Social context factors, refusal self-efficacy, and alcohol use among female sex workers in China

Excessive alcohol use is considered as a health-risk behavior that may produce negative health outcomes. Examining predictors of alcohol use in social and individual contexts can advance understanding of why people indulge in alcohol use. Our research on female sex workers (FSWs) examined associations among several social context factors (alcohol use by family members, alcohol use by peers, and client-perpetrated pressure or violence), refusal self-efficacy, and alcohol use. Seven hundred FSWs were recruited from two cities in southern China. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to analyze the direct effects of alcohol use by family members, alcohol use by peers, and client-perpetrated pressure or violence on FSWs' alcohol use. In addition, the mediation effects of refusal self-efficacy were also examined in the SEM model. Results showed that alcohol use by family members and alcohol use by peers significantly predicted FSWs' alcohol use; the prediction effect of alcohol use by peers on FSWs' alcohol use was stronger than that of alcohol use by family members; client-perpetrated pressure or violence directly predicted FSWs' alcohol use and indirectly influenced FSWs' alcohol use through refusal self-efficacy; refusal self-efficacy directly predicted FSWs' alcohol use. Administrators of effective intervention programs focused on alcohol use in China should adopt a multilevel approach to reduce negative social influences, particularly the influence from peer and sex work establishments on FSWs' alcohol use. Meanwhile, training to improve refusal self-efficacy should also be included in the intervention programs to reduce FSWs' alcohol use.