Alcohol Use and Patterns of Delinquent Behaviour in Male and Female Adolescents

Psychiatry

Your Article Summary

Alcohol Use and Patterns of Delinquent Behaviour in Male and Female Adolescents
Alcohol and Alcoholism , 04/22/09

Eklund JM et al. - The present results further emphasize the importance of distinguishing between different offender groups when examining the relationship between delinquent behaviour and associated problems, such as excessive alcohol use.

Methods

• The participants were male (n = 406) and female (n = 532) adolescents in the eighth grade (age 14 years) in a medium-sized city of Sweden.
• We used information about self-rated alcohol use and different types of delinquent behaviour.

Results

• The results revealed that the occurrence of excessive alcohol use and drunkenness varied between groups of adolescents with different delinquency patterns, and that the associations between alcohol use and patterns of delinquent behaviours were relatively similar for males and females.
• Adolescents with patterns characterized by more serious non-violent delinquency or by violent delinquency reported the highest occurrence of alcohol use and frequency of drunkenness.
• Adolescents with well-adjusted behaviour or occasional minor delinquency were less likely to report drinking large amounts of alcohol or to the point of feeling drunk.