Date of Award

6-1995

Degree Name

Master of Arts

Department

Sociology

First Advisor

Dr. Stan Robin

Second Advisor

Dr. Jim Petersen

Third Advisor

Dr. Jerry Markle

Keywords

adolescent alcohol usage, SADD, self-help groups

Access Setting

Masters Thesis-Open Access

Abstract

This research examines the influence of Students Against Driving Drunk (SADD) chapters on the reported behavior and attitudes towards alcohol use of 8th, 10th, and 12th grade students in 208 public school districts in Michigan. This research is conducted at the intersection of social movement theory coupled with self-help group issues; theoretical approaches to explaining adolescent alcohol use; and SADD's etiological assumptions about adolescent alcohol use as derived from the organization's activities. These lead to comparing two types of SADD chapters (active and inactive) to school districts without SADD chapters, using students' (N=92,257) responses to the Michigan Alcohol and Other Drugs School Surveys.

The findings suggest that SADD chapters, both active and inactive, have limited and inconsistent success at reducing adolescent drinking behavior in general, while also alienating significant numbers of students or groups of students. However, students in inactive SADD school districts report significantly less drinking and driving than students in active SADD school districts. It seems adolescents integrate only specific socialization experiences as guides for behavior.

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