---
title: "Psych News Alert: Facebook Content Can Signal Problem Drinking"
description: Need one more reason to lurk on your teenager’s Facebook page? It may tell you if he or she has a problem with alcohol. Researchers at the U...
image: https://alert.psychnews.org/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/teensonfacebook_57818902-Jun-24-2025-07-34-50-3684-PM.jpg
---

 10/14/11 12:00 AM

# Facebook Content Can Signal Problem Drinking

![Picture of Psychiatric News Alert](https://alert.psychnews.org/hs-fs/hubfs/Psych%20News%20Email%20Banners/PN-Blue-Box_rgb.png?width=50&name=PN-Blue-Box_rgb.png) [ Psychiatric News Alert ](https://alert.psychnews.org/author/psychiatric-news-alert)

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Need one more reason to lurk on your teenager’s Facebook page? It may tell you if he or she has a problem with alcohol. Researchers at the University of Washington and Seattle Children’s Research Institute reported in the October 3 online *Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine* the results of a survey that examined associations between displayed alcohol use and intoxication/problem drinking (I/PD) references on Facebook and self-reported problem drinking.

The study included undergraduate students at two state universities who had public Facebook profiles. The researchers found that displayed references to I/PD were positively associated with scores suggesting problem drinking as well as alcohol-related injury, and said their results suggest that clinical criteria for problem drinking can be applied to Facebook alcohol references.

To read about how early-life adversity and one particular gene variation can predispose teens to hazardous drinking, see *Psychiatric News* at [http://pn.psychiatryonline.org/content/46/7/16.1.full](http://pn.psychiatryonline.org/content/46/7/16.1.full) .

(Image: EDHAR/Shutterstock.com)

[alcohol use](https://alert.psychnews.org/tag/alcohol-use), [alcohol abuse](https://alert.psychnews.org/tag/alcohol-abuse), [teen drinking](https://alert.psychnews.org/tag/teen-drinking)

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