables are included in model tests; in particular, the inclusion of childhood conduct problems may be important. Chartier et al.’s (2009) study included the influence of both conduct disorder and positive alcohol expectancies on age of onset of drinking; they found that childhood conduct problems predicted age of onset for African American youth, but not for European American youth, whereas positive expectancies significant predicted age of onset for European American youth, but not for African American youth. Overall, it appears to be the case that at least some African American youth who have learned to associate drinking with positive consequences are more likely to drink and to drink heavily compared to African Americans who hold fewer positive expectancies about alcohol; however, this effect may depend on whether or not they experience conduct problems during childhood.
