Research Topics

Five years of research work is organized around four themes. 1, We gather macro statistics on alcohol consumption, examine the reliability of data and conduct trend analysis. 2, We want to understand the relationship between socio-demographic indicators and risk behaviours. We want to find out if risk behaviours are more likely to appear within the disadvantaged groups of society. 3, We study recent changes in lifestyle, living conditions and leisure time, and analyse the correlation between these factors and risk behaviours. 4, Finally, we analyse the media representation of risk behaviours, the impact of the media and young peoples’ attitudes toward risk behaviours. The four topics are interrelated but are not organized in chronological order – we work on them simultaneously.

1. Assessing reliability of macro statistical data, trend analysis
                  Research Questions:

1.1. Collecting macro-statistical, health, police, forensics and child protection-related data on alcohol consumption and its consequences. This phase includes assessing reliability of data, critical trend analysis, estimating unrecorded alcohol consumption. Systematic WHO data collection on alcohol consumption serves as a basis for our work (WHO 2018). Data gathering and critical analysis have long been carried out in Hungary by the Hungarian National Focal Point, coordinated by EMCDDA (European Monitoring Centre on Drugs and Drug Addiction), on drugs but not on alcohol. In Hungary data collection and analysis on alcohol consumption were done in the 1980s and have been neglected ever since.
Method: gathering and analysing macro statistical data (Working Package 1 - hereinafter WP. For detailed WPs description please see Working Packages).

1.2. In the research reliability of data will be verified. The proportion of unrecorded alcohol consumption within the total consumption will be estimated by qualitative method.
Method: qualitative research (WP3)


2. Interrelation of socio-demographic characteristics and risk behaviours
                  Research Questions:

2.1. What is the relationship between consumers’ social and generational characteristics and the prevalence of risk behaviours in Hungary? Is excessive use (and the harm it causes) more likely to appear within the disadvantaged groups of society?
Method: national survey and focus group study (WP4); small sample micro-region survey, qualitative study (WP3).

2.2. To what extent is the perception of marginalized groups’ risk behaviours stigmatization? To what extent is society’s perception based on real-life situations? Method: qualitative and quantitative study (WP3,4,5)

2.3. Various changes in society have affected consumption patterns. In what ways?
Method: national survey (WP4)

2.4. Relationships and correlation between alcohol per capita consumption, alcohol-attributable mortality and other social indicators of macro processes.
Method: macro statistical analysis (WP1)

2.5. Can changes in high school students' drug use patterns be explained by changes of socio-demographic characteristics?
Method: secondary analysis of ESPAD databases (WP2)


3. Changes in lifestyle, living conditions and leisure time use
                  Research Questions:

3.1. How has the spread of information communication technologies (ICT) changed relationships among youngsters primarily? How has ICT influenced their leisure time use?

3.2. Is there a link between recent addictive substance use decrease and the change in social relationships and leisure time use?

3.3. How has our wired world affected youngsters’ mental and physical health?
Method (research questions 3.1-3.3): national questionnaire and online survey (WP4)


4. The media representation of risk behaviours, impact of media, young people's attitudes toward risk behaviours
                  Research Questions:

4.1. How do online media and other Internet portals represent risk behaviours? What has changed in recent years?

4.2. How does media influence public knowledge, attitudes and opinions on risk behaviours? What about the threat these behaviours pose? And health awareness?
Method (4.1-4.2): Quantitative content analysis of read and watched media and other web Interfaces (WP 5)

4.3. As a comparison and as part of our media analysis and impact assessment, we will also analyse young people's perceptions of risk behaviours and the threat they believe those pose.
Method: Focus group research among young people (WP5)