Adolescent Drinking and Alcohol-Related Problems in a Nationwide General Population

A sample of 1,325 adolescents drawn from a nationwide multistage probability master sample of 4,290 persons were interviewed at their homes in 1984. The purpose of this study was to investigate the patterns and quantity of alcohol consumption and related problems. Moreover, mental health status of respondents and "risk" factors were explored. Alcohol use increased from the very young to the older ones and decreased between lifetime and past week frequencies. Of adolescents, 18% reported two or more alcohol-related problems including suffering from depressive symptoms. Discriminant analysis revealed 14 predictors with high discriminating power between problematic and nonproblematic drinking.