Aggression Among Young Adults in the Social Context of the Bar

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to explore the use of naturalistic observation and interview data to increase understanding of aggression in the social drinking context of the bar. Fifty-two incidents of aggression in bars were documented through interviews with 34 respondents aged 19–25, and 117 incidents were documented by male-female pairs of researcher-observers over 93 nights of observation, usually conducted between midnight and 2:30 a.m. on weekend nights. The data indicated that naturally-occurring incidents sometimes had no clear beginning or end and participants' roles often changed during the conflict (e.g., peacemaker to aggressor). Most incidents involved five or more participants; almost 3/4 of incidents involved only males; 2/3 of incidents involved at least moderate physical aggression; and 1/3 occurred partly or wholly outside the bar. Participants in incidents involving severe aggression or a larger number of participants tended to be more intoxicated than participants in less severe incidents with fewer participants. Four general issues were identified as triggering aggression: conflict with staff, bar activities, trouble making and offensive behavior, and interpersonal or relationship issues. The implications for research and prevention are discussed.