"Social host" laws, which hold adults accountable for any underage drinking that takes place on their property, may help curb teenage drinking, according to the preliminary findings of a new study.
Researchers found that the number of teens who reported drinking at parties on weekends was reduced when they lived in towns with strong social host laws, according to the study published in the November issue of the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs.
"It does look like there is less frequent drinking among teenagers in cities with stringent social host laws, even when other city and youth characteristics that are related to underage drinking are controlled for," study lead researcher, Mallie Paschall, a senior research scientist at the Prevention Research Center in Oakland, Calif., said in a journal news release. "So these laws might be an effective strategy for reducing hazardous drinking."
Paschall noted that although the researchers found a correlation between social host laws and reduced teen drinking, the study didn't prove that social host laws have a direct effect on teen drinking. "These findings are preliminary. We can't say that social host laws definitely prevent kids from drinking at parties," said Paschall.
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