Youth alcohol use and risky sexual behavior : evidence from underage drunk driving laws.

Author(s)
Carpenter, C.
Year
Abstract

Recent research calls into question previous methods for estimating the relationship between alcohol use and risky sexual behavior among youths [Rashad, I., Kaestner, R., 2004. Teenage sex, drugs and alcohol use: problems identifying the cause of risky behaviors. Journal of Health Economics 23, 493-503]. This paper provides new evidence on this question by using reductions in heavy alcohol use among underage males induced by state adoption of very strict age-targeted "Zero Tolerance" drunk driving laws. I estimate reduced form models of the effects of Zero Tolerance laws on state gonorrhea rates by age group and race over the period 1981-2000, controlling for state and year fixed effects and state-specific time trends. I find that adoption of a Zero Tolerance law was associated with a significant reduction in gonorrhea rates among 15-19-year-old white males, with no effect for slightly older males age 20-24 whose drinking behavior was unaffected by the tougher policies. I find mixed effects for white females and no significant effects for blacks. While not conclusive, these results suggest an important role for alcohol use in risky sexual behavior among young men. (Author/publisher)

Request publication

8 + 12 =
Solve this simple math problem and enter the result. E.g. for 1+3, enter 4.

Publication

Library number
20050536 ST [electronic version only]
Source

Journal of Health Economics, Vol. 24 (2005), No. 3 (May), p. 613-628, 21 ref.

Our collection

This publication is one of our other publications, and part of our extensive collection of road safety literature, that also includes the SWOV publications.