Annotated Bibliography of Minimum Legal Drinking Age

Luis Meza
The University of Texas at El Paso

Ertan Yrk, Ceren & Yrk, Bar, (2014). Alcohol consumption and risky sexual
behavior among

young adults: evidence

from minimum legal drinking age laws. Journal of Population

Economics, 28 (1).

133-157.
Ertan Yrk, Ceren & Yrk, Bar study investigated the up rise of alcohol
consumption under the minimum legal drinking age (MLDA) of 21 and
backsliding disruption method to investigate the relation between drinking
and risky sexual behavior. The authors refer to the influence of alcohol
associated with risky sexual behavior by the increase of sexual aggression,
lower self-consciousness or a decrease in the ability to assess possible risks.
The data obtained by a survey made to NLSY97 respondents showed
unmarried young adults drink alcohol 4.8 days per month and practice binge
drinking 2.2 days per month. For instance a RD design was applied to
estimate how MLDA laws affect alcohol consumption and risky sexual
behavior among young adults. The results reported that risky sexual behavior
may lead to an STD, pregnancy, however MLDA and sexual activity it is not
significant for females according to the results in the tables that appears in
the article.
The article is very useful in the way the information is showed, the article is
well organized they provided background information, presented data and
summary statistics, discussion of RD models, results and discussion about
them, policy implications and concludes. This information is 100% reliable, it
provides a variety of resources in a references page with more than 20
different articles and journals provided to the audience to prove that their
information is factual and credible. Their goal is to analyze and investigate

the increase of alcohol consumption and risky sexual behavior under the
MLDA and inform the audience the cause and effects of alcohol consumption
and sexual behavior. The research will serve as a tool for students who are
seeking to investigate alcohol consumption and applied this information in
future research.

Peer Reviewed: Yes

Leah S. Richmond-Rakerd, Wendy S. Slutske, Andrew C. Heath & Nicholas G. Martin, (2014).
Genetic and environmental influences on the ages of drinking and gambling initiation:
evidence for distinct aetiologies and sex differences. Addiction, 109 (2), 323-331.
This article aims to investigate the genetic and environmental at the ages of first drink
(AFD) and first gambled (AFG). It will attack points of variations that could be a factor
in addiction genetics and sex differences. This research applied a method that started with
4542 members of the Australian Twin Registry (ATR), they were interviewed with certain
of questions about the first time they drank or gambled. The answers given by the
respondents were different between these correlations and served as evidence of genetic
and environmental contributions. The sex differences were constrained all together and
resulted in a decrement in model fit, similar results were found in the categorical
phenotypes research. For instance, the age of first gambled have a unique and
environmental factors that have a significant and comparable variations in AFD and AFG.
The results pointed to the differences between drinking and gambling environment
influences, although it differs among men and women.
This articles is a very useful source of information, it provides the audience a great
amount of facts and statistics that prove their researches, however this research is focused
to a more expertise audience because of the high professional language and different

scientific processes used in this article. The information provided by the articles is
credible, it is supported by a strong references page with more than 20 different articles
and journals with factual information. Comparing this article from different ones, this
article has a higher level of difficulty because of the professionalism of the language
applied to this article. The goal of this article is to inform the audience the roots of the
AFD and AFG, how the environmental and sex differences factors affect the outcome of
an individual and lead to a conclusion. It will serve in the future as very precise
information to be applied in future assignments and new generations can be aware of
misbehavior of alcohol use and gambling at early ages.
Peer Reviewed: Yes

Saylor, Drew K. (2011). Heavy drinking on college campuses: no reason to change minimum
legal drinking age of 21. Journal of American College Health, 59 (4), 330-333.
Saylors study focus on the removal of intervention actions and implement and enforce
the actual minimum legal drinking age (MLDA) because intervention actions do not
show sufficient evidence or progress that is capable to prevent misbehavior of alcohol
use, these interventions such as lowering the MLDA are meant to decrease clandestine
drinking among students in college campuses. Binge drinkers consume 91% of all
alcohol used among college population and binge on more than 3 times per week but also
automobile crash accidents are an example of unsuccessful intervention, New Zealand,
lowered its legal drinking age from 20 to 18 and it was found increases in youth alcohol
related crashes. MLDA 21 has been the most successful underage alcohol control effort to
date.
This article is a very helpful way to inform yourself about the policy changing, plans for
the minimum legal drinking age, it provides you with research and facts that are reliable
to its audience. The goal of this article is to inform and persuade the audience about
keeping and not lowering the minimum legal drinking age showing the different
perspectives of policy change in MLDA.

This research will help for the future generations in taking better decisions about alcohol
related topics concerning the consequences in lowering the MLDA.

Peer reviewed: Yes

Barry, Adam E., Stellefson, Michael L. and Woolsey Conrad L. (2014). A comparison of the
responsible drinking dimensions among underage and legal drinkers: Examining
differences in beliefs, motivates, self-efficacy, barriers and intentions. Substance Abuse
Treatment, Prevention & Policy. 9 (9), 2-10.
The article focuses primarily on a comparison of underage drinkers and legal drinkers to
fill the gaps by determining if the participants differed within alcohol related behaviors
and beliefs. The method consisted by making a survey to college students from a
southwestern university covering the fields of motivation, self-efficacy scale, barriers
scale and behavioral intentions scale. 459 underage and legal drinkers were tested and
results showed that age-base restrictions of alcohol have substantial impact on alcohol
consumption but minimum legal drinking age (MLDA) clearly reduces alcohol
consumption. The authors Barry, Adam E., Stellefson, Michael L. and Woolsey Conrad L.
concluded the article by stating a warning from Fitzpatrick, Lowering current MLDA
represents an enormous social experiment with potentially major consequences (2014).
The article is a helpful source for an audience who is really in depth with the MLDA
topic because it has a great amount of information, facts, researches, statistics and
references. In comparison to other scholarly articles, this one specifically has really in

depth research about the topic, is not general at all and provides the viewer with a great
amount of information and organization. This research will serve as a very important tool
because of the great amount of information for its audience and users to be used for more
research in future assignments.

Peer Reviewed: Yes

Tracy, Sam (2014, 23 January). Is the National Drinking Age Doing More Harm than Good? The
Huffington Post. Retrieved from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/sam-tracy/national
drinking age-doing-more-harm_b_4629417.html
Sams article focuses on a debate about the minimum legal drinking age (MLDA)
arguing if it is causing more harm than good. The debate occurred in Katie talk show in
which the participants such as the author himself, John McCardell founder of Choose
Reponsibility organization (CR) and Jan Withers president of MADD (Mothers Against
Drunk Driving) argued about their different point of views CR president is in favor
of reducing the MLDA or giving young adults a permit for alcohol consumption and
MADD members opposed lowering the minimum legal drinking age because drunk
driving fatalities increase after many states lowered their MLDA. The author Sam Tracy
conclude his article stating Is the National Drinking Age Doing More Harm than
Good? said, Weve already tried that with alcohol, and it clearly isnt working (2014).
The article provides a discussion between two different stances or perspectives. In
comparison to another scholarly article, this article is based on a discussion between
two different opinions that give the audience multiple choices to follow. This article will

serve as a tool for students who are familiar with the topic and having two perspectives to
choose on and apply this information in future assignments.

Paglia, Camille (2014, April). The drinking age is past its prime. TIME, Retrieved from
http://time.com/72546/drinking-age-alcohol-repeal/
Camilles article focused on the idea of infantilizing young adults(18-20) as letting them
serve in the military, vote for elections, marry, and enter contracts at the age of 18 but the
government consider them not responsible enough for consuming alcohol. This idea of
infantilizing young Americans is leading young adults into pills and other antisocial
behavior. The author is clearly in favor of stopping this tyrannical infantilizing of young
Americans (Camille Paglia, 2014).
This magazine article is aiming to lowering the drinking age by the idea of infantilizing
young adults. This article is a very useful source to the audience who does not know
what things you as an American Citizen are responsible for at the age of 18 and the
author could persuade them to vote for lowering the minimum legal drinking age
(MLDA). The goal is to persuade the audience to change their minds and bring more
people in the fight of lowering the MLDA. This article will serve as an informative and
persuasive tool to the audience to attract more people to the authors cause.

George, D. Dowdall. (2009) Public alcohol policy and college drinking. College Drinking:
Reframing a social problem (pp.103-123). Westport, CT: Praeger.
Dowdalls book chapter focuses on shaping college drinking by the implementation of
public alcoholpolicy. He mentions background information of the American context of
public alcohol policy and how the alcohol industry influenced the factor of shaping
alcohol policy by using marketing to encourage consumers. The author refers some
contemporary issues in past years such as underage possession, consumption, and
purchase of alcohol but in recent years public policy has changed, setting a minimum
legal drinking age (MLDA) and minimum legal purchase age (MLPA), alcohol taxes,
sobriety check points, lowered BAC limits, etc. For instance, he mentions what effect
does state alcohol policies have on college students, However, Dowdall mentions a
research made by Harvard School of Public Health that stated,The state sets the rate of
college binge drinking (2009). Public policy has shaped college drinking making it a
social problem during the past years, however, it has been a part of the discussion
whether the MLDA should be changed or not and even though public policy is working at
its best college life brings severe challenges to future alcohol policies.
This source is not as helpful as any other scholarly article or magazine anymore because
it has 6 years old so the information might be outdated but rather than that the information

provided by the author in this chapter is very helpful for an audience who is getting into
the theme because it provides a great variety of background information and statistics that
makes the information factual and reliable. The source was helpful because it shows
information about policies that existed years before and it gives the audience a
comparison between old and new policies to see major changes during time. This
information will serve as a flashback between past years polices and recent year policies
to recognize big changes during time.

Brandon Griggs (2015, January, 04). Should the U.S lower its drinking age? CNN news
Retrieved March 23, 2015, from http://www.cnn.com/2014/07/16/us/legal-drinking-age/
Brandons article focuses on 3 different stances of opinions and ideas coming from
Dwight B. Heath (Brown University anthropology professor), Mothers Against Drunk
Driving (MADD) and John McCardell Jr. (president of Middlebury College). Heaths
idea is to teach kids from 6-8 years old on how to drink by giving them alcohol, he favors
a cultural model where parents serve small amounts of wine to their children in meal
times but Heaths idea has no chance of becoming law. MADD in the other hand, they
disapprove the idea of lowering the Minimum legal drinking age (MLDA) they said when
countries lowered the MLDA deaths increased. McCardells idea believe that drinking
legal limits should be set byt the state and not by the federal government and implement a
proposal of letting young adults (18-20) to purchase and consume alcohol with a permit,
in order to get the permit a series of tests and exams will be applied first.
This article is a useful source because it provides 3 different stances on a common topic
for its audience. In comparison with other type of sources, this article has 3 different
perspectives very well covered by the author and does not focus in just one research as in
a scholarly article. This article will serve as a guide for students that want to see various
perspectives and different angles of the topic to apply in future assignments.