Alcohol advertising and young people's drinking

Purpose - This paper aims to investigate relationships between reported alcohol consumption and exposure to alcohol advertising. Design/methodology/approach - A survey of young people (17-21 years) was carried out in which they were questioned about their alcohol consumption habits, types of alcohol they consume, exposure to alcohol advertising, and a range of other factors linked to drinking (e.g. parental and peer groups alcohol-related behavior and attitudes). General alcohol consumption was measured within three time-frames: own lifetime, past year and past month. Findings - The results showed no significant relationships between exposure to any type of alcohol advertising (cinema, magazine, TV) and general alcohol consumption. Exposure to televised advertising for alcopops and for cider in each case emerged as a significant predictor of consumption of each of those types of alcohol. While there was no evidence that alcohol advertising plays a significant role in shaping general alcohol consumption among young people, it does seem to play a part in driving consumption of certain types of alcoholic beverage. Research limitations/implications - Self-completion questionnaires were used and the sample was based in central east England. Practical implications - The results can inform current debates about the role of advertising in young people's drinking. Originality/value - A wider range of alcohol-related consumption and alcohol advertising exposure behaviors was examined in this study than in most other published surveys that have investigated relationships between these classes of variables.