Why do high school seniors drink?December 04, 2007Most high school seniors drink because they want to experiment with alcohol, some drink for the thrill of it, and others because it helps them relax. A new study finds that a fourth group of high school students share all those reasons for drinking, but they also drink to get away from problems and to deal with anger or frustration issues. Kids with multiple reasons to drink, including reasons related to coping with life, show the heaviest and most problematic drinking behaviors, according to the study published in the December issue of Prevention Science, a peer-reviewed journal of the Society for Prevention Research. The data for the study came from 1,877 students from the national Monitoring the Future survey conducted annually. "Our study found that for the graduating class of 2004, students who had multiple reasons to drink, including reasons related to coping, were also more likely to begin drinking at an earlier age, more likely to be drunk in the past year and more likely to drink before 4:00 pm, compared to students who drank to experiment with alcohol, to experience the thrill of drinking or just to relax," according to Donna Coffman, Ph.D., of Penn State. "It is important to know why high school seniors drink so parents, teachers and high school counselors can pay special attention to the needs of the small but high-risk group of seniors who offer multiple reasons for drinking and who also have anger or frustration issues. Research shows that drinking patterns established during adolescence are likely to continue through adulthood," according to Coffman. More than three-quarters of high school seniors have already experimented with alcohol, so it is too late to tell them 'not to drink,' or ask them to wait until they are of legal age. Kids who drink to help them deal with anger or frustration issues are not likely to benefit from a prevention program developed for kids who are just experimenting with alcohol, Coffman said. Coffman and her colleague Lori Palen, also from Penn State, said the purpose of their study was to identify the major motivations for drinking, find out if the motivations were different for boys and girls, and understand how the different motivations for drinking among boys and girls were related to drinking initiation, frequency of drunkenness and daytime drinking. "Boys were more likely to belong to the higher-risk group of thrill seekers, while girls were more likely to belong to the lowest level of risky drinking, the experimenters. Both boys and girls who drank just to experiment with alcohol were also more likely to initiate drinking at a later age, compared to those who drank for other reasons" Coffman said. Compared to the experimenters, boys who reported drinking before 4 p.m.were eight times more likely to belong to the highest-risk group that drank for multiple reasons; girls who drank before 4 p.m. were six times more likely to belong to the group that drank for multiple reasons. Coffman said that their study looked at a representative sample of one graduating class. "We cannot say our results apply to all graduating classes after 2004, but the findings should certainly be useful to educators, prevention experts and parents." Previous studies have found that alcohol use reaches its peak level during and immediately after high school graduation. It remains high through the age of 25, "that is why the senior year of high school is a critical point for which to understand the motives for drinking and to establish healthier alcohol use behaviors," Coffman said. Society for Prevention Research |
|||||||||||||||||||||
| Related Drinking Current Events and Drinking News Articles Tiny bubbles clean oil from water Small amounts of oil leave a fluorescent sheen on polluted water. Oil sheen is hard to remove, even when the water is aerated with ozone or filtered through sand. MIT scientists pinpoint origin of dissolved arsenic in Bangladesh drinking water Researchers in MIT's Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering believe they have pinpointed a pathway by which arsenic may be contaminating the drinking water in Bangladesh, a phenomenon that has puzzled scientists, world health agencies and the Bangladeshi government for nearly 30 years. Pushing light beyond its known limits Scientists at the University of Adelaide have made a breakthrough that could change the world's thinking on what light is capable of. oo much selenium can increase your cholesterol A new study from the University of Warwick has discovered taking too much of the essential mineral selenium in your diet can increase your cholesterol by almost 10%. Consumption of certain fish during pregnancy associated with poorer cognitive performance Children who eat fish more than 3 times per week show a worse performance in the general cognitive, executive and perceptual-manipulative areas. The use of stem cells in regenerative medicine may also be detrimental for health The use of stem cells in regenerative medicine is not always beneficial for human health, it may even be harmful according to a work done by the University of Granada and University of León. Scientists have demonstrated that transplantation of human mononuclear cells isolated from umbilical cord blood exerted a deleterious effect in rats with liver cirrhosis. Athletes on performance enhancers more likely to abuse alcohol, other drugs College athletes who use performance-enhancing substances may be at heightened risk of misusing alcohol and using recreational drugs as well, according to new research in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs. Coffee break: Compound brewing new research in colon, breast cancer A compound in coffee has been found to be estrogenic in studies by Texas AgriLife Research scientists. Scientists decipher the formation of lasting memories Researchers at Karolinska Institutet have discovered a mechanism that controls the brain's ability to create lasting memories. In experiments on genetically manipulated mice, they were able to switch on and off the animals' ability to form lasting memories by adding a substance to their drinking water. Scientists call for ban on alcohol-industry sponsorship of sport The alcohol industry's sponsorship of sport should be banned and replaced with a dedicated alcohol tax modelled on those employed by some countries for tobacco, say scientists. More Drinking Current Events and Drinking News Articles |
|||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||||