NAVAJO YOUNG ADULT DRINKING--BELIEFS, KNOWLEDGE, & WORK

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DESCRIPTION: This study is designed to document the current state of beliefs, knowledge, and behavior surrounding alcohol use among young adults from the most populous reservation in the United States, the Navajo Nation. Building upon the literature on drinking among American Indian populations and the Principal Investigator's experience researching alcohol and occupations, the proposed study will explicate normative understandings of alcohol, patterns of drinking, and employment among Navajos who are between 21 and 24 years of age. Moreover, this study aims to assess relationships between (1) drinking patterns, (2) beliefs and knowledge about alcohol, and (3) experience with employment and unemployment among these Navajo young adults. The proposed FIRST Award research design consists of a longitudinal five-year ethnographic study using the classical anthropological methods of naturalistic observations and semi-structured interviews. The ethnographic interview sample will consist of 56 Navajo young adults from Chinle, Arizona, located in the heart of the Navajo Nation. Participant observation, guided in part by the interview findings, will take place in and around the community in settings frequented by young adults. These observational settings will include sites where drinking occurs as well as those where drinking is discouraged. The proposed study focuses on the young adult portion of the lifespan because it represents a section of the population which is at greatest risk for heavy binge drinking and which experiences a disproportionate number of such problem indicators as DUIs and arrests for violent behavior. This study's findings should produce an updated understanding of Navajo young adults' drinking norms, a necessary precursor for large-scale research efforts with relevance to this population. Accordingly, the proposed study should shed light on an onerous problem faced not only by the Navajo tribe, but other American Indian groups as well.