• About this study
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Risky Behaviour and Social Attitudes

The connection between young people's behaviour and their long-term outcomes

Did you know?

28% of young people had graffittied walls, damaged public property, shoplifted or taken part in a fight at age 14 - compared with 21% who did so at age 16.

from : Risky Behaviour and Social Attitudes findings

About this study

The connection between young people's social and anti-social behaviour, their long-term outcomes and way in which behaviours can be changed through public intervention are at the core of this investigation.

We looked at changes in young people's risky behaviour (smoking, drinking, playing truant or shoplifting) and in their social activities (going out with friends, going to pubs, or doing community work) between the ages of 14 and 16.

We investigated whether changes in one affected changes in the other, and how these behaviours and activities related to school attainment and economic status after compulsory education.

The full report can be downloaded here. You can read a summary of the findings on this site.

Potential policy impact

Public policy is keen to reduce risky behaviour by encouraging young people to engage in 'positive' social activities, such as community work or sports.

This research shows that diverting young people away from risky behaviour through social activities may be less likely to succeed than early prevention.

Method

We carried out secondary analysis of the first four waves of the Longitudinal Study of Young People in England (LSYPE) to which participants' GCSE results were appended.

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