Emerging Adults
It has come to the attention of the Chicago Department of Public Health that there is a concerning health risk among emerging adults (18-30) in the state of Illinois. The health risk in particular is the use of alcohol. Over indulgence in alcohol results in injures, car accidents, and domestic abuse. These behaviors are toxic to the individual and society which is why this issue must be addressed and reduced. As adults transition from adolescence they are given new forms of freedom and independence, which can have costly effects on their health. According to Health, United States (2008), “about 6%–8% of young men and 3%–5% of young women reporting heavy drinking. Heavy drinking is defined as more than 14 drinks per week for men and more than
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seven drinks per week for women, on average.” (pg.16). According to the (Center of Disease Control (2014), “Excessive alcohol consumption increases aggression and, as a result can increase the risk of physically assaulting another person.” (pg.1).The behaviors affiliated with alcohol abuse can have short-term and long term effects. According to the Foundation For A Drug-Free World (2006), possible short term effects of alcohol are unconsciousness, drowsiness, distorted vison and hearing, decreased coordination, and black outs. It is also noted by the Foundation for a Drug-Free World (2006) that possible long terms effects of alcohol are unintentional injuries, car accidents, and falls. These short term and long term effects pose physical and social risks. Behaviors that are results of excessive drinking is domestic abuse and violence. According to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (2015), “696,000 students between the ages of 18 and 24 are assaulted by another student who has been drinking.” (pg.1). A study was conducted addressing the states with the highest binge drinking and alcohol consumption rates, and it was found that Illinois is among the top five Midwest states with the highest binge drinking rates. (Traut, 2015). These rates show how excessive drinking is influenced by state and social status, specifically emerging adults who are in college. According to Arnett (2005), “Young adults’ transition from adolescence to adulthood at different rates, and some decide to express their adulthood through the use of alcohol and drugs, this expression maybe influenced by their community, friend group, and advertisements’.” As a result of that emerging adults are still developing a sense of self control, however, overdrinking still has dire consequences’, and domestic abuse is one of them. Domestic abuse and violence are all relative to the short term and long term effects of alcohol. Over consumption of alcohol results in reckless and hostile behavior that can result in friends, peers, spouses, and family being victims of that behavior. According to the (National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence (NCADD), 2016), “95% of all violent crimes on college campuses involves the use of alcohol by the assailant, victim, or both.” This presents the adverse effects of alcohol on the individual’s social behavior, due to over drinking. Another behavior that is influenced by the over consumption of alcohol is potential car accidents or in other words driving while intoxicated (DWI). It is noted in the 2016 DUI Fact book (2016), that in Illinois “710 drivers underage of 21 lost their driving privileges due to zero tolerance law violations”, and “Males ages 21-24 had the highest DUI arrest rate (about 15 per 1,000 licensed drivers).” (pg.9).The zero tolerance law is a law that states that any drivers under the age of 21 with a trace of alcohol in their system will lose their driving privileges for a minimum of two years. In terms of emerging adults this law is more prevalent to ages 18-20. It is also stated by the ( NCADD ,2016), that “Drinking and drugged driving is the number one cause of death, injury and disability of young people under the age of 21, and nearly 40% of all traffic fatalities are alcohol related”. Intoxicated driving has higher rates among emerging adult males ages 21-24 and emerging adults ages 18-20. The behavior of intoxicated driving can result in long terms effects, such as car crashes, unintentional injuries, and property damage. These long terms effects are relative to the short term effects of alcohol consumption, specifically distorted vision and hearing, drowsiness, unconsciousness, and blackouts. Alcohol could affect ones driving by causing impaired vision, reduced reaction times, difficulty understanding sensory information, and failure to obey road rules. (Australian Drug Foundation, 2016). As a result of car accidents, due to intoxicated drinking, property damage and physical damage are ramifications of that behavior. Nonfatal injuries are a leading reason for health care utilization among young adults. According to the National Center of Health Statistics (2009), “Young adults have among the highest rate of emergency department visits (4, 5) and the highest rate of injury-related emergency department visits (see related Table 93) among all age groups. The use of alcohol and illicit drugs’ can escalate to dangerous activities’, such as drunk driving.” There is social aspects that influence young adults drinking habits. For example, the disruptions experienced in emerging adulthood could result in anxiety and sadness, which then leads to sensation seeking from substances such as alcohol. (Arnett, 2005). Psychologists Courtney and Polich (2009) conducted a psychological study with reference to epidemiological studies on binge drinking and young adults, it is noted that “The young people underestimated their “perceived” level of inebriation during 19% of the experimental scenarios, suggesting that their judgment was affected by the cues” (pg.147). Lack of awareness in intake of alcohol results in a decrease of self-efficacy. Lack of self-efficacy while intoxicated is an indicator of the behaviors that come with binge drinking, such as car accidents, domestic abuse, and injuries. According to Stone et al.
(2012), “Not only is emerging adulthood (usually defined as the period from 18-26) an important developmental period characterized by peak prevalence of substance of substance use problems and problems related to use, it also sets the stage for later adult development.” (pg.749). Behaviors pertaining to alcohol consumption and illicit drug use are all central to a young adult’s search of identity and new and profound independence. Emerging adults are faced with a number of stressors in their lives. They are expected to have their lives mapped out in terms of planning for further education, acquiring financial independence, and maintaining healthy and happy lifestyles, (Arnett, 2005). These daily stressors are possible indicators of why emerging adults binge drink. Though binge drinking is a risk that can affect all emerging adults it was found in research conducted by Stone et al. (2012) that over consumption in alcohol is higher among male emerging adults. Coate and Grossman (1998) found that “strong drink and driving policies predicted lower male drinking and binging, not female binging”. It was also found that “Beer prices did not predict male drinking, but predicted less female under-age drink and binge.” (Stone et al., 2012). This explains how taxation and regulation are solutions that can reduce binge drinking, and behaviors such as intoxicated driving, domestic abuse and violence, and injuries. Though regulations’ and taxation are solutions that can reduce such behaviors and short term and long term effects there needs to be more of an awareness and advocacy of safe drinking in the state of
Illinois. In order to encourage safe drinking and reduce binge drinking rates, there must be more advertisements’ informing the general public, but specifically emerging adults about the health risks’ and consequences’ of alcohol abuse. According to Vance, Howe, and Dellavalle (2009),”Patients rely on the internet more frequently than their physicians as a source of health care information.” (pg.133). It is also noted that “socially oriented sites, such as YouTube , Facebook, Myspace, Twitter, and Second Life, compromise part of the user-generated content constituting web 2.0 and are popular among Americans aged 18 to 30, two thirds of whom say they visit the sites frequently.” (Vance; Howe; Dellavalle, 2009). It is evident that social media sites are prevalent in the lives of emerging adults, and so public health announcements’ pertaining to alcohol abuse should be more accessible on theses platforms. According to Vance, Howe, and Dellavalle (2009), “More than 100 million videos are viewed on YouTube daily, and that number continues to rise.” Using a platform such as YouTube to address the issue of binge drinking can assist in reducing the behaviors that come with over intoxication. For example, YouTube videos all contain commercials that the viewer can sometimes skip, or has to watch, and so including infomercials pertaining to binge drinking that the viewer must watch can reduce long term effects of the consumer’s behavior. Aside from utilizing YouTube as platform for public health announcements, social outlets such as Snap Chat, Twitter, and Facebook are also popular among emerging adults. According to Vance, Howe, and Dellavalle (2009), “Microblogging also has potential as a medical support group format” and “Physicians could reach their patients through Twitter to update them with therapeutic advancements, to answer disease-related questions, or simply to remind a large group of engaged consumers to wear their daily sunscreen.’ (pg.135). The effectiveness of social media sites can have a large impact on unhealthy behaviors among emerging adults, and that is why the Chicago Department of Public Health is partnering with YouTube, Snap Chat, Twitter, and Facebook, in hopes of presenting a strong message pertaining to the consequences’ of binge drinking. As it is noted, that binge drinking can result in hostile behaviors’ and adverse outcomes the message is ‘Don’t drink; it’ll bring out the monster in you.’ In hopes of this campaign the CDPH is trying to promote a safe amount of alcohol that will ultimately result in more of consciousness, decrease in drowsiness, and increased sensory skills. The short term health effects of binge drinking are the factors that influence the long term health and social consequences’. The CDPH’s partnership with Snap Chat is another source that will allow for an increase in advocacy of this risk. Snap Chat is an application that allows users to take photos, and send them to their friends and family. Aside from taking regular photos, Snap Chat also includes filters that the user can use. The CDPH would like to develop a filter for users to use every Friday, and advocate safe drinking. For example, users can take a photo, and look through their filters and discover a filter stating “Don’t drink and drive, that’s how you stay alive.” The promotion of this filter among consumers is a reminder of safe drinking, and could possibly reduce intoxicated drinking, and the ramifications of drunk driving. Another facet that can contribute to the promotion of safe drinking is Facebook. According to Bumgarner (2007), “Facebook currently ranks as the sixth most trafficked site in the United States and the number one site for photo–sharing (Facebook, 2007). It is also noted that Facebook is a Web site, “a social utility that enables people to understand the world around them.” The CDPH would like to create a page relative to facts about binge drinking and statistics addressing car accidents, injuries, and domestic abuse rates in the state of Illinois, due to binge drinking. The creation of this page can result in more users (specifically emerging adults) to like and share the page. In order for the CDPH to assess the effectiveness of this campaign on these platforms Facebook, Snap Chat, YouTube, and Twitter, there must be a change in binge drinking rates and a frequency of sharing on social media sites. There must be extensive research done assessing the effectiveness of the intended message on emerging adults. As it was stated that emerging adults are among the greatest users of social outlets, a decrease in binge drinking rates, car accident incidences’, and domestic abuse cases would all be due to the increase in sharing of facts, watching of infomercials on YouTube, and use of the Snap Chat filter. The CDPH would like to utilize these platforms to increase awareness of binge drinking, the behaviors of binge drinking, and the short term and long term effects of it.
seven drinks per week for women, on average.” (pg.16). According to the (Center of Disease Control (2014), “Excessive alcohol consumption increases aggression and, as a result can increase the risk of physically assaulting another person.” (pg.1).The behaviors affiliated with alcohol abuse can have short-term and long term effects. According to the Foundation For A Drug-Free World (2006), possible short term effects of alcohol are unconsciousness, drowsiness, distorted vison and hearing, decreased coordination, and black outs. It is also noted by the Foundation for a Drug-Free World (2006) that possible long terms effects of alcohol are unintentional injuries, car accidents, and falls. These short term and long term effects pose physical and social risks. Behaviors that are results of excessive drinking is domestic abuse and violence. According to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (2015), “696,000 students between the ages of 18 and 24 are assaulted by another student who has been drinking.” (pg.1). A study was conducted addressing the states with the highest binge drinking and alcohol consumption rates, and it was found that Illinois is among the top five Midwest states with the highest binge drinking rates. (Traut, 2015). These rates show how excessive drinking is influenced by state and social status, specifically emerging adults who are in college. According to Arnett (2005), “Young adults’ transition from adolescence to adulthood at different rates, and some decide to express their adulthood through the use of alcohol and drugs, this expression maybe influenced by their community, friend group, and advertisements’.” As a result of that emerging adults are still developing a sense of self control, however, overdrinking still has dire consequences’, and domestic abuse is one of them. Domestic abuse and violence are all relative to the short term and long term effects of alcohol. Over consumption of alcohol results in reckless and hostile behavior that can result in friends, peers, spouses, and family being victims of that behavior. According to the (National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence (NCADD), 2016), “95% of all violent crimes on college campuses involves the use of alcohol by the assailant, victim, or both.” This presents the adverse effects of alcohol on the individual’s social behavior, due to over drinking. Another behavior that is influenced by the over consumption of alcohol is potential car accidents or in other words driving while intoxicated (DWI). It is noted in the 2016 DUI Fact book (2016), that in Illinois “710 drivers underage of 21 lost their driving privileges due to zero tolerance law violations”, and “Males ages 21-24 had the highest DUI arrest rate (about 15 per 1,000 licensed drivers).” (pg.9).The zero tolerance law is a law that states that any drivers under the age of 21 with a trace of alcohol in their system will lose their driving privileges for a minimum of two years. In terms of emerging adults this law is more prevalent to ages 18-20. It is also stated by the ( NCADD ,2016), that “Drinking and drugged driving is the number one cause of death, injury and disability of young people under the age of 21, and nearly 40% of all traffic fatalities are alcohol related”. Intoxicated driving has higher rates among emerging adult males ages 21-24 and emerging adults ages 18-20. The behavior of intoxicated driving can result in long terms effects, such as car crashes, unintentional injuries, and property damage. These long terms effects are relative to the short term effects of alcohol consumption, specifically distorted vision and hearing, drowsiness, unconsciousness, and blackouts. Alcohol could affect ones driving by causing impaired vision, reduced reaction times, difficulty understanding sensory information, and failure to obey road rules. (Australian Drug Foundation, 2016). As a result of car accidents, due to intoxicated drinking, property damage and physical damage are ramifications of that behavior. Nonfatal injuries are a leading reason for health care utilization among young adults. According to the National Center of Health Statistics (2009), “Young adults have among the highest rate of emergency department visits (4, 5) and the highest rate of injury-related emergency department visits (see related Table 93) among all age groups. The use of alcohol and illicit drugs’ can escalate to dangerous activities’, such as drunk driving.” There is social aspects that influence young adults drinking habits. For example, the disruptions experienced in emerging adulthood could result in anxiety and sadness, which then leads to sensation seeking from substances such as alcohol. (Arnett, 2005). Psychologists Courtney and Polich (2009) conducted a psychological study with reference to epidemiological studies on binge drinking and young adults, it is noted that “The young people underestimated their “perceived” level of inebriation during 19% of the experimental scenarios, suggesting that their judgment was affected by the cues” (pg.147). Lack of awareness in intake of alcohol results in a decrease of self-efficacy. Lack of self-efficacy while intoxicated is an indicator of the behaviors that come with binge drinking, such as car accidents, domestic abuse, and injuries. According to Stone et al.
(2012), “Not only is emerging adulthood (usually defined as the period from 18-26) an important developmental period characterized by peak prevalence of substance of substance use problems and problems related to use, it also sets the stage for later adult development.” (pg.749). Behaviors pertaining to alcohol consumption and illicit drug use are all central to a young adult’s search of identity and new and profound independence. Emerging adults are faced with a number of stressors in their lives. They are expected to have their lives mapped out in terms of planning for further education, acquiring financial independence, and maintaining healthy and happy lifestyles, (Arnett, 2005). These daily stressors are possible indicators of why emerging adults binge drink. Though binge drinking is a risk that can affect all emerging adults it was found in research conducted by Stone et al. (2012) that over consumption in alcohol is higher among male emerging adults. Coate and Grossman (1998) found that “strong drink and driving policies predicted lower male drinking and binging, not female binging”. It was also found that “Beer prices did not predict male drinking, but predicted less female under-age drink and binge.” (Stone et al., 2012). This explains how taxation and regulation are solutions that can reduce binge drinking, and behaviors such as intoxicated driving, domestic abuse and violence, and injuries. Though regulations’ and taxation are solutions that can reduce such behaviors and short term and long term effects there needs to be more of an awareness and advocacy of safe drinking in the state of
Illinois. In order to encourage safe drinking and reduce binge drinking rates, there must be more advertisements’ informing the general public, but specifically emerging adults about the health risks’ and consequences’ of alcohol abuse. According to Vance, Howe, and Dellavalle (2009),”Patients rely on the internet more frequently than their physicians as a source of health care information.” (pg.133). It is also noted that “socially oriented sites, such as YouTube , Facebook, Myspace, Twitter, and Second Life, compromise part of the user-generated content constituting web 2.0 and are popular among Americans aged 18 to 30, two thirds of whom say they visit the sites frequently.” (Vance; Howe; Dellavalle, 2009). It is evident that social media sites are prevalent in the lives of emerging adults, and so public health announcements’ pertaining to alcohol abuse should be more accessible on theses platforms. According to Vance, Howe, and Dellavalle (2009), “More than 100 million videos are viewed on YouTube daily, and that number continues to rise.” Using a platform such as YouTube to address the issue of binge drinking can assist in reducing the behaviors that come with over intoxication. For example, YouTube videos all contain commercials that the viewer can sometimes skip, or has to watch, and so including infomercials pertaining to binge drinking that the viewer must watch can reduce long term effects of the consumer’s behavior. Aside from utilizing YouTube as platform for public health announcements, social outlets such as Snap Chat, Twitter, and Facebook are also popular among emerging adults. According to Vance, Howe, and Dellavalle (2009), “Microblogging also has potential as a medical support group format” and “Physicians could reach their patients through Twitter to update them with therapeutic advancements, to answer disease-related questions, or simply to remind a large group of engaged consumers to wear their daily sunscreen.’ (pg.135). The effectiveness of social media sites can have a large impact on unhealthy behaviors among emerging adults, and that is why the Chicago Department of Public Health is partnering with YouTube, Snap Chat, Twitter, and Facebook, in hopes of presenting a strong message pertaining to the consequences’ of binge drinking. As it is noted, that binge drinking can result in hostile behaviors’ and adverse outcomes the message is ‘Don’t drink; it’ll bring out the monster in you.’ In hopes of this campaign the CDPH is trying to promote a safe amount of alcohol that will ultimately result in more of consciousness, decrease in drowsiness, and increased sensory skills. The short term health effects of binge drinking are the factors that influence the long term health and social consequences’. The CDPH’s partnership with Snap Chat is another source that will allow for an increase in advocacy of this risk. Snap Chat is an application that allows users to take photos, and send them to their friends and family. Aside from taking regular photos, Snap Chat also includes filters that the user can use. The CDPH would like to develop a filter for users to use every Friday, and advocate safe drinking. For example, users can take a photo, and look through their filters and discover a filter stating “Don’t drink and drive, that’s how you stay alive.” The promotion of this filter among consumers is a reminder of safe drinking, and could possibly reduce intoxicated drinking, and the ramifications of drunk driving. Another facet that can contribute to the promotion of safe drinking is Facebook. According to Bumgarner (2007), “Facebook currently ranks as the sixth most trafficked site in the United States and the number one site for photo–sharing (Facebook, 2007). It is also noted that Facebook is a Web site, “a social utility that enables people to understand the world around them.” The CDPH would like to create a page relative to facts about binge drinking and statistics addressing car accidents, injuries, and domestic abuse rates in the state of Illinois, due to binge drinking. The creation of this page can result in more users (specifically emerging adults) to like and share the page. In order for the CDPH to assess the effectiveness of this campaign on these platforms Facebook, Snap Chat, YouTube, and Twitter, there must be a change in binge drinking rates and a frequency of sharing on social media sites. There must be extensive research done assessing the effectiveness of the intended message on emerging adults. As it was stated that emerging adults are among the greatest users of social outlets, a decrease in binge drinking rates, car accident incidences’, and domestic abuse cases would all be due to the increase in sharing of facts, watching of infomercials on YouTube, and use of the Snap Chat filter. The CDPH would like to utilize these platforms to increase awareness of binge drinking, the behaviors of binge drinking, and the short term and long term effects of it.