ALCOHOL SOCIALIZATION IN ITALY AND FINLAND 2

Alcohol Socialization in Italy and Finland

For Italians, the first time a person takes alcohol beverages is usually in family
settings and under parents’ supervision (Rolando et al., 2012). For instance, children may be
given some wine during meals by their parents or grandparents. The first time of alcohol
intake is, therefore, associated with family traditions and family events. Since the first
experience with alcohol takes place in happy settings and with the blessings of family
members, Italians tend to have positive images and memories of their first encounter with
alcohol (Rolando et al., 2012). Moreover, Italian society encourages a moderate consumption
of alcohol. There is, therefore, no stigma associated with alcohol drinking. The lack of stigma
and first drink settings explain why Italians are more open about recounting their first
experience with alcohol.
In Finland, people often take their first alcoholic drink with their peers and away from
their parents (Rolando et al., 2012). Also, while an Italian’s first encounter with an alcoholic
beverage is usually wine, Finns’ first encounter with an alcoholic beverage is often spirit.
Therefore, the first experience with alcohol is likely to have led to intoxication, the primary
purpose of drinking in Finland. A person’s parents’ reactions when they first drank alcohol are
also likely to have been negative. Therefore, Finns do not have positive memories of the first
time that they took alcohol as Italians do (Rolando et al., 2012). The negative attitudes
towards taking alcohol in Finnish society also means that Finns are more likely than Italians
to be uncomfortable or reserved when talking about the first time that they took alcohol.
In conclusion, differences in socialization around alcohol intake have had a significant
impact not only on the settings in which Italians and Finns first take an alcoholic drink but
also how they remember their first encounter with alcohol. In Italy, where moderate drinking
is encouraged, and the first intake of alcohol occurs in family settings, people remember their

ALCOHOL SOCIALIZATION IN ITALY AND FINLAND 3
first alcohol intake positively. That is not the case with Finland, where drinking is
discouraged.

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References

Rolando, S., Beccaria, F., Tigerstedt, C., & Törrönen, J. (2012). First drink: What does it
mean? The alcohol socialization process in different drinking cultures. Drugs:
education, prevention, and policy, 19(3), 201-212.