The relationship between event characteristics and personal characteristics and the amount drunk on specific high risk drinking occasions by young people

INTRODUCTION:  Risky single occasion drinking (RSOD) by young people in Australia is a serious public health issue, yet little is known about the specific circumstances of risky drinking occasions. This study examines RSOD in a representative sample of young risky drinkers in Victoria, Australia, to determine relationships between the personal characteristics of drinkers and the characteristics of specific drinking occasions and the amount drunk on a specific occasion of RSOD.

METHODS:  A representative sample of 802 young risky drinkers was recruited across metropolitan Melbourne and surveyed about their most recent heavy drinking occasion. Specific questions focused on participants most recent drinking occasion in terms of self-reported amount drunk, alcohol expenditure (including buying rounds) and drinking partners for up to ten different drinking settings. Questions about participant sociodemographic characteristics and usual drinking behaviours in the past year were also included. Multinomial logistic regression was used to examine the relationship between participant characteristics, event characteristics and increased consumption relative to a baseline of 8-10 Australian standard drinks (ASD) for females and 11-14 ASD for males.

RESULTS:  Event characteristics were associated with increased consumption. For males, event characteristics such as number of different drinking locations, number of different types of drinks consumed and length of drinking session were all associated with consumption of 20+ ASD compared to 11-14 ASD, after adjustment for participant characteristics. Only the number of different drinking locations was associated with drinking 15-19 ASD compared to 11-14 ASD after adjustment. For females, the number of different types of drinks consumed was associated with consumption of 20+ASD compared to 8-10 ASD after adjustment for other event characteristics and personal characteristics of participants. Few sociodemographic variables were consistently associated with increased consumption relative to the baseline drinking levels for males or females. 

CONCLUSIONS:  The relationships between event characteristics and increased drinking levels found in this study highlight the importance of understanding drinking behaviours in the event and suggest possible points for intervention that require further examination.