Youth leisure and alcohol consumption: Socio-educational responses based on a program of alternative measures in palencia city

Abstract

This article shows the results of an investigation carried out within the Socio-educational Program of Alternative Measures framework, as a pedagogical response to the intensive alcohol consumption on public roads by the youth population. For that, the socio-educational intervention and its effects on the group of young people, who have successfully completed the educational measures, are analysed. Coordinated by the NGO Liga Española de la Educación y Cultura Popular [Spanish League of Education and Popular Culture] in collaboration with the Municipal Administration, under the Ordenanza Reguladora para la Promoción de la Convivencia y la Prevención de las Drogodependencias en la ciudad de Palencia [Regulatory Ordinance for the Promotion of Coexistence and the Prevention of Drug Addiction in Palencia City] (Palencia City council, 2013), since June 2014 the program has been set out as an alternative measure to an economic sanction. Alcohol, present in the social and cultural life, is a relevant aspect, which is part of the gatherings and celebrations of the population in general, and especially, for the youth society linked to the nightlife leisure. Four hundred and twenty three young people in total were sanctioned from June 2014 to December 2018, out of them, 133 opted for educational measures, being the object of our study the 112 who successfully completed the program. The compilation of information uses own sources from a mixed research metodology, supported by an ad doc questionaire, from the analysis of the technical reports' contents and from conversations held through WhatsAap between the responsible Social Educator and the young people. From a quantitative and a qualitative analysis, the results show that carrying out educational measures is considered fair by the young people, who know about the alcohol effects although they keep continue consuming it; in addition, it is evidenced that almost a tenth of the young people indicate, that they will not binge drink again, after completing the program.