Underage 'risky' Drinking : Motivations and Outcomes

Drawing on interviews and focus group discussions with young people, this topical report explores the motivations, values and meanings that underage young people (aged 14 to 17 years) ascribe to heavy single-session drinking in unsupervised locations.

It considers the social and health-related behaviours, including additional risk-taking behaviours, that may be associated with such drinking and examines how behaviour differs among contrasting groups of young people according to their age, gender, ethnicity, socio-economic status and rural or urban residence.

The study identifies that those at the younger end of the group are at greatest risk from the effects of binge-drinking, and are naive about the effects of drinking.

The authors suggest how practitioners and policy makers might address the problems associated with underage drinking.

They also highlight the need for the delivery of harm-minimisation messages to young people in order to reduce the short- and long-term effects of binge-drinking, including alcohol problems in later life. Underage 'risky' drinking offers the latest evidence about young people's drinking habits and related behaviour and highlights areas for further research.

It also guides future practice and provides a forum for discussion and debate with young people using "real-life" examples.