Citation

Kuntsche EN, Gmel G. Addiction 2004; 99(3): 331-339.

Affiliation

Swiss Institute for the Prevention of Alcohol and Drug Problems (SIPA), Research Department, Lausanne, Switzerland. ekuntsche@sfa-ispa.ch

Copyright

(Copyright © 2004, John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1111/j.1360-0443.2004.00653.x

PMID

14982546

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: To classify adolescents according to risky single occasion drinking (RSOD) and their level of social integration, and to test whether these groups (social non-RSODs, social RSODs, solitary non-RSODs, solitary RSODs) differ in terms of emotional well-being and violence-related variables. METHOD: K-means cluster and multiple logistic regression analyses were performed based on a cross-sectional national representative sample of 3861 8th and 9th graders in Switzerland (mean age 15.3; SD = 0.88). RESULTS: Although RSODs in general appear to be more violent, social RSODs tend to be more violent than solitary RSODs. Although RSODs reveal a lower life satisfaction generally and tend to have more depressive moods, solitary RSODs are even less satisfied and more depressive. In addition, the latter tend to have lower self-esteem and are more often victims of bullying. CONCLUSIONS: RSODs are not a homogeneous group of adolescents and preventive efforts, such as competence-enhancing and social resistance programmes, should be applied in accordance with the constellation of associated problems: solitary RSODs appear to be socially inhibited, depressive and often victims of bullying, whereas social RSODs appear to be socially accepted but are prone to be violent offenders.

Language: en