There are fewer problems and lower levels of consumption among Portuguese teenagers, but the highest-risk behaviours are increasingly concentrated among young people who accumulate several vulnerability factors. This is the main conclusion of a new study by the Institute for Addictive Behaviours and Dependencies (ICAD).
The Study on Alcohol, Tobacco, Drugs and other Addictive Behaviours (ECATD-CAD 2024) examines the problematic dimension of addictive behaviours among pupils in Portuguese state schools aged between 13 and 18.
The findings point to an overall favourable trend compared with the picture observed in the previous edition of the study, carried out in 2019. According to ICAD, there has been "a consistent reduction in the experience of all the problematic situations analysed, including violent conduct, accidents, hospitalisations, risky sexual behaviours and other episodes with potential negative consequences".
This trend is unfolding in a context in which pupils report better academic performance, greater parental supervision and going out at night less often, factors which, according to the report, "appear to contribute to an environment that is generally more protective against risk behaviours".
Despite this positive development, ICAD warns that "in several indicators there is a growing concentration of the highest-risk behaviours in a relatively small group of adolescents, characterised by profiles of greater individual and social vulnerability, which makes it clear that the reduction in the overall number of consumers does not remove the need for intervention targeting specific groups".
Recent consumption of alcohol and, above all, illicit drugs remains one of the main factors associated with involvement in problematic situations. The report notes that, compared with 2019, this trend has become more pronounced.
"The group of pupils who use psychoactive substances show significantly higher prevalence of risky sexual behaviours, problems with the police, interpersonal violence, accidents and other potentially serious situations", ICAD states, while stressing, however, that most problematic situations do not occur immediately following an episode of consumption.
The report also distinguishes between drinking alcohol only and polyconsumption, identifying them as important factors in the likelihood of experiencing problematic situations.
Thus, adolescents who combine recent consumption of alcohol and illicit drugs "display substantially higher levels of involvement in accidents, problems with the police, cyberbullying and risky sexual behaviours when compared with those who consume only alcoholic drinks".
The analysis of the problematic dimension of the different addictive behaviours also shows that, in alcohol consumption, motivations linked to pleasure, fun and sociability remain predominant.
However, ICAD underlines that there is a significant proportion of young people who say they drink alcohol to forget their problems. According to the institute, this is an "indicator frequently associated with the development of harmful patterns of use and dependence".
The report also highlights that, in the case of cannabis, although most users do not present indicators of risk of dependency, "there is an increase in the proportion of users classified as high risk, alongside growth in the group without any identified risk".
Social media is a major concern among non-substance-related addictive behaviours
Among non-substance-related addictive behaviours, social media continue to emerge as the main concern, with a significant proportion of young people acknowledging that they spend too much time on these platforms.
In electronic gaming, including video games played exclusively online, indicators of problematic use remain broadly stable compared with the previous edition of the study. Gambling for money, meanwhile, although still involving only a minority of adolescents, shows an increase in prevalence, albeit accompanied by a slight decrease in indicators linked to the problematic dimension, such as the need to increase the amounts wagered.
There are also important differences between boys and girls. Male pupils continue to show greater involvement in problems with the police and in risky electronic gaming and gambling for money. By contrast, girls stand out for their higher prevalence of problematic use of social media and for resorting to alcohol consumption as a strategy for coping with emotional difficulties.
Social and family factors also have an impact. The profile most associated with problematic behaviours includes low academic achievement, weaker parental supervision, frequent nights out, and lower physical and emotional wellbeing. Conversely, good school performance, parental supervision and greater wellbeing act as protective factors.
Regional analysis also reveals changes compared with the previous study. Alentejo now appears as the region with the highest concentration of unfavourable indicators, followed by the Autonomous Region of the Azores, while Lisbon no longer occupies the position of greatest vulnerability observed in 2019.