Drinking In Context

Alcohol: Social Drinking in Cultural Context critically examines alcohol use across cultures and through time. This short text is a framework for students to self-consciously examine their beliefs about and use of alcohol, and a companion text for teaching the primary concepts of anthropology to first-or second year college students.

Alcohol use by young people is extremely dangerous - both to themselves and society at large. Underage alcohol use is associated with traffic fatalities, violence, unsafe sex, suicide, educational failure, and other problem behaviors that diminish the prospects of future success, as well as health risks â€" and the earlier teens start drinking, the greater the danger. Despite these serious concerns, the media continues to make drinking look attractive to youth, and it remains possible and even easy for teenagers to get access to alcohol. Why is this dangerous behavior so pervasive? What can be done to prevent it? What will work and who is responsible for making sure it happens? Reducing Underage Drinking addresses these questions and proposes a new way to combat underage alcohol use. It explores the ways in which may different individuals and groups contribute to the problem and how they can be enlisted to prevent it. Reducing Underage Drinking will serve as both a game plan and a call to arms for anyone with an investment in youth health and safety.

Alcohol is a killerâ€"1 of every 13 deaths in the United States is alcohol-related. In addition, 5 percent of the population consumes 50 percent of the alcohol. The authors take a close look at the problem in a "classy little study," as The Washington Post called this book. The Library Journal states, "...[T]his is one book that addresses solutions....And it's enjoyably readable....This is an excellent review for anyone in the alcoholism prevention business, and good background reading for the interested layperson." The Washington Post agrees: the book "...likely will wind up on the bookshelves of counselors, politicians, judges, medical professionals, and law enforcement officials throughout the country."

Drinking beverage alcohol is a widespread source of individual and social pleasure in most countries around the world. Yet, some drinking patterns can lead to serious physical, mental, and social harms. Drinking in Context is intended to complement existing volumes dealing with international alcohol policy by focusing on three main themes: drinking patterns, targeted interventions, and partnership development. An understanding that patterns of drinking are important predictors of outcomes has led to a growing realization that alcohol policies and prevention strategies need to focus on excessive or irresponsible drinking. As a result, there has been a shift towards interventions that address the targeted reduction of harm. These approaches recognize socio-cultural differences and avoid trying to impose a one-size-fits-all solution. In this context, multi-stakeholder partnerships offer an excellent opportunity to promote the complex mix of measures required by each society. Shared responsibilities lead to shared solutions.

From the publisher. The purpose of this book is to provide a critical examination of human use of alcohol across cultures and through time, thereby providing a framework for undergraduate students to self-consciously examine their beliefs about and use of alcohol. Almost all books written about alcohol for college students have a "problems" perspective, either clinically (alcohol as a drug) or societally (as deviance, or a social problem). Many students have problems responding to these approaches. Understanding human use of alcohol anthropologically is a refreshingly different and effective method of harm reduction, which can be used by instructors to teach students how to reduce potential damage to themselves and others, while at the same time conveying the "anthropological imagination."

From a public health perspective, alcohol is a major contributor to morbidity and mortality, and impacts on many aspects of social life. This text describes advances in alcohol research with direct relevance to the development of effective policies at local, national and international level.

This book is based on the premise that drinking behaviors are primarily learned. The contributors to the book explore the complex array of individual and social factors that impact the development of drinking patterns. They traverse family and culture influences, and the role played by schools, government, and the beverage alcohol industry. Learning About Drinking offers a rigorous and scholarly examination of drinking behavior brought to life with illustrative cases drawn from around the world. Social policymakers, historians, anthropologists, public health specialists, as well as mental health professionals will find this book of value. Learning About Drinking offers a refreshing, evidence-based look at a process that has too often been taken for granted.