AIMS: To investigate if school-related contextual factors (school alcohol policy and school ethnic composition) explain episodic heavy drinking by individual students, while taking individual-level variables into account. DESIGN AND PARTICIPANTS: Data were derived from the 2003 Dutch National School Survey on Substance Use, a nationally representative cross-sectional study with a total of 7324 respondents aged 12-16 years. METHODS: Student-level data were collected by written questionnaire administered in classroom settings, assessing alcohol and drug use as well as socio-demographic and behavioural variables. School-level data were gathered by written questionnaire completed by the school principal, assessing school policy on substance use and school compositional factors. The data were analysed using a multi-level logistic regression model. FINDINGS: The study revealed an association between ethnic composition of the school and episodic heavy drinking: a relatively high percentage of ethnic minorities (10-30%) at the school was associated with a lower probability of episodic heavy drinking, but only in interaction with individual-level ethnicity. Thus, ethnic-minority students attending schools of high minority density had less risk of episodic heavy drinking (OR = 0.69, 95% CI: 0.47-1.00). None of the school policy factors was associated with episodic heavy drinking. CONCLUSIONS: Within a school context, peer modelling and reinforcement mechanisms can affect individual students' alcohol use, but a certain level of identification with the group and the resulting social control may be necessary. School policy seems to have no impact on students' alcohol use, possibly because students are faced with these only during special events, including school parties and excursions.
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