Teen Alcholism Essay Research Paper Adolescents face

Teen Alcholism Essay, Research Paper Adolescents face many problems and situations that cause them to turn to alcohol abuse. Some adolescents may consume alcohol due to peer pressure, personal and family problem. The most significant cause could be children who are genetically influenced. In other words, children may have a family history of alcoholism. Children who are influenced by alcoholic relatives may tend to follow in their footsteps. Peer pressure is a major part of adolescent social reasoning. A large part of adolescent drinkers are influenced to drink by peer pressure. Adolescents want to look appealing and be accepted by their peers. This can cause a problem from primary and secondary education up to higher education. Drinking poses a major problem in universities

across America primarily due to peer influences. It can be inferred that many college students drink to get away from their pressures and stress. In addition, to peers influence, they can also put adolescent at higher risk factors. Among adolescents who are not problem drinkers, higher risk and lower protection increase the likelihood of becoming a problem drinker in subsequent years and of making that transition earlier. (Costa, Jessor & Turbin, 1999, p. 487). The groups with the highest cumulative hazard are the group of high risk, low cumulative hazard. Mostly peers bring about risk factors. These are such influences as low self-esteem, friends who drink, high stress, hopelessness, and low expectation for success. (Costa, Jessor & Turbin,1999, p.480). All of those

factors may simultaneously or individually affect adolescents. Many students are affected by their peers because they try to fit in the so called in crowd , when in fact their endangering their own lives. Some adolescents have different motives for drinking at different stages of adolescence. Coping motives significantly predict alcohol misuse during later waves (Bradizza, Reifman & Barnes,1999, p.496). The early years are indicating the early stages of adolescence. While in later years of adolescence there is more of a coping motive. Through the Cox analysis, it predicts that both coping and social motives strongly predicted alcohol misuse. On the other hand, the high score motives shows that it is a stronger predictor of alcohol misuse than coping motives (Bradizza, Reifman

& Barnes,1999, p.496). This can be due to the fact that at later stages of adolescence, teenagers want to relate to their peers more. It is important for them to be similar to their peers in order to be accepted. While in early years social acceptance is not a major priority to them. The most significant factor to adolescent drinking can be familial alcoholism. Children from high-risk families are said to drink at an earlier age that children from a low-risk families (Hill & Yuan, 1999, p.14.) High-risk families consist of parents who are alcoholics or members if the extended families are alcoholics. Such as uncles, aunts, grandparents, or cousins. Families of low-risk have a higher cumulative survival probability. The families of high-risk have a lower cumulative

survival probability. Hill & Yuan (1999) discuss that high-risk children not only drink earlier, but also drink more (p.12.) All of these concepts can be predicted from the families alcoholic influences. Offspring of alcoholic are typically considered to be at greater risk for developing alcohol problems due to the presence of alcoholism in one or more members of the nuclear or extended family (Hill & Huxing, 1999, p8.) Parents can place adolescents at lower protection factors. Parents can influence adolescents by contributing low protection factors. Costa, Jessor & Turbin stated protection factors as participating in activities, religious factors and direct social and personal control (p.481.) By parents influencing children to join clubs at school, around the