scholarly journals A qualitative study of local perspectives on problem drinking in Peruvian Andean highlands: control, power, and responsibility

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sakiko Yamaguchi ◽  
Raphael Lencucha ◽  
Thomas Gordon Brown
Keyword(s):  
Alcohol Consumption ◽  
Political Violence ◽  
Health Workers ◽  
Problem Drinking ◽  
Cultural Practice ◽  
Self Control ◽  
Government Control ◽  
Macroeconomic Conditions ◽  
Alcohol Control ◽  
Local Perspectives

Abstract Background Alcohol control has garnered attention from the global health community in recent years. This attention is partly prompted by increasing exposure of nefarious alcohol industry practices, coupled with the recognition that many governments have not yet put in place alcohol control policies, leaving populations vulnerable to industry influence. The Peruvian Andean highland has seen the change of the Andean practice of collective drinking in response to the increased availability of alcohol and the experience of political violence. This study seeks to merge the broader political economy with local experience and culture in order to provide a deeper understanding of the dynamic between global processes and local realities.Methods We conducted focus group interviews (n=19) with community participants, teachers, and health workers, and key informant interviews (n=28). Thematic analysis identified patterns of individual and collective meaning and social, political and economic factors. Results Local perspectives regarding loss of control over alcohol highlight the complex patterns of power and meaning exerted and experienced by different actors, shaping both understanding and behaviour. Participants’ focus on parents’ lack of control over alcohol use by some “abandoned” children reflects the structural vulnerability of some Andean families struggling with economic hardships. Another focus was on the money spent by men to engage in problem drinking. Participants interpreted alcohol consumption in this context as a way that men demonstrate their masculine identity and symbolic power as the breadwinner who controls the household economy. The third focus is superimposed onto the market economy. Participants expressed that the expansion of the alcohol market and perceived absence of government control coupled with macroeconomic conditions shaped patterns of alcohol consumption.Conclusion Participants’ perspectives illustrate how problem drinking is shaped not simply by an individual drinker’s lack of self-control but also shaped by an environment that enables the unrestrained marketing of alcohol products and the creation of a culture of consumption. Harmful consumption is mediated by the reshaping of the Andean cultural practice of collective drinking. Attending to local perspectives is essential for policies and interventions that connect structural dynamics with the cultural and experiential aspects of alcohol consumption.

scholarly journals Control, power, and responsibility: a qualitative study of local perspectives on problem drinking in Peruvian Andean highlands

2021 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sakiko Yamaguchi ◽  
Raphael Lencucha ◽  
Thomas G. Brown
Keyword(s):  
Alcohol Consumption ◽  
Political Violence ◽  
Police Officers ◽  
Health Workers ◽  
Problem Drinking ◽  
Cultural Practice ◽  
Self Control ◽  
Control Measures ◽  
Government Control ◽  
Local Perspectives

Abstract Background Alcohol control has emerged as an important global health challenge due to the expanding influence of alcohol companies and limited control measures imposed by governments. In the Peruvian Andean highland, the ritual function of collective drinking is reported to have been weakened in response to the increased availability of alcohol and the experience of political violence. This study seeks to merge the broader political economy with local experience and culture to provide a deeper understanding of the dynamic between global processes and local realities. Methods We used purposive sampling to recruit participants. We conducted in-depth interviews (n = 28) and focus group discussions (n = 19) with community participants, teachers, health workers, alcohol vendors and police officers. Thematic analysis identified patterns of individual and collective meaning situated in relation to social, political and economic factors. Results Local perspectives and behaviour regarding loss of control over alcohol are shaped through the complex patterns of power and meaning exerted and experienced by different actors. Participants’ emphasis on parents’ lack of control over alcohol use by “abandoned” children reflects the structural vulnerability of some Andean families struggling with economic hardships. Participants also emphasized how alcohol consumption was tied to forms of control exerted by men in households. Participants expressed that some men demonstrated their masculine identity and symbolic power as the breadwinner through spending on alcohol. The third emphasis was tied to the market economy. Participants expressed that the expansion of the alcohol market and perceived absence of government control coupled with macroeconomic conditions, like poverty, shaped patterns of alcohol consumption. Conclusion Our findings illustrate how problem drinking is shaped not simply by an individual drinker’s lack of self-control but also by a regulatory environment that enables the unrestrained marketing of alcohol products and the creation of a culture of consumption. Harmful consumption is mediated by the reshaping of the Andean cultural practice of collective drinking. Attending to local perspectives is essential for policies and interventions that connect structural dynamics with the cultural and experiential aspects of alcohol consumption.

scholarly journals A Qualitative Study of Local Perspectives on Problem Drinking in Peruvian Andean Highlands: Control, Power, and Responsibility

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sakiko Yamaguchi ◽  
Raphael Lencucha ◽  
Thomas Gordon Brown
Keyword(s):  
Alcohol Consumption ◽  
Alcohol Use ◽  
Political Violence ◽  
Problem Drinking ◽  
Cultural Practice ◽  
Self Control ◽  
Public Health Approach ◽  
Government Control ◽  
Lack Of Control ◽  
Local Perspectives

Abstract Background The public health approach to alcohol consumption that encourages moderate alcohol consumption and self-control often sits in tension with an ever-expanding profit-driven alcohol industry and an unwillingness of governments to regulate alcohol supply. The Peruvian Andean highland has seen the change of the Andean practice of collective drinking in response to the increased availability of alcohol and the experience of political violence. This paper sheds light on the ways that control, and specifically lack of control, intersects with the growing influence of alcohol companies and the reconfiguring of alcohol in Andean cultural practice.Methods Data were collected through focus group interviews (n=19) with community participants, teachers, and health workers, and key informant interviews (n=28). Thematic analysis was conducted to identify patterns of individual and collective meaning and social, political and economic factors associated with alcohol use. Results Local perspectives regarding loss of control over alcohol highlight the complex patterns of power and meaning exerted and experienced by different actors, shaping both understanding and behaviour. Participants’ focus on parents’ lack of control over alcohol use by some “abandoned” children reflects the structural vulnerability of some Andean families struggling with economic hardships. Another focus was on the money spent by men to engage in problem drinking. Participants interpreted alcohol consumption in this context as a way that men demonstrate their masculine identity and symbolic power as the breadwinner who controls the household economy. The third focus is superimposed onto the market economy. Participants expressed that the expansion of the alcohol market and perceived absence of government control coupled with macroeconomic conditions shaped patterns of alcohol consumption.Conclusion Echoing the political economy perspective, participants’ perspectives on control illustrate how problem drinking is shaped not simply by an individual drinker’s lack of self-control but also by an environment that enables the unrestrained marketing of alcohol products and the creation of a culture of consumption. Furthermore, harmful consumption is mediated by the reshaping of the Andean cultural practice of collective drinking. Attending to local perspectives is essential for policies and interventions that connect structural dynamics with the cultural and experiential aspects of alcohol consumption.

Using Gottfredson and Hirschi’s A General Theory of Crime to Explain Problematic Alcohol Consumption by Police Officers: A Test of Self-Control as Self-Regulation

2017 ◽  
Vol 47 (3) ◽  
pp. 505-522 ◽  
Author(s):  
Egbert Zavala ◽  
Don L. Kurtz
Keyword(s):  
Alcohol Consumption ◽  
General Theory ◽  
Police Officers ◽  
Criminal Behavior ◽  
Problem Drinking ◽  
Self Regulation ◽  
Self Control ◽  
General Theory Of Crime ◽  
Problematic Alcohol ◽  
Theory Of Crime

Problematic alcohol consumption by police officers is well documented in the literature. However, no study has utilized Gottfredson and Hirschi’s A General Theory of Crime to determine what role, if any, self-control (i.e., self-regulation) plays in predicting this behavior. Therefore, data from the Police Stress and Domestic Violence in Police Families in Baltimore, Maryland, 1997-1999 are analyzed to test the influence of work-related stress on officers’ self-control and problem drinking. Results indicated that self-control is significant in predicting problematic alcohol consumption by police officers. Two control variables (burnout and peer drinking) also predicted the dependent variable. The current study provides further evidence that self-control continues to be one of the most consistent factors most likely to lead to criminal behavior, including those committed by police officers.

Alcohol and Primary Prevention in Scotland and Sweden

1995 ◽  
Vol 12 (1_suppl) ◽  
pp. 31-60
Author(s):  
Håkan Leifman
Keyword(s):  
Alcohol Consumption ◽  
Primary Alcohol ◽  
Control Policy ◽  
Alcohol Prevention ◽  
Upward Trend ◽  
Alcohol Control ◽  
Preventive Actions ◽  
Private Profit ◽  
Temperance Movements ◽  
Restrictive Legislation

This study compares primary alcohol prevention in Scotland and Sweden and the effectiveness of preventive actions with special reference to developments from the mid- or late 1970s when alcohol consumption peaked in both countries and when changes were made in their alcohol policies. A short historical overview shows many similarities between the countries, e.g. strong prohibition-oriented temperance movements, a history of alcohol (spirits) abuse and restrictive legislation. A major difference is the much more dominating role of private profit motives in Scottish alcohol trade. During the last 15-20 years, the two countries have chosen different strategies to prevent alcohol-related problems. Sweden has put heavy emphasis on restricting the availability of alcohol but also invested substantially in information, whereas Scotland has concentrated on the latter. A comparison of the trends during the last 15-20 years suggests that whereas Swedish alcohol control reduced the level of alcohol consumption and related problems in the late 1970s and early 1980s, the Scottish did not, even though the upward trend was broken for most indicators. The drinking sensible message has not been powerful enough to reduce the number of non-sensible drinkers. In fact, a continuing upward trend of liver cirrhosis deaths in Scotland, especially for women, may suggest the opposite. The study also shows that, despite rather stable overall consumption for the last 10 years, the specific alcohol-related problem of drinking and driving has been decreasing in both countries. This indicates that even if consumption increases in the future, as is likely in Sweden due to current changes in alcohol control policy, drinking in specific contexts may still be preventable.

scholarly journals Self-Control and Implicit Drinking Identity as Predictors of Alcohol Consumption, Problems, and Cravings

2014 ◽  
Vol 75 (2) ◽  
pp. 290-298 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristen P Lindgren ◽  
Clayton Neighbors ◽  
Erin Westgate ◽  
Elske Salemink
Keyword(s):  
Alcohol Consumption ◽  
Self Control

scholarly journals From Cannabis to Problem Drinking? Use and Abuse from Youth to Adulthood

2014 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Christer Hyggen ◽  
Torild Hammer
Keyword(s):  
Alcohol Consumption ◽  
Problem Drinking ◽  
Total N ◽  
Level Of Involvement ◽  
Roles And Responsibilities ◽  
Nationally Representative ◽  
Adult Roles ◽  
The Life Course ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Alcohol Related Problems

AbstractAIMS – The transition from youth to adulthood is associated with changes in the consumption of drugs and alcohol. The aim is to explore the process of “maturing out” of high levels of alcohol consumption, substance use and alcohol related problems from youth to adulthood. We are particularly interested in the relationship between the use of cannabis and alcohol consumption in relation to indicators of adult roles and responsibilities and alcohol-related problems over the life-course. METHODS – We used data from the longitudinal panel survey Arbeid, Livsstil og Helse (ALH). The data contains information on alcohol and drug consumption, alcohol related problems and a range of indicators of adulthood like marriage and parenthood from surveys repeated in 1985, 1987, 1989, 1993, 2003 and 2010. The sample was nationally representative for the cohorts born 1965–1968 and thus contains individual histories from youth (17–20 years) to adulthood (42–45 years) with response rates ranging from 80% in 1985 to 53% in 2010 (total n=1997). RESULTS – Alcohol consumption is found to be substantially higher among users of cannabis than among non-users throughout the period from youth to adulthood. The use of cannabis, the level of alcohol consumption and probability of experiencing alcohol related problems decrease as the cohorts grow older. Alcohol related problems are still associated with the level of involvement with cannabis: those with a current or previous involvement with cannabis report more alcohol related problems. Taking into account the decreasing trend of alcohol related problems with age we find that becoming a parent and/ or getting married reduces the risk of experiencing such problems.

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