A report said that young people's attendance at sexual health clinics provided a unique opportunity to communicate key messages relating to alcohol consumption. There was 'clear evidence' linking alcohol consumption to poor sexual health, particularly among young people.
Source: Alcohol and Sex: A cocktail for poor sexual health – A report of the Alcohol and Sexual Health Working Party, Royal College of Physicians
Links: Report | RCP press release
Date: 2011-Dec
An article examined how alcohol policies (and various sources providing information about alcohol's effects) affected risk perceptions about alcohol among adolescents in Europe. Most alcohol policies tested had no significant influence. The influence of media campaigns was only marginal.
Source: Till Boluarte, Elias Mossialos, and Caroline Rudisill, 'The impact of alcohol policies across Europe on young adults? perceptions of alcohol risks', CESifo Economic Studies, Volume 57 Issue 4
Links: Abstract
Date: 2011-Dec
A systematic review of research explored how young people aged 11-18 gained access to tobacco. Access patterns were shaped by age, gender, and whether young people were occasional or regular smokers. Access was facilitated by the sociability and visibility of access and the apparent complicity of adults: but risk, cost, and young age (or age appearance) acted as barriers to obtaining cigarettes.
Source: Katy Sutcliffe, Ginny Brunton, Katherine Twamley, Kate Hinds, Alison O?Mara-Eves, and James Thomas, Young People's Access to Tobacco: A mixed-method systematic review, Report 1918, EPPI-Centre (Institute of Education/University of London)
Date: 2011-Dec
A study of over 15,000 children found that parenting style was one of the most important and statistically reliable influences on whether a child would drink responsibly in adolescence and adulthood. 'Tough love' parenting, combining consistent warmth and discipline, was the most effective parenting style to prevent unhealthy relationships with alcohol right into the mid-thirties age range.
Source: Jamie Bartlett, Matt Grist, and Bryanna Hahn, Under the Influence, Demos
Links: Report | Demos press release | BBC report | Guardian report | Telegraph report
Date: 2011-Sep
A study explored how alcohol was represented in media consumed by young people, young people's own interpretations of these representations, and the influence of the media and celebrities on young people's attitudes to alcohol and their alcohol consumption. It also examined the views of media professionals on the production of alcohol-related content, the potential influence of the media on young consumers, and the role of the media in health promotion.
Source: Amanda Atkinson, Gill Elliott, Mark Bellis, and Harry Sumnall, Young People, Alcohol and the Media, Joseph Rowntree Foundation
Date: 2011-Sep
An article examined the effect of alcohol on adolescent violence using survey data from 30 European countries. Drinking had a strong effect on adolescent violence in Nordic and eastern European countries, but had little or no effect in Mediterranean countries.
Source: Richard Felson, Jukka Savolainen, Thoroddur Bjarnason, Amy Anderson, and Tusty Zohra, 'The cultural context of adolescent drinking and violence in 30 European countries', Criminology, Volume 49 Issue 3
Links: Abstract
Date: 2011-Aug
A study found that family and friends had a strong influence on teenagers' drinking patterns, and were stronger influences than some other factors – such as individual well-being, celebrity figures, and the media.
Source: Pamela Bremner, Jamie Burnett, Fay Nunney, Mohammed Ravat, and Willm Mistral, Young People, Alcohol and Influences: A study of young people and their relationship with alcohol, Joseph Rowntree Foundation
Links: Report | Findings | JRF press release | Ipsos MORI press release | BBC report
Date: 2011-Jun
A study found higher alcohol-related hospital admissions in areas with higher rates of teenage pregnancy and sexually transmitted infection. Services that aimed to address teenage conception should include alcohol consumption in young men as well as young women, since alcohol misuse in both sexes independently predicted teenage pregnancy and sexual infections.
Source: Penny Cook, Corinne Harkins, Michela Morleo, Ian Jarman, Claire Tiffany, Mark Bellis, Xin Zhang, Clare Perkins, and Penelope Phillips-Howard, Contributions of Alcohol Use to Teenage Pregnancy and Sexually Transmitted Infection Rates, Centre for Public Health (Liverpool John Moores University)
Links: Report
Date: 2011-Jun
A study examined the links between young people's inter-ethnic friendships and their drinking patterns and behaviours.
Source: Anthony Goodman, Rachel Hurcombe, Jane Healy, Sue Goodman, and Emma Ball, Teenage Drinking and Interethnic Friendships, Joseph Rowntree Foundation
Date: 2011-May
A think-tank report examined the causes of, and possible responses to, binge drinking among young adults aged 18-25. Any response to binge drinking should be realistic, targeted, and have three aims: to reduce the frequency and intensity of binge-drinking episodes and associated behaviours; to reduce costs that stemmed from binge drinking; and to encourage a more responsible attitude toward alcohol consumption over the long term.
Source: Jamie Bartlett and Matt Grist, Under the Influence: What we know about binge-drinking, Demos
Date: 2011-Apr
A think-tank report said that girls were significantly more successful than boys in making the transition to adulthood: they did better in their exams, more of them went to university, and those aged 22-29 earned 2.1 per cent more than their male peers. But teenage girls had worse rates of binge drinking and physical inactivity than their male peers; and they had higher rates of teen pregnancy than their European counterparts.
Source: Richard Darlington, Julia Margo, and Sarah Sternberg, with Beatrice Karol Burks, Through the Looking Glass, Demos
Links: Report | Summary | Guardian report | Telegraph report
Date: 2011-Apr
A study examined the influence of friendship groups on teenagers' drinking, using data from the Belfast Youth Development Study.
Source: Andrew Percy, Joanne Wilson, Claire McCartan, and Patrick McCrystal, Teenage Drinking Cultures, Joseph Rowntree Foundation
Date: 2011-Feb
Researchers said that every pound invested in specialist drug and alcohol services for young people saved the taxpayer between £5 and £8 over a lifetime, based on the most conservative assumptions.
Source: Frontier Economics, Specialist Drug and Alcohol Services for Young People: A Cost Benefit Analysis, Research Report RR087, Department for Education
Links: Report | Brief | DrugScope press release
Date: 2011-Feb
A briefing paper examined issues associated with the measurement of alcohol use by young people.
Source: Gareth Hagger-Johnson, Alcohol Use in Youth, Survey Resources Network
Links: Paper
Date: 2011-Feb
A briefing paper summarized the outcome of five research projects aimed at understanding how family and friendship groups influenced young people's drinking cultures. It examined the implications for policy and practice interventions that aimed to reduce alcohol-related harm among young people.
Source: Arun Sondhi and Claire Turner, The Influence of Family and Friends on Young People's Drinking, Joseph Rowntree Foundation
Links: Briefing
Date: 2011-Jan
An article examined the association between childhood physical/sexual abuse and illicit drug use in later life. There was 'tentative support' for some degree of association. The authors highlighted the difficulties involved in drawing conclusions due to the complex and multifaceted nature of drug use, and the variability in the quality of the research available in this area.
Source: Sophia Butt, Shihning Chou, and Kevin Browne, 'A rapid systematic review on the association between childhood physical and sexual abuse and illicit drug use among males', Child Abuse Review, Volume 20 Issue 1
Links: Abstract
Date: 2011-Jan