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Risky alcohol use can reduce productivity at work and impact employees’ mental health and wellbeing. Several risk factors converge in male-dominated industries, which can increase risky drinking and deteriorate mental health. This paper aims to explore the prevalence of risky drinking and psychological distress in a male-dominated industry compared with that in the general population.

Data were collected from four manufacturing sites in Australia. In total, 450 workers were invited to participate in a survey that measured drinking behaviours using AUDIT-C and psychological distress using the K10, along with demographics including age, gender, job role and ethnicity. The observed outcome measures were compared with general population data available through publicly available data sets.

Surveys were returned by 341 employees, of which 319 completed AUDIT-C. AUDIT-C and K10 scores were significantly correlated (R = 0.31, p < 0.0001). Hazardous drinking was more prevalent among workers than in Australian general population (66.1% vs 23.6%). Binge drinking was greater among workers than in the general population (25.4% vs 26.5%). The difference was higher among female workers than among male workers (35.1% vs 10.8%).

The findings of this study show a significantly greater risk of alcohol-related harm among workers in male-dominated industries compared with that in the general population. This risk is more pronounced among women, who also experienced greater rates of moderate and high psychological distress compared with those experienced by the general population. A fitness-for-work approach is proposed to minimise alcohol-related harm among workers in male-dominated industries. Moreover, male-dominated industries are proposed to consider the interconnectivity of other workplace health and safety factors.

The purpose of this study is to understand the effect of price promotions, venue and place of residence on low‐risk, risky and high‐risk alcohol consumption behaviour of young women between 18 and 24 years of age who attend university in Australia, Wales and Germany.

The quantitative, self‐administered questionnaire collected data from a convenience sample of three universities in three OECD countries with high alcohol consumption being: a regional Australian university (n=305), a city Welsh university (n=354) and a rural German university (n=325).

First, the multinomial logistic regression results revealed that price promotions and venue influenced alcohol consumption in Wales alone while place of residence influenced alcohol consumption in Australia; however, price promotions, venue and place of residence had no effect on young women attending university in Germany. Second, the binomial logistic regression results for Wales reported a sensitivity to price promotions for all three alcohol consumption risk classifications; however, location was of little consequence to risky drinkers when compared to high risk drinkers. For Australia, the place of residence did not influence alcohol consumption for both risky and high‐risk drinkers.

The value of this study lies in the examination of three levels of alcohol consumption – low‐risk, risky and high‐risk – for the same cohort across three countries using the same test instrument and standard alcohol consumption metrics. As such, this study provides a more meaningful macro view of alcohol consumption; thus has the capacity to contribute to effectual intervention strategies.

The consequences of problematic alcohol consumption fall heavily on Australian adolescents, with this population at increased risk of death, serious injury and other harm. Research regarding whether gender, socioeconomic status (SES) or locality play a role in young people’s alcohol consumption and related harm is limited in Australia. The purpose of this paper is to determine whether Victorian students’ patterns of alcohol uptake, consumption and related harm differed between gender, SES and locality.

The study involved secondary analysis of student data from the Drug Education in Victorian Schools harm minimisation drug education programme, undertaken in 21 Victorian government schools over three years The initial cohort of 1,752 students was followed during Years 8, 9 and 10, when their average age would have, respectively, been 13, 14 and 15 years.

There were no gender differences in drinking uptake, consumption or harm. Students with low SES were more likely to have consumed a full drink of alcohol and also experienced more alcohol-related harm. Students living in a regional/rural area were more likely to have engaged in high alcohol consumption.

The findings of this study highlighted that different student demographics have an impact on patterns of alcohol consumption, vulnerability and harm. Students with low SES, living in a regional/rural area, are more at risk than students with higher SES living in a fringe metro/major regional or metro area. Future school harm minimisation drug education programmes should consider the needs of students with demographics that make them more susceptible to higher consumption and harm.

Collective motives for alcohol consumption represent a nascent field, with individual-level attributes, peer pressure and broad-level environmental elements being at the forefront of research. The purpose of this paper is to explore the role of friendships in the context of alcohol consumption and determine what group-level motives exist for alcohol consumption.

Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 18 participants aged 18–30, these discussed the role the participant’s friendship group played in alcohol consumption and helped to elucidate what collective and group-level motives existed.

Group-level motives can steer a collective’s alcohol consumption by either endorsing it or degrading it, the findings revealed four group-level motives: these were, competition, conformity, hedonism, with opportunity cost receptiveness acting as a buffer.

The small sample and qualitative nature of the study means external validity still needs to be established to generalize the research to other audiences.

By unpacking group-level motives researchers can develop group-level strategies and match specialized interventions with the right priority group.

This paper is the first to address group-level motives for alcohol consumption and makes an important contribution to understanding how group-level factors can impact individuals.

The purpose of the research is to evaluate the visibility and effectiveness of responsible drinking campaigns used for the sale of the product “beer” (on labels and commercials) on a sample of university students at the University of Pisa to verify whether a preventive “education” on the issue of the effects of alcohol consumption is suitable to improve the perception of responsible communication.

A focus group methodology was used. Three interviews were conducted with 21 university students. The interview protocol was divided into three sections and ten guiding questions were prepared to conduct the focus groups.

The study shows the weak effectiveness of responsible communication promoted by brewers, even though the sample knew aspects related to responsible communication and the adverse health effects of alcohol. Most respondents failed to remember the existence of responsibility messages placed on beverage labels, except as a result of visual stimuli, a sign that preventive education can play a role in message recognition. Commercials seem to have a more significant impact when associated with the dangers of drunk driving. However, promoting consumer awareness campaigns continues to be perceived as contradictory.

This study presents the results of qualitative research that focuses on university students' perceptions of the effectiveness of the most recent responsible communication campaigns conducted by brewers. The research is significant in assessing the effectiveness of communication tools, providing theoretical and industrial implications for improving the understanding of the phenomenon and the effectiveness of responsible messages.

South Africa is among the world's highest levels of alcohol consumption per drinker. Liquor abuse is hence rampant and many drinkers engage in risky drinking regularly. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the problem of liquor abuse and seek to understand the degree to which respondents are aware of the alcohol problem in South Africa and whether they have experienced incidents of alcoholism, its impacts and in particular, the study seeks to determine the degree to which minors are exposed to liquor. Awareness of the seriousness of the problem is crucial to finding a lasting solution to it.

This paper conducted a survey in five provinces of the socio‐economic aspects of liquor abuse. These are Eastern Cape, Gauteng, Kwazulu Natal (KZN), Mpumalanga and Western Cape provinces. The paper intends to address whether there are: differences in liquor abuse between experiences of demographic (racial) groupings per province; differences in the knowledge of alcohol‐related activities and impacts per province; and differences in exposure of minors to liquor‐related violence per province.

South Africans are generally aware of the liquor abuse problem and many have had personal experiences or know family members who have had personal experiences. Liquor abuse is associated strongly with negative social activities in the country. Among occupational groups, administrative officers in Gauteng and Mpumalanga are significantly associated with being transported by drunk drivers. Drinking at work is significantly associated with professionals in KZN.

There are few studies that examine issues related to the problem of liquor abuse and the awareness of its seriousness. The findings could assist in understanding how to target education campaigns to inform the public of the problem of liquor abuse.

Social marketing has been applied to alcohol education, changing adolescents’ knowledge, attitudes and intentions toward binge drinking for the better. However, there remains limited research in the social marketing literature examining multi-stream models considering social-contextual factors and individual differences in the applied context of adolescent drinking.

A multi-group structural equation model approach was applied to analyze cross-sectional self-report data from 2,234 (mean age = 15.3 years, 48.7 per cent female) Australian adolescents. Based on the theory of planned behavior, the role of attitudes, subjective norms and perceived behavioral control in adolescents’ binge drinking intentions were examined. Potential moderating effects of peer and parent drinking behaviors and drinking status were tested.

The model explained 47.3 per cent variance in intentions for drinkers and 31.6 per cent for non-drinkers. Subjective norms were more strongly related to intentions than attitudes. Peer and parent behavior modified those associations, and drinking status further moderated interaction effects. Under conditions of favorable norms and attitudes, family and friends’ behavior fuels adolescents’ binge drinking intentions. Conversely, exposure to modeling of non-drinking peers and parents can bolster negative binge drinking beliefs.

Social marketing programs seeking to change adolescent drinking culture should include peers and parents whose drinking behavior modified associations between attitudes, norms and intentions to binge drink.

This study investigated how social-contextual factors (midstream) and drinking status influence relationships between adolescents’ attitudes, norms and perceived behavioral control (downstream factors) and their intentions to binge drink. These moderating effects have not previously been examined within the theory of planned behavior framework, and limited previous research has examined multi-stream models.

Rates of drinking- and alcohol-related harms among older adults are increasing in most developed nations. The purpose of this paper was to explore the relationship among at-risk alcohol use, smoking, gender, geographical location, self-reported health and psychological well-being among Western Australians aged 65 years and older.

A secondary analysis was conducted of a cross-sectional survey that collected data from 7,804 West Australians aged 65 years and older between 2013 and 2015. Participants were categorised according to the following age groups: young-old (aged 65–74 years), older-old (aged 75–84 years) and oldest-old (aged 85+ years).

Results from a multinomial logistic regression analysis indicated that at-risk drinking decreased with increasing age. Current smokers, males and those males and females who perceived their health to be “excellent” were more likely to report at-risk drinking, as were the oldest-old males who lived in remote communities. Psychological well-being was not a predictor of at-risk drinking

This paper examines drinking behaviour among a diverse population of older Western Australians. The way in which the age groups were segmented is unique, as most studies of older Australian drinking patterns aggregate the older adult population. Some of the authors’ findings support existing literature, whereas the remainder provides unique data about the relationship among at-risk drinking, geographic location and psychological well-being.

PRIME for Life is an alcohol risk reduction program that has been used and refined in the USA for over 20 years. A Swedish version of the program has recently been adapted for use among Swedish high‐school students (age 18‐19). The objective of the study is to evaluate the effects of the program on youth alcohol consumption (including high risk drinking), attitudes and knowledge about the effects of alcohol use.

The authors conducted a randomised controlled trial involving 23 schools and 926 students. Data collection was conducted with questionnaires focusing primarily on drinking behaviour. Participants were followed up at five and 20 months to assess changes in drinking behaviour, knowledge and attitudes towards alcohol.

No significant program effects on drinking behaviour were found. Knowledge about the effects of alcohol consumption on health increased after the intervention, as did negative attitudes towards alcohol, but these effects eroded over time.

Despite being widely used in the USA and Sweden, the impact of PRIME for Life is under‐reported in the literature. This is the first independent evaluation of the program focusing on high school age youth. The findings do not support the efficacy of the program as a risk reduction or behaviour change tool in a school environment.

The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of peer researchers in participant observation.

The research involved interviews with 11 fieldworkers aged 18–25 years.

The method improves access to settings and provides useful context information on participants.

It is a useful method in situations where normal access to participants and settings is problematic.

The paper is the first ever evaluation of supervised peer research (as opposed to peer-led research).