Alcohol Consumption and Alcohol

¶ … teenage binge drinking. Teenage binge drinking remains a prevalent problem in the United States. As teenagers learn to socialize and transition into adulthood, many may engage in drinking as a type of leisure pursuit. While social drinking contributes to teenage drinking, a large part of it falls under the category of binge drinking. Binge drinking, especially heavy binge drinking can lead to development of alcohol use disorders. While anti-alcohol campaigns have been implemented in the past, some have failed to appeal to youth. This came because of not utilizing social media or including popular youth leaders in such campaigns. Beliefs surrounding binge drinking may be altered due to depression in teens. By examining the outcomes of focus groups and deciding on the messages that would be most effective to help discourage binge drinking, this paper hopes to create a framework from which an anti-binge drinking campaign could form.

Teenage Binge Drinking

Teenagers may experience problems with drugs and alcohol as they grow and mature into adulthood. Such pursuits are known as negative leisure pursuits and may include sexuality and gambling, among others. While some of these pursuits have leveled off (marijuana), and others have reached an all-time low (cigarette smoking), alcohol remains a major problem for teenagers (Mclean & Hurd, 2015). This is because of binge drinking. Social drinking makes up a smaller part of alcohol consumption than binge drinking, making it the main problem facing teenagers today concerning alcohol. "Binge drinking is consuming a large amount of alcohol over a short period of time. This means that at least twice within the past 2 weeks' males have consumed five drinks in a row and females four" (Mclean & Hurd, 2015, p. 114).

Statistics reveal binge drinking among adolescents has declines from 41.2% to 23.7% in 2012 (Mclean & Hurd, 2015). However, because binge drinking can result in aggressiveness, increased sexual activity, blackouts, fighting, and memory loss, the goal is to decrease the percentage to 0. Teenagers as early as 13 have been reported to engage in heavy drinking. "7% of eighth-grade male students and 8% of eighth-grade female students reported heavy drinking. By 12th grade, 28% males and 18% of females reported heavy drinking" (Milevsky, 2015, p. 164).

Teenage binge drinking can become a major health concern because of the increased likelihood of developing alcoholism early on and then carrying it into adulthood (Milevsky, 2015). While statistics reveal binge drinking among boys has declines in the last decade, it has remained unchanged for girls in the last fifteen years (Milevsky, 2015). To understand why binge drinking remains a problem in today's society, it is important to understand why teenagers engage in such potentially life-changing behavior. Such information may lead to a successful anti-binge drinking campaign that could help save lives and lead affected teenagers to get the help they need to transition successfully into adulthood.

An anti-binge drinking campaign is necessary because of the devastating consequences binge drinking can create for the young teen. Whether it is a potential for alcoholism or a transition to other, more potent substances, teenagers are at-risk for development of unhealthy habits from early binge drinking. Why are teenagers engaging in such an unhealthy behavior? Research shows teenagers may binge drink due to the desire that arises for independence (Milevsky, 2015). By engaging in risk-taking behaviors, teenagers feel it may help them navigate through their perceived rite of passage into adulthood.

Along with such notions, teenagers believe there is nothing wrong with drinking. By believing drinking to be an acceptable activity that is done with friends/peers, they may think there is no harm in it, especially if the drinking is not performed every night. However, binge drinking can be extremely harmful. Binge drinking can lead to alcohol poisoning, may make someone more likely to experience rape or contract STDs (Milevsky, 2015). Furthermore, binge drinking can create a false-sense of invulnerability that can lead to instances of criminal activity, that may lead to negative long-term consequences (Mclean & Hurd, 2015).

Teenagers must be educated on the dangers of alcohol and binge drinking. They must be told what can come from binge drinking and what such behavior may lead to, to help them avoid problems as they mature into adults. An anti-binge drinking campaign focused on education and awareness can help parents cope with the potential dangers of binge drinking by helping them realize the prevalence of teen binge drinking. The campaign can help teens by providing the information they need to understand the negative consequences of binge drinking. Therefore, a study is crucial for such a campaign, it will provide the information needed for implementation.

Literature Review

This literature review will cover several key areas related to teenage binge drinking. These areas are health belief model, the most affected populations for binge drinking, past studies on teenage binge drinking, and anti-alcohol campaigns directed at youth. This is meant to serve as a basis from which an analysis can be made on which efforts will bring the best outcome towards development of an anti-binge drinking campaign.

Health Belief Model

The need to understand and reduce teenage binge drinking has led to development of new theories that center around the health belief model. One such theory is the multitheory model of health behavior change. This theory involves the use of mental stimulation as well as imagery-based intervention methods in health behavior to help teenagers via changing motivation, attitudes, and intentions (Sharma, Knowlden, & Nahar, 2017. This a recently created theory that has yet to have enough information on it to base a study. However, it is a potential avenue to explore to help treat teenagers suffering from binge drinking and prevent teenagers from engaging in such an activity.

The Health Belief Model has been used in the past as a theoretical framework to help youth deal with binge drinking. One such study examined the effects of internet-based interventions and saw marked efficacy compared to print-based interventions. Some of the articles examined in the study referenced the use of the Health Belief Model. "Out of 14 articles, only 3 articles utilized a theory-based intervention into the study design and implementation of the intervention. Theories that were identified included Social Cognitive Theory and Health Belief Model, Social Norms Feedback Theory, and Social Norming Theory" (Bhochhibhoya, Hayes, Branscum, & Taylor, 2015, p. 530). The Health Belief Models enables one to describe and envisage health behaviors through focusing on an individual's beliefs and attitudes. (Bhochhibhoya, Hayes, Branscum).

The Health Belief Model when applied to teenage binge drinking, may help offer a new perspective into why teenagers engage in binge drinking. This can be done by exploring the perceptions teenagers may have on alcohol. As well as the beliefs, they may have concerning alcohol consumption and the act of being intoxicated.

Where Binge-Drinking is the Worst?

While binge drinking among teens is a problem affecting anyone regardless of class, race, gender, or geographical region, certain demographics may point to a higher consumption of alcohol. For instance, here are five criteria that point towards a higher potential for binge drinking:

1. males tend to drink more than females

2. whites drink more than blacks

3. people from New Hampshire drink more than people from New York

4. people from a wealthier background drink more than those from a poorer background

5. gay people drink more than straight people (Fahey & Miller, 2013).

Taking into consideration these statistics, white, gay males from wealthy backgrounds may be most likely to participate in binge drinking than any other demographic. Such information can help create a more effective anti-binge drinking campaign because it will allow efforts to be focused on the most affected populations.

Past Studies on Teenage Binge Drinking

Past studies covering adolescent binge drinking demonstrated markedly negative effects on the brain. One study revealed brain damage that resulted in long-term memory issues.

Adolescent onset of binge drinking predicted poorer performance on broader range of memory tests, including a more systematic test of spatial recognition memory, and an associative learning task. Our results are broadly consistent with findings in rodents that acute alcohol and stress exposure suppress neurogenesis in the adult hippocampus, which in turn impairs performance in high interference memory tasks, while adolescent onset binge drinking causes more extensive brain damage and cognitive deficits (Goldstein, Dery, Pilgrim, Ioan, & Becker, 2016, p. 251).

Information such as this can help teenagers understand the long-term consequences of binge drinking. If they see binge drinking can impair their memory, they may be willing to stop their alcohol consumption to prevent any potential damage to the brain.

The study also provided information on activities that can be affected from having poor memory. Tasks like memorization, a major part of learning can be affected (Goldstein, Dery, Pilgrim, Ioan, & Becker, 2016). This means teenagers that engage in binge drinking may develop learning problems later on that may lead to poor grades in high school or college. Because the academic career of a student relies on memory, this could be a great way to teach teenagers the dangers of binge drinking.

Another study focused on which drinking styles led to the development of alcohol use disorders (AUD). The study found binge drinking as one of the drinking styles that led to AUD. "patterns of teen drinking characterised by loss of control increase risk for AUD across young adulthood: loss of control over drinking; binge drinking, and heavy binge drinking (one wave OR 2.0, CI 1.4 to 2.8;)" (Olsson et al., 2016, p. e010455). Heavy binge drinking demonstrated the highest likelihood of a teen developing AUD. For teenagers to understand the effects of binge drinking, they need to realize the long-term side effects of binge drinking. With data showing development of AUD from binge drinking, teenagers may be less likely to engage in such activities. Overall, binge drinking can have a detrimental effect on the human body. The past two studies showed what could happen from binge drinking and what drinking styles may lead to AUD.

Past Anti-Drinking Campaigns

Anti-drinking campaigns in the past have been done alongside anti-drug campaigns. These campaigns have been performed across the globe, mainly aimed at youth. One such campaign concerned the use of mobile media to raise awareness among indigenous youth of the dangers of alcohol consumption. The study aimed to assess audience opinion of the campaign, audience awareness, and measure any variation in audience behaviors and attitudes towards drinking. The campaign efforts were direct towards the indigenous youth of the Kimberly and Broome regions through TV and radio.

The study found:

...inclusion of local youth in the advertisements and in the design and production of the campaign was a positive factor, and that both Indigenous and non-Indigenous youth use telephones and other aspects of mobile media for social networking and entertainment, displacing television viewing and radio listening to a significant extent (Lim, 2013, p. 96).

Such results indicated the need for future advertising campaigns with anti-alcohol focus, to concentrate efforts towards social media and mobile technology. Future campaigns should also include local youth or youth leaders that may appeal to teenagers in terms of increasing levels of engagement and interest in the campaign. Because teenagers are so active in social media, social media can become a great means of achieving the goal of reducing binge drinking while also keeping teenagers engaged and aware of the negative effects of alcohol. Another study focusing on past anti-alcohol campaigns noticed what can work and what does not work in keeping youth interested.

A 2014 study analyzed the social marketing efforts of Western governments to discourage drinking among youth. The researchers found promotion of negative campaign messages were less effective than promotion of positive campaign messages. "...positively framed value propositions that evoke happiness and love are more influential in the processing of an alcohol moderation message for alcohol consumers" (Previte, Russell-Bennett, & Parkinson, 2014, p. 12). Research perception into the influence of positive sentiments on understanding and processing a message on alcohol moderation launches a central path for future social marketing efforts and may help change the direction of anti-alcohol campaigns.

Why were Anti-Alcohol Campaigns Unsuccessful in the Past?

Past efforts to decrease alcohol use among youth or increase alcohol moderation were unsuccessful based on research because of the use of negative messages in such campaigns. The campaigns also failed to use social media or the internet in order to get the message across of the dangers of binge drinking. If these campaigns were to have included the potential risks of binge drinking in a positive way, using youth leaders' teenagers respected, the campaigns may have succeeded. By only demonstrating the negative effects of binge drinking, teenagers (based on research), were not interested or engaged enough to take heed of the campaign's message.

Teenagers need to feel positive when looking at a campaign message. If campaigns included messages of love in their anti-alcohol advertisements, then maybe teenagers looking may notice what the campaign wishes to promote, which is alcohol consumption moderation. Now that teenagers have grown accustomed to social media, anti-alcohol campaigns must focus their efforts in reaching kids through popular social networking sites like Facebook and Instagram. By appealing to youth on these platforms, they may increase the likelihood of getting their message across.

Implications of an Anti-Alcohol Campaign Versus an Anti-Binge Drinking Campaign

Anti-alcohol campaigns attempt to demonstrate the negative effects of alcohol. However, research revealed teenagers engage more in binge drinking than social drinking. Therefore, an anti-binge drinking campaign may prove more beneficial than an anti-alcohol campaign. This is because it is a more targeted effort and will help teenagers see the adverse effects of binge drinking. However, research shows the opposite. "An indirect effect of health message exposure on the intention to refrain from binge drinking through conversational valence was revealed. When participants viewed an anti-alcohol message, they reported significantly more negative conversations about alcohol" (Hendriks, De Bruijn, & Van den Putte, 2012, p 843). Research shows an anti-alcohol campaign forces youth to see the overall negative effects of alcohol consumption and thus may be more effective than targeted efforts through anti-binge drinking campaigns. This article provides evidence of a potential restructure in how binge drinking may be alleviated among teenagers.

Beliefs of Teenagers on Binge Drinking

While healthy teenagers may not see benefit in binge drinking, unhealthy teenagers might. A 2015 article examining teenage beliefs concerning binge drinking revealed a marked change in perception of consumption of alcohol among their peers. This misperception, as the researchers noted, may increase the likelihood of binge drinking among teenagers that exhibit depressive symptomology. Simply put, depression could lead to a misperception of how much teenagers drink and thus lead to binge-drinking. "individuals who suffer from depressive symptomatology are more likely to have peers with higher depression scores. Adolescents with higher depressive symptomatology are more likely to perceive their peers as drinking alcohol" (Harris & Teasdale, 2016, p. 1).

Depression or mental illness can be a key determiner of binge drinking. The researchers not only showed how depression can lead to misperception, but how depression among the depressed teenager's social circle can lead to higher instances of binge drinking. If a depressed teenager sees her or his depressed friend drinking in excess amounts during a short period of time, that teenager will view it as normal and acceptable behavior. This can then lead to a recurrence of binge drinking episodes because it is regarded as normal behavior. Such insights from research can provide a change in how anti-binge drinking efforts manifest.

The research provided a new means of understanding teenage binge drinking. Teenagers respond positively to positive anti-alcohol messages that include themes of love. Past anti-alcohol campaigns have failed because they did not include the use of current trends like social media. An anti-alcohol campaign may prove more useful than an anti-binge drinking campaign. And finally, depression could play a role in alcohol quantity perception.

Methods

This study will use focus groups to gain information towards development of an effective message that may be used in an anti-binge drinking campaign. Because research showed homosexual white males from upper-middle to upper class backgrounds were more likely to engage in binge drinking, efforts to include them in the focus group along with other subgroups will be made. The age group that will be used for the focus group are teenagers between the ages of 15-18. This age group is in high school and will most likely engage in episodic binge drinking.

Use of focus groups is a qualitative research method. An estimated ten students from age 15-18 will be needed for the focus group. They will be asked in a group and individually about two short example campaigns one with a positive and one with a negative message concerning alcohol consumption to see which ones they prefer. They will also be asked on what platforms would they most likely be more interested in seeing these campaign messages. They will be asked questions related to their interest in drinking and their culture's perception and acceptance of drinking.

Based on research from the literature review, positive emotional appeal messages will be the basis for the information provided to participants in the focus group. This is because negative messages appear to decrease engagement and interest among teenagers exposed to such information. When it comes to promotion of safe drinking over binge drinking or no alcohol consumption, safe drinking may be most useful. This information came from a recent article discussing the drinking culture of Chinese youth.