Alcohol Use and Disorders among Youth

The use of alcohol is a common experience among youth, with recent national survey data indicating rates of lifetime use of alcohol at 78% for 12th graders (high school seniors), 65% for 10th graders, and 47% for 8th graders. Recent economic analyses have indicated that alcohol consumption among underage drinkers (defined as age 12–20 years) accounted for almost 20% of consumer expenditures for alcohol in the United States and that the cost associated with underage drinking was approximately $53 billion per year (Foster, Vaughan, Foster, & Califano, 2003). The cost was estimated on the basis of negative consequences associated with drinking, including alcohol-related traffic crashes, violent crime, suicide attempts, and alcohol poisonings (Levy, Miller, & Cox, 1999).

Although alcohol use increases rapidly in early and middle adolescence relative to earlier phases in the life span, it is important to note that developmentally important non-alcohol-use processes precede actual use. For example, there are significant cognitivedevelopmental processes (e.g., labeling and the elaboration and differentiation of concepts and categories used to organize the world) about alcohol use that are ongoing during the preschool and elementary school years, prior to the actual consumption of alcohol. Research by Noll, Zucker, and Greenberg (1990) demonstrated that preschool children (aged 3–5 years) can identify alcoholic beverages and have already developed certain cognitive concepts and schemata (i.e., integrated beliefs) about drinking behaviors. Hence, although this entry will focus principally on adolescent alcohol use, a life span developmental orientation toward alcohol use is important because it is increasingly evident that some of the cognitive foundations (e.g., beliefs and attitudes) for alcohol use, such as intentions and expectancies, are cultivated during the preschool and elementary school years.