Social Media an Effective Tool in Changing How People Drink

Social Media an Effective Tool in Changing the Way People Drink According To New Research

December 31st, 2012

Social media is an effective tool in changing the way people drink according to new research carried out by Hello Sunday Morning, a social media programme that aims to help people change their relationship with alcohol for the better.

Hello Sunday Morning (HSM), named in reference to the experience of waking up to Sunday morning without a hangover, is a free online community that requires participants to try a period of time (from a minimum of one week) alcohol-free to see what life is like without it. It started in Australia in 2009, and to date over 5000 people have participated in the programme. It has since been rolled out in the USA, UK, Hong Kong, Canada and it launched in New Zealand in May this year, with over 1000 kiwis signing up since then.

A survey on HSM members in New Zealand found that the participants had positive changes in their drinking behaviour after completing the programme. Using the world-renowned Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) to analyse HSM members’ drinking behaviours, the survey found that participants who were drinking at “risky” or “hazardous” levels before their HSM commitment were drinking at “low” risk levels after it, with some survey respondents being followed up a year after they had undertaken HSM.

Upon signing up to HSM, members stay in touch with each other through Hellosundaymorning.org, HSM Facebook “hubs” and other social media, supporting each other and sharing their experiences and revelations as a result of abstaining from drinking.

HSM CEO Chris Raine said the success of a programme like HSM would not be possible without the social media phenomenon. “Social media enables our members to share their experiences with a huge community and receive instant support and encouragement,” Mr Raine said. “Usually the festive season would be the hardest time of the year to abstain from drinking for a social drinker, but when you can see that you have a whole community behind you - literally 24/7 - suddenly you realise you are not alone,” he said.

“This is so important because the feeling of isolation is one of the biggest challenges for anyone who is abstaining from alcohol because it is so entrenched in our culture.”

Actor Will Hall, of Shortland St, Nothing Trivial, and the upcoming feature film Mt. Zion, is getting behind HSM, pledging to give up drinking for three months this summer and share his experience via HSM's online community and wider social media.

"I've been meaning to have a break from drinking for some time. Once I hit 30 I started to think I've been drinking most weekends for half my life now, I wonder if I could enjoy a night out without a few beers?,” Mr Hall said.

“When I started working on the second season of Nothing Trivial earlier this year and I was told that my character was a marathon runner wearing mostly Lycra and eventually nothing (he likes to swim nude), I thought this was the motivation I needed to try and shed some of that extra weight my beloved beer brings with it,” he said. “Unfortunately I failed miserably and by the end of the first week of work, I went out for drinks with the rest of the cast and by the third round I was reaching for a Moa beer instead of a ginger one!

“I'm hoping that by signing up to Hello Sunday Morning I can stay on track this time and have a proper break from the booze. With HSM I know I’ve got a whole heap of people behind me, supporting me, and going through the same things that I am going through.”

There have been several campaigns in the past designed to change Kiwis attitudes towards drinking. They have successfully sparked public debate or conversation around the way that kiwis drink.

Hello Sunday Morning supports these campaigns as it offers a simple way for people to get some perspective on why they drink, it also allows them to help change the drinking culture around them.

“One of the most valuable aspects of Hello Sunday Morning is that by giving up drinking for a period, people discover why they are actually drinking, and although sometimes the reasons are scary, they also learn how to cope in every situation without the need to drink.

“We have found the main reasons people choose to drink are to cope with emotions, boost confidence and for a sense of identity. When you remove alcohol from the situation you see you don’t need alcohol for all the reasons you think you do - and seeing how other people behave when they are drunk is certainly an eye opener when you are sober!”

Hello Sunday Morning – Interesting facts
• HSMers lost up to 25 kilos during their HSM, with the average being 5kg
• On average HSMers saved $1000 during their HSM, with 20% of people saving more than $1000
• 82% of people said they couldn't have made the changes in their lives they made without HSM

For the latest information on alcohol consumption in New Zealand visit www.alac.org.nz

ENDS

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