Alcohol Abuse Among Teenagers in Australia

This essay reviews literature on alcohol abuse among teenagers in Australia in the recent two decades. It discusses the factors that contribute to alcohol consumption among teenagers and proposes remedies to reduce alcohol intake.

Running head: ALCOHOL ABUSE AMONG TEENAGERS IN AUSTRALIA
Alcohol abuse among teenagers in Australia
Name:
Institution:

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Introduction
Alcohol abuse among teenagers in Australia has been a major issue of concern over the
years. Alcohol is a substance which when taken affects the normal functioning of the body. In
this essay literature review of various authors is keenly looked into in order to determine the
reported cases related to alcohol consumption among teenagers in Australia in the recent two
decades.
With a focus on China, Janssen, Treloar, Merrill, & Jackson (2018) sampled a group
adolescents aged 14-19 years. It was realized that more than one adolescent among every four
consumes alcohol weekly. At least three out of every ten consumes it on a daily basis due to
expectations that they will be models to others. They took a convenient sample of parents and
adolescents who attended a series of focus groups to determine alcohol consumption among
teenagers where schools were asked to advertise the event and invite parents to participate.
Snowball sampling was used to enhance recruitment.
The findings from the focus groups were that parents negotiated that alcohol is not
perceived as a drug in some communities within the Eastern Asia. Therefore, some of them
provided alcohol to their teenagers as a means to make them avoid other drugs which are said to
be more destructive and detrimental compared to alcohol which most of the confessed to have
used when they were mere teenagers. They also stated that the accidents associated with alcohol
are minimal and cannot be compared with accidents associated with other drugs such as bhang
cocaine heroin and glue. Most of the parents had no extra notions on drinking therefore they
described it as ‘drinking to get drunk’. Legalization of any drug as recreational increases
adolescent’s willingness to use alcohol. Most of them were not worried of the long-term risks of

ALCOHOL ABUSE AMONG TEENAGERS IN AUSTRALIA 3
alcohol consumption. The parents through the help of the trainers in the focus groups adopted a
number of strategies to reduce alcohol consumption among the adolescents.
The strategies were providing teenagers with mobile phones to keep them busy on the
internet, listening to music and watching relevant games, transporting teenagers to parties to
interact with fellows so as to reduce loneliness that leads to alcohol consumption and setting
clear guidelines on alcohol consumption so as to minimize the intake. Waldron, Malone, McGue,
and Iacono (2017) denote that parents living in rural areas are more lenient therefore, their
adolescent children compared to their urban counterparts consume a lot of alcohol due to little or
lack of proper guidelines and regulations on alcohol. Parents living in rural areas were urged to
take an initiative to closely monitor their adolescent children so as to minimize peer pressure
which leads to excessive alcohol consumption. Psychological distress as said by Kelly et al leads
teenagers to associate distress with alcohol intake.
Waldron, Malone, McGue, & Iacono (2017) on genetic and environmental changes of co
variation Latest data and influencing factors”, it is stated that young people who consume
alcohol are at a higher risk because they consume excessively at a single occasion. Waldron et al.
(2017) study on secondary school students in Australia reported that 17.4% students consumed a
whole standard alcohol in the past week. 6.4% consumed at a risk of short term harm such
injuries, conflicts resulting from drunkenness, risky sexual activities and hospitalization due to
intoxication.
The influencing factors for the high alcohol consumption rates in Australia were
identified as: Parents intake of alcohol during pregnancy which leads to genetically urge to
consume alcohol. Exposure to intake of alcohol at a tender age was also noted as a factor;

ALCOHOL ABUSE AMONG TEENAGERS IN AUSTRALIA 4
teenagers brought up by drinking parents are more likely to become drunkards since they notice
no big deal in doing it. Drinking to test how it feels to be drunk has also led to emergence of
chain drunkards among teenagers aged 14-17 years. Environmental factors were also identified
as a major factor that leads to drinking since parents will expose teenagers brought up in an
atmosphere of drunkards to it not necessarily but by the role models they develop alongside
drinking. Peer pressure was not left out since friendship is one of the major instances where one
can be drugged into behaviors that are retorted and silly without their realization of it.
The remedies proposed were aimed at reducing this heavy intake of alcohol. High
taxation on alcoholic products is one of the major remedy that has seen intake of alcohol
immensely reduce among teenagers since most of them could not afford purchasing the products.
Reduction of supply has also seen alcohol consumption reduce by a higher percentage over the
years. The supply was to be limited only to hotels and restaurants, clubs and bars which are
registered to operate. Operational hours are also to be considered and reduced to ensure no clubs
and bars run throughout the day and this served as a major significance in the reduction of
alcohol consumption.
The education department adopted an extensive curriculum on how to deal with drugs
and alcohol consumption. This is aimed at educating teenagers on how to handle their emotions,
friendships and making them aware of the factors that lead to alcoholism and ways to avoid such
tempting instances. Family focused programmers that reflect on parenting styles were also
initiated and were aimed at making parents more restrictive on alcohol consumption and to take
stern actions against teenage alcoholism.

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Drug and Alcohol Population and Community Programs Unit (DAPCP) developed
programs such as peer-led approaches, school-based interventions and family support with an
aim of providing guidelines to the teenagers at a personal level, group level, school level and
family level in order to eradicate high levels of alcohol consumption among the teenagers. A step
has also been taken to educate pregnant women and their partners on the dangers of alcohol
consumption during pregnancy and the possible outcomes of raising drunkard children.
Heavy advertisement done on alcoholic products has greatly contributed to alcohol
consumption amongst teenagers. The government through media verification boards has chose to
limit the number of times alcoholic drinks are advertised and its timing pushed to late evening
when adolescents are off to sleep so as to limit its influence to alcoholism. The high range of
factors that the government is involved in are providing support to the teenagers and urging
parents to take part in ensuring that their children are safe and not exposed to risky alcoholism.
The government has issued quite number of sanctions on alcohol dealers including warning
them from selling alcohol to underage people which has also seen a decline in alcohol
consumption among the teenagers.
Rusby, Light, Crowley, & Westling, (2018) investigated on parents relationship to
teenagers and alcohol related social norms among youths aged 14-17 years in the United States.
Using protocol for a respondent driven sampling study identified that some social beliefs, norms
and customs passed from elders, parents, relatives and peers to teenagers has greatly contributed
to early alcohol drinking behaviors among a majority of teenagers. Using a cross sectional
quantitative study, 672 adolescents from sporting groups were sampled.

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Data was collected, analyzed descriptively and demographically to explore the
connection between common understanding of norms and behaviors among individuals in the
United States and how they translate into reported alcoholism among the teenagers. A social
norm is an expectation of acceptance of a behavior shared in common among a group of
individuals. Alcohol is used in most cultures in Australia to mark rites of passage. Adolescents
who attend these parties have access to taking alcohol since this is a major component of the
ceremony.
Due to little or no restriction teenagers take advantage and exposed to risky alcohol, the
study found out that drinking leads to poor conduct and behaviors such as uncontrolled sexual
behavior and harassment, fighting resulting from drunkenness, injuries due to falls bans and
sometimes road trauma and sometimes hospitalization due to intoxication. It was also reported
that lower levels of attachment to the community is another major factor that has led to
drunkenness among adolescents in Australia. These teenagers who have little or no guardians to
show them the way find their way into drinking alcohol as a way to escape the challenges they
face in life and also as a way to obtain fulfillment and avoid pressure mounting from deep
thoughts. Those teenagers who are strongly affiliated to heavy chain drunkards find their way
into drinking since their models may introduce them into drinking as a way to spent their leisure,
enjoy themselves and also as a way to reduce life associated tensions.
Kelly, Chan, Mason, and Williams (2016) on effects of alcohol on mid schooling
teenagers, denote that it leads to poor academic performance and even drop out. The models may
provide for them money as they start drinking and along the way they may have to find it rough
since their models may dislike them due too much dependency. Access to alcohol has not also
been left out since some teenagers simply drink because alcohol is at their reach (Nickerson et

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al., 2014). This shows that if alcohol was put out of their reach then they would be safe from
alcohol consumption but due to parental negligence teenagers have become uncontrollable in
issues to deal with alcohol
Alcohol consumption among teenagers in Australia has been brought about by a number
of factors which when handled with slight seriousness generations to come can enjoy an
atmosphere that is free from alcohol consumption. Janssen et al. (2018) on alcohol expectations
states that teenager’s get drunk with expectations that they will be models. Parental negligence
has been a major factor which has led to increased alcohol consumption by teenagers. Parents in
the rural areas do nothing to restrict or guide their adolescents on alcohol related issues while
those in urban areas over-emphasize the advantages of alcoholism forgetting the negative effects
of it.
Norms and customs have also taken center stage where alcohol marks many rites of
passage and adolescents are allowed to drink freely (Hemphill et al., 2014). Peer pressure
majorly in schools has led to brooding students who are drunkard folks. Wanting to know how it
feels to be drunk is a way peers lure others into alcoholism. On binge drinking Jones et al
mentions that adolescent’s perception on alcohol has led many into drunkenness the social media
has also been a negative platform where drinking and alcoholism is emphasized and the effects
of it are hidden from the general public hence teenagers are lured through heavy advertisement
on alcoholic products.
Working parents spent too little or no time with their adolescent children hence they lack
parental guidance (Jones, Gordon, & Andrews, 2016). This leads them to seek help from people
who may mislead them or result to drinking as a way to stay sober and keep off loneliness.

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Socially unstable families where parents are in constant conflicts traumatize the teenagers who in
turn result into alcoholism as a way of escaping and releasing stress. Children brought up by
parents who brew local liquor get introduced to drunkenness at a tender age not necessarily by
parents but by the drunkards who invade their personal space therefore majority of the children
brought up in the slum areas are vulnerable to alcoholism.
Role models also play a major role in influencing the life of those who by all means try to
emulate them (Shih et al., 2015). For example if a teenager admires a given musician who drinks
alcohol, puffs bhang, injects cocaine and sniffs glue, the teenager will find possible ways to do
exactly what their models are doing no matter the cost. Such adolescents sometimes get involved
in criminal activities that endanger their lives while they are seeking to satisfy their ego. The
remedies to these factors are strict governance on liquor dealers and reducing operational hour’s
alcohol dealing agencies. parents both in rural and urban setting should play their role in bringing
up responsible future citizens. The social media platforms e.g. advertising should be regulated to
minimize exposure of teenagers to alcoholism. Norms and customs that are by passed by time
should be avoided at all cost.
Conclusion
Parental negligence has led to teenager’s alcohol consumption in Australia according to
Melissa L Graham et al. some parents go to an extent of providing alcohol to their teenagers
which is not only dangerous but also detrimental to the personality of the teenager. This however
has been corrected after a series of discussion where many parents took it positively and will
now guide their teens on alcoholism. Alcoholism is associated with a lot risks and dangers such
as injuries, sexual exploitation, intoxication and road trauma at times. For a student who drinks

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with either encounter failure in school or total school dropout. To get rid of these problems the
government parents and the entire community should come up ways to ensure that alcoholism is
at its lowest consumption amongst teenagers.

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