Working together

Alcohol research & health : the journal of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, 2002

Alcohol use by underage drinkers is a persistent public health problem in the United States, and alcohol is the most commonly used drug among adolescents. Accordingly, numerous approaches have been developed and studied that aim to prevent underage drinking. Some approaches are school based, involving curricula targeted at preventing alcohol, tobacco, or marijuana use. Other approaches are extracurricular, offering activities outside of school in the form of social or life skills training or alternative activities. Other strategies strive to involve the adolescents' families in the prevention programs. Policy strategies also have been implemented that have increased the minimum legal drinking age, reduced the commercial and social access of adolescents to alcohol, and reduced the economic availability of alcohol. Approaches involving the entire community also have been employed. Several programs (e.g., the Midwestern Prevention Project and Project Northland) have combined many o...

Public health reports (Washington, D.C. : 1974)

This study reports the findings of a field trial designed to assess the extent of alcohol sales to minors in one county in northwest New Jersey. Two 19-year-old males were successful in purchasing alcoholic beverages in 27 of 46 (58.7 percent) establishments visited. On the following day, 23 of the establishments that sold the alcohol were visited again and, on this occasion, 18 (78.3 percent) sold alcohol to the minor. This study supports the findings from surveys that show that underage drinkers can obtain alcohol with ease. Many community groups are now taking action to rectify this situation, and data of the type reported in this paper can be used to assess the effectiveness of their actions.

Journal of Community Health, 1996

Minors' access to alcohol and tobacco is a major public health concern because of the many deaths and disabilities associated with use and the ease with which minors purchase these products. We evaluated the effects of a community-based substance abuse coalition's efforts to reduce alcohol and tobacco products to minors. The intervention —implemented entirely by coalition members—consisted of adults and minors issuing citations to clerks in supermarkets, convenience stores and liquor stores, who were willing to sell alcohol and tobacco products to minors and issuing commendations to clerks who refused to sell. For those liquor stores receiving the citizen's surveillance, there was a marked decrease in alcohol sales to minors, from 83% to 33%; and in those liquor stores not experiencing the intervention, there was a smaller decrease in alcohol sales, from 45% to 36%. This study's findings suggest that citizen surveillance and feedback may be effective in reducing alcohol sales to minors when the intervention is fully implemented, but may be ineffective, at least in these doses, with tobacco sales.

Prevention Science, 2007

Publication funded by the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, through grant to the Police Executive Research Forum. Clifford L. Karchmer, Project Director. This document was written by Vincent Jimno.

The Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics, 2004

Addiction, 2006

Health Education & Behavior, 2001

2002

This Working Paper is devoted to funding of social norms programs. It contains a paper written by Richard Rice and Michael Haines of the National Social Norms Resource Center, an analysis and critique of a recent article by Henry Wechsler and colleagues that analyzed funding patterns for alcohol and other drug prevention programs, and an overview of a “policy briefing paper” by the American Medical Association (AMA) on the alcohol industry’s involvement in prevention.

Substance Use & Misuse, 2012