Coalition tackles root causes of teen drinking
After assessing and finalizing a problem statement, the Monroe County Coalition for Drug-Free Communities began analyzing root causes for the problem during its Monday meeting.
The problem statement,which is based on 2014 Illinois Youth Survey data the coalition received, is that 33 percent of Monroe County 12th graders reported binge drinking in the last two weeks.
This is above the state average of 30 percent for the same age group.
The reason the coalition is addressing this statistic first is because of the amount of dangerous activities alcohol leads to.
βUnderage drinking is just the tip of the iceberg,β coalition co-founder Bill Rebholz said. βThatβs a third of our local 12th graders (who are binge drinking). The data has taken us here.β
Alcohol consumption is up overall for Monroe County students, and theyβre also starting to drink earlier than the rest of the state.
βOur kids start at age 15.9, but 16 is the stage average,β Rebholz said.
Twenty-five percent of 12th graders also reported driving under the influence, as opposed to 18 percent statewide.
Since drinking stood out clearly in the data as something to address, the coalition chose the binge-drinking statistic.
βResearch has shown that kids who are drunk are more likely to experiment and engage in more risky behavior,β Rebholz said. βIf we touch the issue on underage drinking, weβre also going to be able to address the use of marijuana, since weβre at or above the state average for that, as well.β
At Mondayβs meeting, attendees came up with seven possible root causes for the 33 percent number.
They are: social norms, ease of access, peer pressure, constitutional issues, idle time, low perception of physical risk and family management.
βSocial normsβ were cited as a root cause, because many times parents or guardians allow teens to drink. Coalition members also said living in a historically German community has an effect on teen drinking.
Of the 12th graders surveyed, 31 percent said they got their beer, wine or liquor from parents with their permission.
βEase of accessβ was another root cause cited. One of the statistics members used to back up this cause was that 82 percent of 12th graders reported that it would be easy for them to get alcohol.
βPeer pressureβ was cited because many students reported that their friends think itβs βcoolβ to drink.
Thirty percent of 12th graders reported it would only be a little wrong to have one or two drinks of an alcoholic beverage nearly every day, with an additional 23 percent saying it wouldnβt be wrong at all.
βConstitutional factorsβ were cited because some people may have a predisposition to abuse substances due to conditions like anxiety or depression.
βIdle timeβ was cited because, as students get older, they are more likely to be unsupervised after school or on weekends.
βPerception of riskβ is another reason because many students reported they donβt see much risk in drinking.
Forty-four percent of 12th graders reported they thought they would never get caught if they rode in a car with someone who had been drinking.
An additional 34 percent reported they would βneverβ get caught by their parents if they drank and drove, and that they wouldnβt get caught by their parents if they went to a party where alcohol is served.
Coalition members were able to address all but the last root cause, βfamily management,β before running out of time at the monthly meeting.
They plan to pick up where they left off at Januaryβs meeting, which will take place at 4 p.m. on Jan. 5 at the YMCA.
βFor us to get the traction and have the effect we hope to have, we need to just focus on this and work through it,β Rebholz said.