Does alcohol cause violence

Hi my names will I’m Rich's cousin and I have just finished my 3rd year of university. I’m going into my 4th year which is going to be a mainly research based which will include a lot of interviews and first hand research!

My question is “do you believe that alcohol in your personal experience is a cause of violence?”

One of my professors has written a lot on the subject and he basically comes to the conclusion that it does not.

He argues this in a few different ways:

Firstly there is no medical evidence so far that alcohol does anything to the brain that would make anybody violent.

He goes onto argue that vast amounts of people go out on a Friday and Saturday night all consuming lots of alcohol. Yet it is only a very small percentage of people who become violent in any way.

Furthermore if you analyse the information at the polices disposal those people who are violent having drank a lot of alcohol usually have previous convictions for violence when not under the influence of alcohol.

Also those people who are violent when under the influence of alcohol are usually already violent people or people who wish to be violent who use alcohol to fulfil there aim of being violent as it lowers there inhibitions.

This contrasts with the conclusion I want to come to in my own research next year. As I believe that people are becoming more violent out of the need to fulfil there lust for enjoyment. My own personal research will focus around this enjoyment of any type of violence weather it be watching things such as “saw,” i.e. torture porn or new social phenomena’s such as happy slapping.

It would be brilliant to here back from any off you as I know a few of you are ex door men so any thoughts or personal experiences would really help with my dissertation next year!!

will wrote:

This contrasts with the conclusion I want to come to in my own research next year.

you can't think like that mate. completely undermines the whole process. you have to start with a hypothesis then try as hard as you can to disprove it, not the other way round.

The gut reaction to your question is, of course, yes it does.
However, even a brief pause for thought makes me realise that your lecturer is almost certainly right to refute that statement. It's undoubtably a catalyst for violence, but as he rightly says, violent drunks are often violent when sober. If not then alcohol removes the inhibitions that prevents them from being violent sober.

the answer to the question
"Do people believe alcohol is a cause of violence?" then the answer is definitely yes.

to the question
"IS alcohol a CAUSE of violence?" then the answer is probably no

You get a much broader range of answers to the question
"To what extent does alcohol increase the likelyhood of a person behaving violently?"
You'd have to start with a statement like
"Alcohol doesn't significantly increase a persons violent activity" Then when you've defined "significantly" and Violent activity" you can try to disprove the statement.

Agree with above - you must have an open mind when starting research like this because otherwise your dissertation tutor will just clobber you for having skewed research. Natural bias always comes into research like this because everyone starts an investigation with their own 'baggage' or personal views. At the very least if you do start out with a defined view of what you intend to find you must have this presented transparently in the thesis/dissertation to acknowledge this and state how you have tried to minimise this bias.

As for the question. There's no simple answer really - I reckon in some people alcohol is enough of a dis-inhibitor that it alters their personality in such a way that they do things they would not normally do. Similar I suppose to some people who lack confidence to go and chat to a girl normally will be more than happy to once they've got some booze in them

If alcohol was the 'cause' of violence then everyone who drinks alcohol would be violent. In some people, is alcohol a contributing factor to violence? - For sure!

hahaha!

Will, what did I just tell you about presenting your point of view? not 4 days ago?

you cant just have an opinion and then set out to prove it... or can you in sociology?

poxy sociologists blame everything on society and no responsibility for the individuals, you should have taken a proper degree like psychology and learnt about scientific methodology mate

to say alcohol does NOT cause violence may be arguable but its hairsplitting and ultimately a "bootless inquisition" in my opinion, I think you should seriously consider taking your research in another direction

if there was no alcohol available at all this weekend because we made it all just disappear by magic emergency rooms and police stations would be significantly quieter wouldn't they?

Its a bit like saying guns dont kill people, people do... yes but how else can a skinny 18 year old wannabe gangsta make a guy twice his size dead in a fraction of a second with a finger twitch?

Go another route mate, there are loads of people more than willing to help with criminology research here

Does a bear shit in the woods?

Sorry,sorry......Is there a higher probability of a bear defacating in the woods than in other areas?

at the 'university of maryland'...they're swearing by (in their drug/psych classes):
alcohol affects a certain part of the brain that makes you violent
the prisons are full of alcoholics that claim it made them violent
etc etc etc

all i know is that my grandpa selby would sooner make love to a lamp shade while three sheets to the wind...
i say it brings out your inhabitions, whatever they are, and if your values are deeply held--they fly freely through
everyone's life.

my grandma on my mum's side had a husband (re-married after my maternal grandpa was stabbed to death) who
had a jockey build and beat her when he was drunk...and was a wall flower when he was sober. conclusion, he was
inhibited and a bully within, but liquid courage allowed him a freedom he would have not otherwise explored.
a coward's day off kinda like.

i drank and got way too flirty, because of my lack of confidence with the opposite...well you get the idea, nuff said

that's what i get for trying to post, and, cook dinner for my family.

i tried to say...:"if you're values AREN'T deep, then your inhabitions may be everyone else's problem"
you probably knew that though.

and just for happy endings...the little fart that used to beat my maternal grandmum was subsequently beaten
with a metal flashlight just after my mum's 21st birthday...by my mum. love that woman--rest her soul.

...

sorry if i sound sure of myself...my family has way too many experiences in these areas. another thing i notice:
when someone is responding to something unfair--etc...their personality reveals in the retaliatory gestures.
example: a man gets cheated on and he
a. leaves
b. argues
c. beats up the other man
d. beats up the woman
e. several of the above
etc...
same situation can happen to many different people, but the flavor comes from the individual...whether its a severe life
occurance, or wee bit of liquid courage...whatever.

the blame falls back on the individual...period.

some of us on this forum had something bad happen at some point in their fighting carreers...for some it will break them, for others
it will make them. (stop me i'm getting random) cops and robbers, fred astair and ginger rodgers really...but you learn to pick the correct
choice/side, blah blah...attack of the random thought patterns...(kirk voice starting: "must stop writing mr. spock...just drink...fek")

another pint...and i'm off.

i have been a bartender for about 15 years now and have seen it all :-)

My point of view? If you are an asshole sober, you'll be an even bigger asshole drunk. :-) take it for what its worth

.

Cause violence....no...but it does/can facilitate it. People cause violence.

ask people with a 7 drunken night daddy...

Quote :

Cause violence....no...but it does/can facilitate it. People cause violence

Very good, distinction to make.

Would you say though that cocaine causes violence?

If so, would this be because you judge it affects the brain to a larger extent? And triggers different synapses?

Maybe, some people are more inclined to be set off by alcohol than say cocaine.

Just some thoughts.

also strange.. in my case.. if i drink whiskey or jenever.. than i become little more aggressive. than when i drink only beer..

if i drink absint.. also a different feeling..

from this point of vieuw.. can it trigger violence.

but out of riligious point of vieuw... they say the devil can easy make acces to you.. to put you in a wrong direction.

so the alcohol can be a match who light the fire