Gen+Y's+New+Outlook+-+'DRINKING+TO+GET+DRUNK!'


 * Name: Kaitlyn Joy**
 * Student Number: n8331804**
 * Tutor: Judith Meiklejohn**

//“Drinking to intoxication or being ‘drunk’ or ‘pissed’, as it is colloquially referred to in Australia, is a major cause of short-term alcohol-related illness, injury and social problems and is particularly evident among young adults (AIHW 2005). The effects of intoxication on the individual are well documented and include psychomotor impairment, delayed reaction time, disinhibition, impaired judgement, emotional changes and other behavioural changes. Whether it is public or private intoxication, there is continuing concern among individuals, law enforcement and health personnel, local government and some community leaders about the extent and cost of intoxication.”// Ministerial Council on Drug Strategy (2006) – The peak policy and decision-making body in relation to licit and illicit drugs within Australia

__**Artefact**__
Published in the Courier-Mail Newspaper late 2009 in an article written by Greg Stolz and entitled ‘Schoolies from NSW Cause More Troubles On Gold Coast’, this photograph shows adolescent girls aggressively fighting on a Gold Coast Beach. This photograph exhibits just one of the many violent instances which occurred during the 2009 Schoolies Week, which is a weeklong celebration for school leavers who have just completed final exams. With a central focus upon the adolescent girls fighting, this photograph also captures the enthusiastic crowd of boys looking and cheering the girls on (Stolz, 2009).

__**Public Health Issue**__
Accepted as an integral part of Australian life and culture for Generation Y (Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing, 2001), alcohol consumption has now recently been ranked in the top four risk factors responsible for the burden of death, disease and injury within the country (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2003). With the effects of alcohol-related harm extending beyond the individual to include extensive social and economic costs to families, communities and the society as a whole, alcohol consumption is identified as a major public health issue (Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing, 2009). Furthermore as adolescent alcohol consumption has been linked with several social, cultural, economical, demographical and psychological factors, these high or risky consumption trends are extremely difficult to overcome (Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing, 2001). media type="youtube" key="WHY6dBf6WTg" height="315" width="560" align="center"

__**Literature Review**__
Even though alcohol has been indicated to be of great significance as it is a psychoactive substance that can promote relaxation and feelings of euphoria, it can also induce several acute factors. These include impairing motor skills and judgement, producing intoxication and dependence, causing illness and death, and having many other harmful effects on daily social, economic and living environments (Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing, 2001). It is therefore rather clear that alcohol consumption within a country must be strictly monitored to ensure the social, economic and health does not rapidly decline (CATI Technical Reference Group, 2003). According to a recent American study, alcohol use in adolescence, especially drinking until drunk, has been acknowledged as a highly prevalent and alarming risk behaviour among adolescents, generating several short and long-term harms, with death being the most severe (Miller, Naimi, Brewer, & Jones, 2007). In addition, fatal driving accidents whilst under the influence of alcohol, along with acute alcohol poisonings are another major concern for Generation Y’s population. For instance, in Australia approximately 15% of all deaths of adolescents aged between 15 and 24years was caused by the consumption of risky levels of alcohol (Chikritzhs & Pascal, 2004). Additionally, early onset of alcohol use has also been linked to alcohol dependence, violence, drink-driving, engaging in sexual activity at an early age and with multiple partners, the use illicit drugs and attempting suicide (Lavikainen, Salmi, Aaltonen & Lintonen, 2011).

Research has shown that, whilst per capita alcohol consumption has declined in Australia over the past two decades, more young people in Generation Y than their predecessors, are drinking alcohol, drinking at an earlier age and increasingly adopting high risk drinking patterns (Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing, 2001). Furthermore over a ten year period of 1993-2002 alcohol has become a major contributing cause of death and hospitalisations for the youth of Australia (15-24year-olds) with over 2,600 dying and 100,000 hospitalised for alcohol-attributable injury, harm and disease (Chikritzhs & Pascal, 2004). The majority of these injuries, harms and diseases are attributable to the increasing cultural acceptance of youth drinking to intoxication or at risky levels (Ministerial Council on Drug Strategy, 2006). According to the National Drug Strategy published by the Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing (2001) binge-drinking or deliberate drinking to intoxication is on the rise in the adolescents of today with 94% of males and 78% of females aged 14-19years consuming alcohol in this fashion. Overall this enormous prevalence of alcohol attributable burdens indicate that Generation Y is a generation who is predominantly at risk and is an issue which must be further addressed (Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing, 2001).

Moreover, according to the 2001 National Drug Strategy Household Survey carried out by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (2002) there are several characteristics increasing an individual’s potential for excessive alcohol consumption. It was found that those with post-school qualifications, unemployed, living in rural/remote areas, have a low socio-economic status, are male, have never been married or are indigenous, have a higher likelihood to drink at risky levels than those on the contrary. As a wide body of research has further supported these social, cultural and economical characteristics as directly linked to an individuals alcohol consumption, it is clear this evidence holds true (CATI Technical Reference Group, 2003, National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC), 2009).

In terms of the economy, government responses to the alcohol problems is only part of the story with costs accruing not only to the health and welfare systems but also to the industry through absenteeism (Roche, Pidd, Berry & Harrison, 2008), premature retirement and impaired or lost productivity due to the risky consumption of alcohol (Rehm et al., 2007). Within the Australian community during 2004 to 2005 it has been estimated that around $15.3 billion was spent on alcohol expenses which not only includes the purchasing costs but also the costs of crime and violence, treatments, loss of productivity and premature deaths (Collins & Lapsley, 2008). It was also estimated that alcohol misuse cost the Australian community a considerable $5,294 million during the year 2000 (Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing, 2001).

Conversely, however, some limitations must be taken into account when interpreting the findings reported throughout this report, due to the methodologies in which were implemented in order to collect the data (Lavikainen, Salmi, Aaltonen & Lintonen, 2011). As the majority of the studies derived data from adolescent self-reports, the accuracy of this data is subsequently reduced as studies have found that individuals tend to underestimate their alcohol consumption (Miller, Naimi, Brewer, & Jones, 2007). This limitation therefore suggests that the prevalence data regarding the levels of risky consumption are rather conservative (NHMRC, 2009). In addition figures regarding the economic costs involved with alcohol consumption are also recognised as conservative due to the data being derived from self reported data from the 2001 National Drug Strategy Household Survey (NHMRC, 2009). Furthermore, some limitations have also been suggested to be involved with the methodology utilised in determining the per capita consumption figures. This data may not completely reflect an accurate consumption of alcohol as some beverages may not be consumed in the year of purchase, wholesalers may stockpile the liquor and data regarding the purchase of duty free alcohol and home production of alcohol are not included within the estimation (Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing, 2001). However, in Australia, as these sources of error are unlikely to change significantly with each successive year, per capita consumption evidence still remains a key-indicator for alcohol-related problems on a population level (Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing, 2002).

__**Cultural And Social Analysis**__
When attempting to redress this enormous population level public health issue, it is absolutely essential to first consider the various influencing societal and cultural factors (NHMRC, 2009). Robert Merton’s Anomie Theory suggests that two elements of culture interact to produce potentially anomic conditions: culturally defined goals and socially accepted means for attaining them (Siegel, 2010). Derived from Emilie Durkheim, the term anomie, according to Merton, is a product of the imbalance between these two fundamental components of society (Zhao & Cao, 2010) Merton further argues that it is this which results in a variety of social adaptations including: ‘conformity’, ‘innovation’, ‘ritualism’, ‘retreatism’ and ‘rebellion’ (Siegel, 2010) as shown in the pictorial model below:

The model suggests that ‘conformity’ allows individuals to remain law-abiding as they embrace the conventionally accepted goals and accept the suitable means available to attain them (University of Washington, 2009). ‘Innovation’, however, is the adaptation most closely associated with criminal behaviour and involves individuals accepting societal goals but have an inability or unwillingness to attain them through the acceptable means. Furthermore ‘ritualism’, according to the model, involves individuals gaining pleasure through acceptable means regardless of whether they have a real purpose or goal (Siegel, 2010). Conversely, Merton’s model describes ‘retreatism’ as involving individuals rejecting both cultural goals and societal means, in an attempt to escape their lack of success through things such as the use of drugs or alcohol (University of Washington, 2009). The final adaptation suggested through the Anomie Theory is that of ‘rebellion’ which occurs when individuals substitute an alternative set of goals and means for the culturally accepted ones (Siegel, 2010) in an attempt to change society through revolt (University of Washington, 2009).

Merton’s Anomie Theory hence draws a direct correlation to alcohol use and the particular social-structural location / generation an individual grew up in (Menard, 2000). It suggests that social disorganisation, lack of social integration and lack of normative consensus leads to alcohol use and abuse (Akers & Sellers, 2004). Growing up with rapidly changing technology and an enormous degree of career choices, in a world of media saturation, terrorism, political crisis and globalisation (Queensland Tourism Industry Council, 2009), Generation Y lives in a highly deregulated world with a diminished universally accepted goal in comparison to previous generations (Smith & Bohm, 2008). Hence, according to Merton’s model, adolescents of today are more likely to depart from the established standards and means of society and move into the adaptations of ‘innovation’ or ‘retreatism’. In addition as Generation Y lives in a world of inequality, discrepancies to access legitimate means in the attempt to achieve the culturally accepted goals is created (Menard, 2000). This consequently results in the prospect of higher rates of crime, violence, suicide and alcohol abuse for those adolescents living in lower economic status’s (Zhao & Cao, 2010).

These relationships and propositions clearly reveal this as an enormous public health issue which needs to be addressed in order to prevent further alcohol related issues occurring within this generation and the generations to come. According to this model and analysis, public health experts are obliged to focus upon reducing the inequality within Australia. In doing this it will hence minimise the enormous proportions of adolescents falling within the ‘innovation’ and ‘retreatism’ adaptations. Furthermore, public health experts are also required to focus upon the adolescents of today, in order to minimise alcoholism and alcohol related injuries and deaths in the future.

__**Analysis and Reflection**__
The photograph published in Greg Stolz newspaper article entitled ‘Schoolies from NSW Cause More Troubles On Gold Coast’ directly illustrates the unintentional and extremely vicious effects of excessive alcohol consumption in adolescence. It hence captures the adaptation of ‘retreatism’ where individuals have rejected both the culturally accepted goals and socially accepted means to attaining them. Furthermore, exemplifying the enormous public health issue within society and particularly within Generation Y, this photograph draws a direct and ‘soberising’ link between alcoholism and the youth of Australia. With further acceptance of this excessive alcohol consumption, these horrific scenes are predicted to become more regular within this new generation of adolescents according to the adaption of ‘conformity’, which makes this topic even more confronting for public health experts.

Through completing this critical analysis of alcohol prevalence in Australian adolescents, I have come to the conclusion that an individuals decision to consume excessive alcohol is largely influenced by the social, cultural, economical and environmental surroundings in which they grew up or are involved in. Unfortunately as the adolescents of today are surrounded by a culture which accepts and, at times, promotes alcohol consumption, they begin, at an early age, to believe excessive alcohol consumption is the ‘right’ thing to do. This is highly prevalent in the artefact and many similar to it during the schoolies week, as teenagers have developed a preconception that ‘drinking to get drunk’ is socially and culturally acceptable. Overall, it was through this analysis I became aware that alcoholism within Australia must be immediately addressed, particularly in the grass roots of society, Generation Y, to ensure both the health and welfare of Australia is maintained for the future.

__**Peer Reflections**__

 * Page 1** - RE: lllllllllllll //"Boots, Ball and.... Bra? Women in Sport"// by Livana White

llllllllllllll - Subject: lllll Discussion Your wiki essay displays a significantly high level of research and understanding of your chosen topic: ‘Women In Sport’ and the inequalities faced. On seeing your cultural artefact I was absolutely appalled to see that this game of provocative gridiron football is actually a competitive sport, titled LFL, played by women inAmerica. I was astonished that after all these years of fighting for equality within the genders that this is as far as sports have come.

Furthermore through the use of statistics and scholarly research you have developed a clear argument against this distressing use of women’s bodies within sport and the impacts these inequalities have on participation rates.

Through the use of Simone de Beauvoir’s statement from 1949, “man defines woman not in herself but as relative to him”, you made it absolutely clear and reiterated how little the sporting world has changed according to women’s rights since this time whilst the world has changed enormously around it.

Overall you have developed an extremely clear, concise and persuading report, effectively indicating the inequality of women in sport as a vital public health issue in dire need of addressing.


 * Page 2** - RE: llllllllllll //"Suicide - A Permanent Solution to a Temporary Problem"// by Louise Smit

lllllllllllll - Subject: lllll Reflection Delving into this heart-rending public health issue, you have developed an excellent demonstration of how enormous this issue is inAustralia. It is surprising to see that suicide still remains one the leading causes of mortality in this country even though 90% of the suicide cases are actually associated with highly preventable disorders including depression and alcoholism. Through the use of a wide range of statistics and peer reviewed research, you have clearly indicated to me that this public health issue needs to be urgently addressed. In addition, I found it rather enlightening that religion actually plays such an enormous role in protecting individuals from mental illness and depression. Also through drawing Durkheim’s sociology theories into your thorough analysis, you have effectively enhanced your argument in relation to the socio-cultural aspects relating to suicide. Well done.

__** References **__ Akers & Sellers. (2004). Social disorganization, anomie, and strain theories. In Akers, R (Ed.), //Criminological theories: Introduction, evaluation, and application// (4th ed.) (pp.159-189).New York, NY: Oxford University Press

Australian Bureau of Statistics. (2003). //Health Risk Factors, Australia 2001//. Retrieved from http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/mf/4812.0

Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. (2002). //2001 National Drug Strategy Household Survey.// Retrieved from the Australian Government’s Australian Institute of Health and Welfare website http://www.aihw.gov.au/publication-detail/?id=6442467418

CATI Technical Reference Group. (2003). //Alcohol Consumption in Australia.// Retrieved from the National Public Health Partnership website []

Chikritzhs, T. & Pascal, R. (2004). //Trends in Youth Alcohol Consumption and Related Harms in Australian Jurisdictions 1990–2002//. Retrieved from the National Drug Research Institute website []

Collins, D. & Lapsley, H. (2008). //The Costs of Tobacco, Alcohol and Illicit Drug// //Abuse to Australian Society in 2004/05//. Retrieved from Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing website http://www.health.gov.au/internet/drugstrategy/publishing.nsf/Content/34F55AF632F67B70CA2573F60005D42B/$File/mono64.pdf

Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing. (2001). //Alcohol in Australia: Issues and Strategies//. Retrieved from Australian Governments National Drug Strategy website http://www.nationaldrugstrategy.gov.au/internet/drugstrategy/Publishing.nsf/content/CB55FBAFF6B43636CA2575B40013539B/$File/alcohol_strategy_back.pdf

Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing. (2001). //Developing national priorities for alcohol research.// Retrieved from Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing http://www.alcohol.gov.au/internet/alcohol/publishing.nsf/Content/4CC74240FD7DB94FCA2572600001806E/$File/alc_agenda-1.pdf

Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing. (2002). //National Alcohol Research Agenda.// Retrieved from the Australian Government National Drug Strategy website http://www.alcohol.gov.au/internet/alcohol/publishing.nsf/Content/4CC74240FD7DB94FCA2572600001806E/$File/alc_agenda-1.pdf

Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing. (2009). //Chapter 2: Prevalence of Alcohol Consumption and Related Harms in Australia//. Retrieved from Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing http://www.alcohol.gov.au/internet/alcohol/publishing.nsf/Content/33F1F1299AD53EA3CA257693001776BE/$File/tre2.pdf

Lavikainen, Salmi, Aaltonen & Lintonen. (2011). Alcohol-related harms and risk behaviours among adolescents: Does drinking style matter. //Journal of Substance Use, 16 (3),// 243-255. doi:10.3109/14659891.2010.499492

Menard, S. (2000). A developmental test of mertonian anomie theory. //Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency, 32(2),// 136-174. doi:10.1177/0022427895032002002

Miller, Naimi, Brewer & Jones. (2007). Binge drinking and associated health risk behaviours among high school students. //Pediatrics, 119(1),// 76-85. doi: 10.1542/peds.2006-1517

Ministerial Council on Drug Strategy. (2006). //National Alcohol Strategy 2006-2009.// Retrieved from the Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing website http://www.alcohol.gov.au/internet/alcohol/publishing.nsf/Content/nas-06-09

National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC). (2009). //Australian Guidelines: To Reduce Health Risks from Drinking Alcohol.// Retrieved from Australian Government National Health and Medical Research Council website http://www.nhmrc.gov.au/_files_nhmrc/publications/attachments/ds10-alcohol.pdf

Queensland Tourism Industry Council: The Voice of Tourism. (2009). //Generation Y Profile.// Retrieved from Queensland Tourism Industry Council website http://www.qtic.com.au/files/generation_y_profile.pdf

Rehm, Gnam, Popova, Baliunas, Brochu, Fischer, Patra, Sarnocinska-Hart and Taylor. (2007). The costs of alcohol, illegal drugs, and tobacco in Canada, 2002. [|//Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs,//]//68(6)// 886–95. Retrieved from http://www.jsad.com

Roche, Pidd, Berry & Harrison. (2008). Workers' drinking patterns: The impact on absenteeism in the Australian work-place. //Addiction//, //103,// 738-748//.// doi: 10.1111/j.1360-0443.2008.02154.x

Siegel, L. J. (2010). Criminology: The core (4th ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Cengage Learning.

Smith, H. & Bohm, R. (2008). Beyond anomie: Alienation and crime. //Critical Criminology//, 16(1), 1-15. doi: 10.1007/s10612-007-9047-z

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Zhao, R. & Cao, L. (2010). Social change and anomie: A cross-national study. //Social Forces, 88(3),// 1209-1230. doi: 10.1353/sof.0.0312