Young People and Alcohol
Dr Kate Crawford
The growing concern over youthful binge drinking prompted hinterland resident, Doctor Kate Crawford to find out from young people themselves what causes them to drink excessively. Dr Crawford is a development researcher who helps people to deal with their changing environments.
The recent focus by senior media personnel and politicians on the issue of young people ‘binge’ drinking has been difficult to ignore. Video clips of young people having difficulty standing in the street and being escorted by police remind parents of their worst nightmares. A series of street conversations with young people, from the Hinterland, aged between 13 and 29 years provides a younger perspective and some food for thought.
Everyone agreed that alcohol was very easy to obtain and that many young people start experimenting with alcoholic drinks from early puberty. Most had stories to tell about their parents, usually fathers, doing the same thing when they were young. Most do not believe that the situation is worse for their generation, just that ‘there are more people now so it is more obvious’. However, when asked for their opinions about why young people were binge drinking there were some differences between the responses of younger boys and girls and young adults.
Younger boys and girls are clearly following the media debate with interest and are learning from it. One young woman indicated that her younger sister had expressed interest in the idea that one could obtain alcohol from sources such as vanilla essence. Most opposed the tax on ‘alcopops’ and agreed that although shared bottles of spirits were easy to get they made it harder to keep track of alcohol intake.
For young women the key reasons for drinking are a need to, experiment, to fit in and have fun with their peer group at parties. As one young woman put it: ‘If your group goes out drinking then you do that too.’ Several girls also suggested that people, who had very strict parents, who took a zero tolerance approach to alcohol at home, often rebelled and drank to excess when at parties. There was a consensus about the value of support from and discussion with families.
For boys and young men the responses were thoughtful and more complex. Several suggested that drinking allowed them, and their friends, to escape reality when things were bad. One younger boy suggested that depression and sadness were important reasons for experimenting with alcohol. Boredom, nothing to do, and playing around with their friends were also given as reasons for drinking. One young man claimed that his working male friends, in their early twenties, each spend at least $50 dollars during the week on beer and about $150 on drinks at the weekends. He explained that they have little spare time and no other interests or hobbies. Drinking is the main interest and social activity of the group.
Perhaps it is a result of the media focus, but no-one mentioned drinking with other older people in the community or their families.
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