Risk taking by young people: Australian Clearinghouse for Youth Studies

ACYS > ARCHIVED: Youth Facts and Stats > Safety, risk-taking > Safety and risk-taking, 2008 > Risk taking by young people

Young people and risk taking

The Australian Bureau of Statistics' publication Australian Social Trends 2008 contains a section titled 'Risk taking by young people', which includes statistics on:

drinking at risky levels;
hospitalisation due to drug use and acute alcohol intoxication;
use of illicit drugs;
dangerous driving;
injury and death from transport accidents; and
violence.

The section, 'Risk taking by young people' in Australian Social Trends 2008 also examines some of the potential consequences of this risk taking, providing statistics on

the burden of disease and injury
mental health and psychological distress
causes of death, and
deaths attributed to suicide.

Drinking at risky levels

In 2007, the average age at which young men aged 15-24 years said they first consumed alcohol was around 15 years. For young women, the average age for first use of alcohol was around 17 years.

In the 2007 National Drug Strategy Household Survey, 19% of young men aged 18-24 years reported that they had engaged in risky/high risk drinking at least once a week during the last 12 months. This was more than twice the comparable rate of risky/high risk drinking in men aged 25 years and older (8%).

16% of young women aged 18-24 years reported that they had engaged in risky/high risk drinking at least once a week during the last 12 months. This rate was about three times the comparable rate for women aged 25 years and older (5%).

Hospitalisation due to drug use and acute alcohol intoxication

Information from the National Hospital Morbidity Database, reveals that:

There were almost 3,000 hospital separations among young people aged 15-24 years due to acute intoxication with alcohol in 2005-06.
The hospital separation rate for acute alcohol intoxication for young men, increased from 66 to 107 per 100,000 from 1998-99 to 2005-06.
For young women, the hospital separation rate for acute alcohol intoxication doubled from 1998-99 to 2005-06 from 46 to 99 separations per 100,000.
In 2005-06, male and female teenagers aged 15-19 years had the highest hospital separation rates for acute intoxication from alcohol among all age groups (124 and 126 per 100,000).
In 2005-06, men and women aged 20-24 years had the next highest rates for acute intoxication from alcohol (89 and 74 per 100,000).

Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2008, Australian social trends, Cat. no. 4102.0, viewed 2 October 2008, http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/Lookup/4102.0Chapter5002008

Illicit drugs

The Australian Bureau of Statistics' publication Australian Social Trends 2008 contains a section titled 'Risk taking by young people', which includes statistics on drinking at risky levels; hospitalisation due to drug use and acute alcohol intoxication; use of illicit drugs; dangerous driving; injury and death from transport accidents; and violence.

Use of illicit drugs

The 2007 National Drug Strategy Household Survey found that:

23% of people aged 15-24 years reported using illicit drugs during the last 12 months, around twice as high as the proportion of people aged 25 years and over (11%).
Marijuana/cannabis was the most common drug used by 15-24-year-olds (18%). Ecstasy (9%), meth/amphetamines and pharmaceuticals (both 4%) were the next most common drugs used by this age group during the last 12 months.
In 2007, the average age among 15-24-year-olds for first use of marijuana/cannabis was around 19 years.
The average age among 15-24-year-olds of first use of meth/amphetamines was around 21 years, and for ecstasy was around 23 years.
In 2005-06, there were 11,700 hospital separations related to drug use for young people aged 15-24 years:
Nearly 60% of the hospital separations were for young women.
Intentional self-harm by drugs or medications was involved in three out of five hospital separations for young women.
The drug-related hospitalisation rate for young men in 2005-06 was 324 separations per 100,000, lower than in 1998-99 (465 per 100,000).
For young women, the drug-related hospitalisation rate was also slightly lower in 2005-06 than in 1998-99 (491 compared with 531 per 100,000).
In 2005-06, male teenagers aged 15-19 years had one of the lowest drug-related hospitalisation rates among all male age groups (216 separations per 100,000), while men aged 20-24 years had one of the highest rates (428 per 100,000).
For women, those aged 15-19 and 20-24 years had the highest drug-related hospital separation rates among all age groups (523 and 460 per 100,000 respectively). This reflects young women's relatively high rates of drug-related intentional self-harm and accidental poisoning (294 and 56 per 100,000 women aged 15-24 years).

In a small number of cases, drug use leads to death. Based on information from the Causes of Death collection, in the three-year period of 2004-2006, the annual average number of drug-induced deaths was 78. This accounted for 6% of all deaths among young people aged 15-24 years:

The drug-induced death rate for men aged 20-24 years in the three-year period of 2004-2006 was double that for women in this age group (6 compared with 3 per 100,000).
Rates for drug-induced death in male and female teenagers aged 15-19 years in the three-year period of 2004-2006 were lower (1 per 100,000).

Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2008, Australian social trends, Cat. no. 4102.0, viewed 2 October 2008, http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/Lookup/4102.0Chapter5002008.

Dangerous driving

Young people and dangerous driving

Based on information from the Criminal Courts collection, young people aged 20-24 years were more likely than people in the other age groups to appear in court in 2006-07 charged with driving under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs:

There were 626 adjudications per 100,000 men and 134 per 100,000 women aged 20-24 years in cases where the driver of the vehicle was under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs and their driving was impaired.
Adjudications for the less serious offence of exceeding the legal alcohol limit followed similar age and sex patterns, but were far more common.

People aged 20-24 years also had the highest adjudication rate of all age groups for dangerous or negligent driving:

The rate for dangerous or negligent driving for men of this age (712 adjudications per 100,000) was about seven times higher than that for women (97 per 100,000).
The likelihood of being adjudicated for exceeding the legal speed limit was more evenly spread across age groups:
For exceeding the legal speed limit there were 412 adjudications per 100,000 men and 136 per 100,000 women aged 20-24 years.

Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2008, Australian social trends, Cat. no. 4102.0, viewed 2 October 2008, http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/Lookup/4102.0Chapter5002008.

Young people and transport accidents

Injury and death from transport accidents

In 2005-06, there were 15,100 hospital separations for transport accidents among young people (aged 15-24 years):

Young men had a transport accident hospital separation rate (720 per 100,000) that was over twice as high as that for young women (318 per 100,000).
The 2005-06 transport accident hospital separation rate was similar to the 1998-99 rate for both young men and women (707 and 295 per 100,000).
Over one-third (36%) of transport accident hospitalisations among 15-24 year old men in 2005-06 were for motorcyclists while 20% were for car drivers and 11% were for car passengers.
For young women in this age group the leading accident groups were car drivers (33%) and car passengers (25%).
Among all age groups, male and female teenagers aged 15-19 years had the highest car passenger hospital separation rates and 20-24-year-old men and women had the highest car driver hospitalisation rates.
Over the period 2004-2006, the average number of transport accident deaths of young people aged 15-24 years was 418 per year.
Transport accidents made up a much higher proportion of all deaths among young people (31%) than among people aged 25 years and over (1% of deaths).
For male teenagers aged 15-19 years the rate of transport accident deaths was 19 deaths per 100,000 and for men aged 20-24 years it was 25 deaths per 100,000.
For female teenagers aged 15-19 years, the death rate for all transport accidents was 8 per 100,000, similar to that for 20-24-year-old women (7 per 100,000).

Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2008, Australian social trends, Cat. no. 4102.0, viewed 2 October 2008, http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/Lookup/4102.0Chapter5002008.

Violence

Young people and violence

Young people, especially young men, are at a greater risk than other age groups of experiencing violence. In the 2005 Personal Safety Survey:

12% of people aged 18-24 years reported being physically assaulted by a man during the last 12 months, and 3% reported physical assault by a woman.
The proportion of men aged 18-24 years (19%) who reported experiencing physical assault by a male was almost five times as high as the rate for men aged 25 years and over (4%).
A higher proportion of men aged 18-19 years reported experiencing physical assault by a male than did men aged 20-24 years (29% and 15% respectively).
Overall, the proportion of young women who were physically assaulted by a man was smaller (5%) and similar for the 18-19 years and 20-24 years age groups.
Of men aged 18-24 years who were physically assaulted by a male, most (77%) reported being attacked by a stranger. In contrast, women in this age group who were physically assaulted by a male were likely to be assaulted by a man known to them (82%).
Young men (aged 18-24 years) most frequently reported that the physical assault occurred at licensed premises (44%) or in the open (34%). For young women, the most common location of physical assault was in their or another person's home (49%).
The majority (79%) of 18-24-year-old men who were physically assaulted by another male said that the perpetrator had been drinking alcohol or taking drugs. Just over one-third (34%) also said that they themselves had been drinking or taking drugs.
Alcohol and drugs were less frequently reported by women as involved in assault by a male. Nevertheless, a considerable proportion (37%) of women aged 18-24 years who had been physically assaulted by a man reported that the perpetrator's consumption of alcohol or drugs had contributed to the incident.
'Acts intended to cause injury' are a set of offences (excluding murder and those resulting in death) where there has been an intention to cause non-fatal injury or harm to another person and where there is no sexual or acquisitive element. Among 20-24-year-olds in 2006-07, the adjudication rate for acts intended to cause injury was higher than for all other age groups, with the next highest rate being for 25-29-year-olds. Men aged 20-24 years were around five times as likely as women in this age group to be adjudicated for this offence (1,034 compared with 225 adjudications per 100,000).
Homicide and related offences refers to killing, trying to kill or conspiracy to kill another person. Compared with most other criminal offences, these offences are relatively rare. In 2006-07, the rate of adjudication for homicide among young people aged 20-24 years was 8 per 100,000.

Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2008, Australian social trends, Cat. no. 4102.0, viewed 2 October 2008, http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/Lookup/4102.0Chapter5002008.

Health and wellbeing

Risks to health: The potential consequences of risk taking by young people

The Australian Bureau of Statistics' publication Australian Social Trends 2008 contains a section titled 'Risk taking by young people'.

Besides providing statistics on drinking at risky levels, hospitalisation due to drug use and acute alcohol intoxication, use of illicit drugs, dangerous driving, injury and death from transport accidents, and violence, the section, 'Risk taking by young people' also examines some of the potential consequences of this risk taking, providing statistics on

the burden of disease and injury
mental health and psychological distress
causes of death, and
deaths attributed to suicide.

The burden of disease and injury

Levels of death and disability from diseases, injuries and risks to health (known as the burden of disease and injury) are measured using disability-adjusted life years (DALYs). The potential years of life lost due to premature death are combined with the potential years of 'healthy life' lost due to disease, disability or injury - one DALY is equal to one lost year of healthy life.

In 2003, the total burden of disease and injury among young people aged 15-24 years was an estimated 197,000 DALYs.

The largest individual risk factors contributing to DALYs for young males:

illicit drugs: 12%
alcohol: 11%

Individual risk factors contributing to DALYs for young females:

illicit drugs: 5%
alcohol: 2%

Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2008, Australian social trends, Cat. no. 4102.0, viewed 2 October 2008, http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/Lookup/4102.0Chapter5002008.

Mental health and psychological distress

Young people who experience mental health problems and disorders are at a greater risk of poor health and wellbeing outcomes than other young people. Mental health problems and disorders may lead to increased substance use and antisocial behaviours.

The 2004-05 National Health Survey collected information on mental health from people aged 18 years and over.

The proportion of young people aged 18-24 years who reported high to very high levels of psychological distress in the five weeks prior to interview:

young women: 19%
young men: 12%

The prevalence of risky/high risk drinking (at least once a week during the 12 months prior to interview) among:

young women who had reported high to very high levels of psychological distress: 18%
young women who reported low to moderate levels of psychological distress: 9%

The prevalence of risky/high risk drinking (at least once a week during the 12 months prior to interview) among:

young men who had reported high to very high levels of psychological distress: 19%
young men who reported low to moderate levels of psychological distress: 19%

Causes of death

Over the period 2004-2006, the average number of deaths of young people (aged 15-24 years) registered was:

young men: 955 per year, (equivalent to rate of 66 per 100,000)
young women: 389 (equivalent to rates of 28 deaths per 100,000).

'External causes' was the main underlying cause of death for young people, and was much more common (70% of all deaths in this age group) than among people aged 25 years and over (5%).

Intentional self-harm and suicide

Intentional self-harm refers to a range of behaviours including cutting, poisoning and attempted suicide. It is likely that only a small number of young people who harm themselves will seek medical treatment.

In 2005-06, number of hospital separations for intentional self-harm among people aged 15-24 years:

8,040

In 2005-06, rates of hospital separations (per 100,000) for intentional self-harm among people years:

for young women aged 15-24: 392, (in 1998-99: 294).
for young men aged 15-24: 171, (in 1998-99: 165)
female teenagers aged 15-19 years: 481 (highest rate for all age groups)
male teenagers aged 15-19 years: 148
women aged 20-24 years: 307 (second-highest rate for all age groups)
men aged 20-24 years: 193

Deaths attributed to suicide

In 2004-2006, deaths per year attributed to suicide (average):

among people aged 15-24 years: 266 (20% of deaths in this age group)
among people aged 25 years and over: 1% of deaths in this age group.

The suicide rate (deaths per 100,000) for young people aged 15-24 years: 9 (lower than most of the other age groups).

For a death to be classified a suicide, there must be a coronial enquiry to establish evidence of suicidal intent. The quality of suicides data can be affected by delays in completion of coroners' cases, and there can be difficulty in determining suicidal intent for some causes of death, for example in cases of single vehicle accidents. For these reasons it is unclear whether the number of suicides could be an undercount. For more information see the Australian Bureau of Statistics document, Suicides, Australia, 2005 (cat. no. 3309.0), viewed 10 October 2008, http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/Lookup/3309.0Main+Features12005?OpenDocument

Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2008, Australian social trends, Cat. no. 4102.0, viewed 2 October 2008, http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/Lookup/4102.0Chapter5002008.

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ARCHIVED: Youth Facts and Stats

Drinking at risky levels

Hospitalisation due to drug use and acute alcohol intoxication

Illicit drugs

Use of illicit drugs

Dangerous driving

Young people and dangerous driving

Young people and transport accidents

Violence

Young people and violence

Health and wellbeing

Risks to health: The potential consequences of risk taking by young people