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.

The purpose of this study was to examine the efficacy of the Texas Drug and Alcohol Driving Awareness Program (TDADAP) in relation to alcohol-related offenses among young drivers. Participants in this study were students in pre-license programs for young beginning drivers who either received or did not receive TDADAP instruction as part of their curriculum. Based on the examination and statistical analysis of Texas Department of Public Safety driving record data, findings indicate that TDADAP participation did positively influence subsequent alcohol-related traffic convictions. Participants that received TDADAP instruction had a total of 5601 records, 231 of which were alcohol-related convictions. Participants who did not receive TDADAP instruction had a total 5945 records with 376 alcohol-related convictions. Promising results came from findings associated with TDADAP participation and the total number of alcohol-related offenses attributed to a group, the number of ALR offenses, MIP offenses, PI offenses and DUI/DWI offenses attributed to a group. When adjusted for group size, participants who did not receive TDADAP instruction had 53% more convictions than the TDADAP participants. With regard to alcohol-related accidents, findings were mixed in that the test group had a higher-than-expected number of participants with at least one accident, while the control group frequency was less than expected. The reverse was found when considering participants with two alcohol-related accidents. When taken as a whole, results from this study indicate that while TDADAP participation may influence alcohol-related traffic convictions and some alcohol-related accidents, it is a more accurate predictor of alcohol-related traffic convictions and a less accurate predictor of all alcohol-related accidents.