Huckle Taisia, Pledger Megan, Casswell Sally
Centre for Social and Health Outcomes Research and Evaluation (SHORE), Massey University, Auckland, New Zealand.
Addiction. 2006 Feb;101(2):232-40. doi: 10.1111/j.1360-0443.2006.01326.x.
To assess alcohol-related harms and offences in New Zealand from 1990 to 2003, a period of alcohol policy liberalization, that included the lowering of the purchase age from 20 to 18 years in 1999.
DESIGN, SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: Time trend analyses were carried out on routinely collected data for prosecutions for driving with excess alcohol; alcohol-involved vehicle crashes (all and fatal) and prosecutions for disorder offences. These were carried out separately for those aged 14-15, 16-17, 18-19, 20-24 and 25 years and over.
Rates of: prosecutions for driving with excess alcohol (1990-2003); rates of alcohol- involved vehicle crashes (all and fatal) (1990-2003); and rates of prosecutions for disorder offences (1994-2003).
Effects of alcohol policy liberalization: positive trends were found in the rates of prosecutions for disorder in the 16-17, 18-19, 20-24 and 25 + age groups; with 18-19-year-olds and 16-17-year-olds having the largest rates and largest positive trend in rates. For 16-17-year-olds, there was a positive trend in the rates of prosecutions for excess breath alcohol. Negative trends in rates were found for alcohol-related crashes (all and fatal) among all age groups. Negative trends for those over 16-17 years were found for prosecutions for driving with excess breath alcohol (this was prior to the lowering of the purchase age). Effects of lowering the minimum purchase age: the lowering of minimum purchase age coincided with an increase in the trend of alcohol-related crashes for 18-19-year-olds; the next largest increase was among the 20-24-year-olds (all other age groups also increased but at a much lower rate). A similar result was found for driving with excess alcohol for those aged 18-19 (and those aged 20-24 years). An increase in the rates of prosecutions for disorder offences occurred for the 14-15-year-old group following the lowering of the purchase age.
The liberalization of alcohol throughout the 1990s may have influenced younger people more, as reflected in increases in their disorder offences and drink driving. The lowering of the minimum purchase age may have led to an increase in drink-driving among the 18-19-year-olds (those directly affected by the change in purchase age).
评估1990年至2003年新西兰酒精相关危害及犯罪情况，这一时期酒精政策有所放宽，其中包括1999年将饮酒年龄从20岁降至18岁。
设计、背景与参与者：对常规收集的数据进行时间趋势分析，这些数据涉及因酒精过量驾车被起诉的情况、涉及酒精的车辆碰撞事故（所有事故及致命事故）以及扰乱治安犯罪的起诉情况。分别针对14 - 15岁、16 - 17岁、18 - 19岁、20 - 24岁以及25岁及以上人群进行分析。
因酒精过量驾车被起诉的比率（1990 - 2003年）；涉及酒精的车辆碰撞事故（所有事故及致命事故）的比率（1990 - 2003年）；扰乱治安犯罪的起诉比率（1994 - 2003年）。
酒精政策放宽的影响：在16 - 17岁、18 - 19岁、20 - 24岁以及25岁及以上年龄组中，扰乱治安犯罪的起诉比率呈上升趋势；其中18 - 19岁组和16 - 17岁组的比率最高且上升趋势最为明显。对于16 - 17岁组，呼气酒精含量超标被起诉的比率呈上升趋势。所有年龄组中，与酒精相关的碰撞事故（所有事故及致命事故）的比率呈下降趋势。16 - 17岁以上人群中，呼气酒精含量超标驾车被起诉的比率呈下降趋势（这是在饮酒年龄降低之前）。降低最低饮酒年龄的影响：最低饮酒年龄的降低与18 - 19岁组中与酒精相关的碰撞事故趋势增加相吻合；其次增加幅度最大的是20 - 24岁组（所有其他年龄组也有增加，但幅度小得多）。18 - 19岁（以及20 - 24岁）人群因酒精过量驾车的情况也有类似结果。饮酒年龄降低后，14 - 15岁组扰乱治安犯罪的起诉比率有所增加。
20世纪90年代酒精政策的放宽可能对年轻人影响更大，这体现在他们扰乱治安犯罪和酒后驾车行为的增加上。最低饮酒年龄的降低可能导致18 - 19岁人群（直接受饮酒年龄变化影响的人群）酒后驾车行为增加。
