The Impact of Raising the Minimum Legal Drinking Age on Academic Achievement and Risky Behaviour: A Difference-in-Discontinuities Approach

Luis Alonso-Armesto (luis.alonsoarmesto@economics.ox.ac.uk), Julio Cáceres-Delpiano (jcaceres@eco.uc3m.es) and Warn N. Lekfuangfu (nlekfuan@eco.uc3m.es)
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Luis Alonso-Armesto: University of Oxford
Julio Cáceres-Delpiano: Universidad Carlos III de Madrid
Warn N. Lekfuangfu: Universidad Carlos III de Madrid

No 17772, IZA Discussion Papers from Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)

Abstract: This study examines the impact of increasing the Minimum Legal Drinking Age (from 16 to 18 years old) on the academic performance, substance use, and peer behaviours of teenagers. Using a difference-in-discontinuities design, we exploit regional MLDA reforms in Spain and PISA data to identify significant improvements in mathematics and science performance, particularly among male teenagers and those from lower socioeconomic backgrounds. A complementary analysis using data from the Survey on Drug Use in Secondary Education in Spain indicates that these academic gains coincide with reductions in alcohol consumption, intoxication, smoking, and marijuana use, suggesting a link between substance use and educational outcomes. Moreover, the reform led to less drinking and less use of illicit drugs within peer networks, highlighting the amplifying role of peer effects in policy impact.

Keywords: difference-in-discontinuities; alcohol; risky behaviour; education; minimum legal drinking age; PISA; ESTUDES; Spain; teenagers (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I12 I18 I21 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025-03
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