Assessing Alternative Protocols for Underage Alcohol Sales Compliance Checks

描述(由申请人提供)： 摘要：在过去的十年里，对零售酒类销售点进行合规检查已成为减少未成年人饮酒的关键执法战略。全国各地的酒精执法机构使用合规检查来识别和制裁非法向21岁以下买家销售酒精饮料的零售店。合规性检查计划还用于监测各州和社区的合规率。合规率，以合规性检查计划的结果衡量，自这些计划首次启动以来已有相当大的改善。然而，研究人员和执法官员都担心，酒精饮料执法机构和警察部门使用的合规性检查方案正在变得不那么有效，基于合规性检查项目公布的合规率可能会无意中被夸大。这种担忧的原因是，最常用的方案要求未成年特工在被问及他或她的年龄时必须诚实。这一战略被用来避免潜在的关于诱捕的法律挑战。然而，随着时间的推移，许多卖家似乎已经非常了解这些协议，以至于他们只是问未成年操作员他们的年龄。因为操作员被禁止谎报他/她的年龄，所以在这个早期关头，潜在的销售被过早地中断-甚至在需要要求身份证明之前。一种更现实的情况是，未成年购买者回答说他/她已经足够大了，并且/或者出示了虚假身份证明。这项拟议的研究将与佛蒙特州酒类管理委员会和新罕布夏州酒类委员会合作，随机分配标准协议或两种更现实的替代协议中的一种，分配给这两个州有执照的店内和店外网点样本。观察到的不遵从率将在三个方案中进行比较，以寻找有意义和统计上显著差异的证据。还将确定与不遵守规定有关的购买尝试的门店特征和特征。 公共卫生相关性： 项目简介：执法机构使用合规性检查计划来识别可能向未成年人出售酒精的有执照的酒精销售点。有人担心，用于这些项目的程序似乎正在失去效力，而且可能高估了实际的合规率。本研究的目的是将标准程序的符合性检查结果与两种替代方案的结果进行比较。这项研究的结果可能会导致使用更有效的合规检查计划，并产生更准确的合规率估计。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Abstract: Over the past decade, compliance checks of retail alcohol outlets have become a key enforcement strategy in efforts to reduce underage access to alcohol. Alcohol law enforcement agencies throughout the country use compliance checks to identify and sanction retail outlets that illegally sell alcoholic beverages to buyers under the age of 21. Compliance check programs are also used to monitor compliance rates in states and communities. Compliance rates, as measured by the results of compliance check programs, have improved considerably since these programs were first initiated. There is, however, concern by both researchers and law enforcement officials that the compliance check protocols utilized by alcoholic beverage enforcement agencies and police departments are becoming less effective, and published compliance rates based on compliance check programs may be unintentionally inflated. The reason for this concern is that the protocol most commonly used requires the underage operative to be truthful if asked about his or her age. This strategy is used to avoid potential legal challenges regarding entrapment. Over time, however, many sellers appear to have come to understand these protocols so well that they simply ask the underage operative their age. Because the operative is prohibited from lying about his/her age, the potential sale is prematurely interrupted at this early juncture - even before the need to ask for identification. A more realistic scenario would have the underage purchaser responding that he/she is of sufficient age and/or producing a false ID. In collaboration with the Vermont Liquor Control Board and the New Hampshire Liquor Commission, the proposed study will randomly assign either the standard protocol or one of two alternative and more realistic protocols to a sample of licensed on-premise and off-premise outlets in these two states. The observed rates of non- compliance will be compared across the three protocols for evidence of meaningful and statistically significant differences. Outlet characteristics and features of the purchase attempt that are related to non- compliance will also be identified. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: Project Narrative: Compliance check programs are used by law enforcement agencies to identify licensed alcohol outlets that may be selling alcohol to underage persons. Concerns have been raised that the procedures used for these programs appear to be losing their effectiveness, and may also be overestimating actual compliance rates. The purpose of this study is to compare compliance check results from the standard procedure to those from two alternative protocols. Results from the study could lead to the use of more effective compliance check programs and produce more accurate estimates of compliance rates.