Alcohol and Adolescent Rebellion

This study examines the hypothesis that drinking in social situations governed by abstinence norms is often an expression of aggression against normative authority. It is shown that adolescents, to the extent that they reject abstinent fathers, are more likely to drink and to legitimate drinking behavior. Adolescent drinkers whose best friends do not drink are more likely to drink more often, to greater excess, and for psychological benefits rather than social reasons—as their affect toward father decreases; and these relationships are much stronger when they disobey parents frequently “in order to get even with them.” The results support Bales' hypothesis that abstinence-oriented drinking is antinormative, rebellious behavior and suggest that the high rates of problem-drinking in abstinent subcultures may be due to this socially aggressive aspect of drinking behavior.