ESSAYS

Essay on The Prevalence of Underage Drinking and Its Relationship with Offending

ONLINE EXAMPLE OF ONE OF OUR CUSTOM ESSAYS

This is a proposal for research to investigate the prevalence of underage drinking and its relationship with offending. In April 2005, the Home Office announced the introduction of further measures to reinforce the ability of the law to tackle underage drinking (Home Office, 2005). The two new PNDs (penalty notices for disorder) focus on the sale of alcohol to persons under the age of 18; the person buying or attempting to buy the alcohol will face an on-the-spot penalty of £50 whilst the retailer will face an on-the-spot penalty of £80. These measures were introduced after a recent campaign of test purchases discovered that 32% of off-licences were selling alcohol to persons under the age of 18 (Home Office, 2005). When introducing the new PNDs, Home Office Minister, Hazel Blears, stated 'these two new penalty notices will help local police tackle underage drinking and irresponsible selling which we know cause problems with alcohol-fuelled disorder' (Home Office, 2005). This demonstrates that not only is underage drinking perceived to be a serious issue that the government are determined to tackle but that it is seen as a problem which is inherently linked with disorderly public behaviour.

The level of concern about underage drinking and the links with criminal behaviour is further demonstrated by proposals introduced in January 2005 in which the government propose the introduction of additional strategies to tackle public disorder and otherwise criminal behaviour fuelled by the consumption of alcohol in general and amongst underage drinkers in particular (Home Office, Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, Department for Culture, Media and Sport, 2005). The overall aim of these proposals was said to be the creation of a culture in which alcohol misuse is considered socially unacceptable. It is not only the authorities that perceive underage drinking to be a significant problem. Research conducted by MORI in 2004 found that 57% of the public who questioned about their views on alcohol-related problems in their area stated that the main problem was drinking by those under the age of 18 (MORI, 2004) thus indicating a general consensus that underage drinking is a pressing and prevalent social problem. Finally, there is evidence from the underage drinking community that indicates that it is significant contributory factor in the occurrence of criminal behaviour as 15% of those aged between 12 and 17 who admitted consuming alcohol reported that they went on to commit a disorderly or otherwise criminal act whilst under the influence of alcohol (Youth Lifestyle Survey, 1999).

In the light of the research, it is clear that underage drinking is currently viewed as a significant problem in need of legislative intervention and that the consumption of alcohol by those under the age of 18 is perceived to be inextricably linked with disruptive, anti-social and otherwise unlawful behaviour. Moreover, there is a body of research that indicates that alcohol-related crime is a drain on the economy with the Cabinet Office estimating it is the largest area of expenditure at a cost of approximately £20 billion per year (Cabinet Office Strategy Unit, 2003). Finally, it is clear that alcohol-related crime, particularly violence, impacts on the lives of ordinary people who fall victim to such crimes and the wider community. Hospital casualty departments are inundated with drink-related injuries; it is estimated that 40% of emergency admissions are alcohol-related (rising to 70% of admissions between midnight and 5 am) thus placing a drain on resources and creating an unpleasant environment for those working in the emergency services whilst the police face an ongoing risk of harm from dealing with drunken and violent behaviour (Cabinet Office Strategy Unit, 2003, pp. 40-50; Brooker, 1999).

It is clear that there is a high level of official and public concern about alcohol-related offending amongst the underage drinking population and that such behaviour is the cause of both direct and indirect harm to society. Moreover, as there appears to be evidence to suggest that drinking patterns established in early life are either maintained or increase as an individual progresses through life, it is clear that the problem of underage drinking needs to be addressed as a priority issue (Cabinet Office Strategy Unit, 2003, pp. 40-50). Accordingly, research into this issue is both important and timely.

However, whilst it is clear that there is a high level of concern about underage drinking, the extent of the problem is unclear and the findings of the research studies vary enormously. It is also possible that any estimate of the extent of underage drinking will be flawed as it only becomes visible when it is manifested in some way by, for example, disruptive public behaviour or when it results in criminal activity. Just as reported crime represents only a fraction of the totality of criminal behaviour with the 'dark figure of unrecorded crime' being inherently unknown and unknowable (Coleman, 1996), it is likely that any known and visible underage drinking will only represent the 'tip of the iceberg' of the actual problem. Given that a quantification of the extent of underage drinking is a complex issue that has remained unclear despite the attention of some large-scale and well-funded research projects, it would be unrealistic to explore this issue in research to be conducted by a single researcher on a (presumably) limited budget within a constrained time-frame.

This research will create a manageable research population by limiting the geographic parameters of the study and focusing on the territory of a single court conurbation by selecting a town of moderate size that includes both a magistrates and a Crown court (thus ensuring that offences of both minor and major severity can be examined). Having identified an appropriate location, this research will be in a position to measure the extent of alcohol-related crime by those under the age of 18 and to challenge some of the findings from the existing literature in relation to the causal nexus between alcohol consumption and the commission of criminal offences by those under the age of 18. It will do this by deploying three different measures of 'alcohol-related offending' thus demonstrating that the definitional approach adopted has a profound impact on the level of prevalence that is noted.

In summary, there is clear evidence that underage drinking is a problem. It is also the case that many of those, irrespective of age, who are apprehended for a criminal offence are under the influence of alcohol. This could be taken to suggest that there is a link between alcohol consumption and participation in criminal activities. This research will evaluate the strength of the arguments presented in the existing literature that supports the existence of a causal link between alcohol consumption and criminal behaviour both in general and in relation to the underage drinking population and conduct a small-scale study to explore the accuracy of the current research literature.

Read other essays

All of our sample essays were written by students and then submitted to us to display and help others. Thanks to all the students who have submitted their work to us.