Alcohol-related Victimization among Young Adult Canadian Drinkers: The Explanatory Roles of Hazardous Drinking and Illicit Drug Use

• Published in: Canadian journal of public health 2009-01, Vol.100 (1), p.55-59
• Main Authors: Wells, Samantha L., Thompson, Jennie Mae
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Addiction; Addictive behaviors; Adolescent; Adult and adolescent clinical studies; Alcohol drinking; Alcohol use; Alcoholic Intoxication - epidemiology; Alcoholic Intoxication - psychology; Alcoholism; Alcoholism and acute alcohol poisoning; Alcohols; Biological and medical sciences; Canada - epidemiology; Cannabis; College students; Crime victims; Crime Victims - statistics & numerical data; Drug use; Female; Health hazards; Humans; Illicit drugs; Male; Medical sciences; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Men; Miscellaneous; Multivariate Analysis; Population Surveillance; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychopathology. Psychiatry; Public Health; Public health. Hygiene; Public health. Hygiene-occupational medicine; QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH; Sex Factors; Studies; Substance-Related Disorders - epidemiology; Toxicology; Violence; Violence - psychology; Violence - statistics & numerical data; Women; Young Adult; Young adults
• ISSN: 0008-4263; 1920-7476
• DOI: 10.1007/BF03405494

Objectives: Consistent evidence has shown that young people are significantly overrepresented among victims of violence due to another person's drinking. Yet little research has examined factors that explain alcohol-related victimization among young adults, particularly in Canada. The present study examines the influence of hazardous drinking and illicit drug use on the likelihood of experiencing alcohol-related physical victimization among young adult drinkers in a Canadian general population sample and determines whether gender differences exist in the roles of these explanatory variables. Methods: A secondary analysis of the 2004 Canadian Addiction Survey (CAS) was conducted, restricting analyses to young adult (ages 18 to 25) drinkers (785 females, 745 males). Logistic regression analyses were conducted to examine associations between explanatory variables and victimization. To assess gender differences in effects, interaction effects of gender by hazardous drinking and illicit drug use were tested. Results: Alcohol-related victimization was more likely among men than among women, hazardous drinkers than non-hazardous drinkers, and illicit drug users than non-users. Multivariate analyses indicated that, among women, illicit drug use was associated with victimization whereas, among men, hazardous drinking was significant. An interaction effect between gender and hazardous drinking indicated that hazardous drinking was more strongly associated with victimization among men than among women. Conclusion: These results highlight the important role of substance use in explaining alcohol-related victimization among young adult Canadian drinkers and suggest that gender-specific prevention programs may be needed. Objectifs : Des preuves convergentes montrent que les jeunes sont significativement surreprésentés parmi les victimes d'actes violents perpétrés par des personnes ayant bu de l'alcool. Pourtant, rares sont les études qui portent sur les facteurs pouvant expliquer la victimisation liée à l'alcool chez les jeunes adultes, particulièrement au Canada. Dans cet article, nous examinons l'influence des excès d'alcool et de la consommation de drogue sur la probabilité d'être victime de voies de fait liées à l'alcool chez les buveurs au début de l'âge adulte dans un échantillon représentatif de la population canadienne; nous cherchons aussi à déterminer si ces variables explicatives diffèrent selon le sexe. Méthode : Nous avons effectué une analyse secondaire de