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- A Flinders University study analysing more than 23,000 Australians found Gen Z is nearly 20 times more likely to abstain from alcohol than Baby Boomers, even after accounting for age and other demographic differences.
- Millennials and Gen X reported having more drinks on a typical occasion than Boomers, while the Silent Generation recorded the highest weekly alcohol consumption among drinkers.
- The findings point to a generational shift in Australian drinking culture, with alcohol brands increasingly adapting to social occasions where drinking isn’t necessarily the norm.
Aussies rarely need much convincing to crack open a cold one, pour themselves a glass or tuck into a dram of the good stuff. From knock-off beers on a Friday to a few too many at your neighbour’s weekend barbecue, drinking has long been part of how we socialise Down Under. But the next generation of Australians appears far more comfortable with something that may have raised a few eyebrows at the pub: saying no.
A Flinders University study, drawing on more than two decades of data from 23,368 Australians, found that Generation Z were nearly 20 times more likely to abstain from alcohol than Baby Boomers, even after accounting for age and other demographic differences. Published in the scientific journal Addiction, the research suggests younger Australians aren’t simply waiting until they’re older to develop a taste for beer, a palate for wine, or the stomach for spirits. Their relationship with alcohol appears to be changing in fundamentally different ways from previous generations.
Now, before we declare last drinks, there’s a little more to unpack. While younger generations are increasingly saying no to alcohol, other Australians aren’t exactly giving it up, with some older generations still reporting considerably higher weekly alcohol consumption. Aussies do love a drink, but how much someone drinks on a night out can tell a very different story from how much they consume throughout the week.
Who’s Drinking More, and Who’s Drinking Less?
Right off the bat, this study’s title deserves a good chuckle before we start distilling the details. OK Boomer examined 23 waves of Australia’s Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) Survey, comparing five generations using survey responses from adults aged 18 and over while accounting for age and other demographics.
A schooner might cost considerably more today than it did a few decades ago, but price isn’t the only thing that’s changed. People also drink differently as they age, so the researchers needed to account for that before comparing one generation with another.
Younger people have always had different drinking habits from older Australians. But we’re talking about a generation born between 1997 and 2012, one that hasn’t even hit 30 yet. The oldest members have only recently moved beyond their early twenties. The youngest Gen Zs are still teenagers. So the obvious question is whether their drinking habits are simply another part of growing up, or whether something more permanent is happening.
That’s what the researchers wanted to find out. After accounting for demographic differences, they found evidence of a broader generational shift. Compared with Baby Boomers, Gen Z had 17.74 times the adjusted odds of abstaining, while Millennials had 9.67 times and Gen X had 3.29 times.
In everyday terms, younger generations were considerably more inclined to go without alcohol, even when researchers accounted for their different ages and backgrounds. Those figures aren’t the percentage of each generation that doesn’t drink, but a statistical comparison with Baby Boomers.
As lead author Dr Gianluca Di Censo, from Flinders University’s National Centre for Education and Training on Addiction (NCETA), put it:
“Gen Z are nearly 20 times more likely to choose not to drink alcohol compared to Baby Boomers, even after adjusting for sociodemographic factors.”
“This isn’t just a phase; it appears to be a sustained change in behaviour that could have long-term public health benefits,” Dr Di Censo said.
Not Drinking Is Not the Same As Drinking Less
It’s important to realise that choosing not to drink is not the same as drinking in moderation. Among those who consumed alcohol, Millennials and Gen X reported drinking more on a “typical occasion” than Baby Boomers. Meanwhile, Gen Z did not differ statistically from Boomers in the amount consumed per occasion.
Weekly consumption told a different story. Gen Z and Millennials reported drinking less in a typical week than Boomers. At the same time, the Silent Generation, born between 1928 and 1945, who are now reaching 80 years and older, recorded the highest weekly consumption among drinkers. Statistically, though, the study couldn’t establish a clear difference between Gen X and Boomers’ weekly consumption.
So although we’re seeing more younger Australians choosing not to drink, that doesn’t mean heavy sessions have disappeared from Australian social life or that older generations are necessarily cutting back at the same pace. The research highlights how drinking patterns can differ from one generation to the next, rather than suggesting a single national trend that applies equally to everyone.
Is Australia’s Drinking Culture Changing for the Better?
In a country where the pub has long been a social institution alongside the Chinese restaurant, newsagency and the post office, those findings have implications far beyond the drinks fridge at your local bottle-o.
Flinders researcher Dr Kirrilly Thompson argues that younger Australians are growing up in a world where not drinking is becoming increasingly normal: “Digital socialising, rising living costs, and health awareness are reshaping how people spend their time and money”.
What’s happening in the world directly shapes everything humans do, whether it’s drinking, eating, sleeping or the fun one. Unfortunately, the study hasn’t yet established exactly what’s driving the shift.
“If we can understand what’s driving this decline in alcohol use among younger people – whether it’s economic pressures, social norms, or policy changes – we can use that knowledge to support healthier behaviours across all age groups,” says Dr Di Censo.
The Drinks Industry Responds
Whatever it is, the industry is already doing its best to keep up with Australia’s changing drinking culture. Speaking to Mumbrella, representatives from Diageo, branding agency Weave, and non-alcoholic brewer Heaps Normal describe a market where people still want to socialise but don’t necessarily want alcohol at the centre of every occasion.
“Twenty years ago, people would have just come home from work and opened a bottle of wine,” said Sarah Shimmons, marketing and brand director at Diageo Australia. According to Shimmons, consumers increasingly want their drinks to feel like part of a more meaningful occasion: “When people want to have a drink now, they want it to be more special.”
They also “want to make sure that they’re drinking responsibly,” added Shimmons.
That could mean a non-alcoholic beer at a gig, a cocktail saved for a particular night out, or simply heading home without feeling obliged to keep up with everyone else. The occasion hasn’t necessarily changed. The expectation that everyone should be drinking might have.
Does Australia Have a Drinking Problem?
None of this means Australia should suddenly stop worrying about alcohol-related harm. As we explored in our report on risky drinking among Australian men, risky drinking remains a serious concern well beyond early adulthood. Then there’s grey-area drinking, another, less obvious pattern of potentially problematic alcohol use. The Flinders researchers also highlighted a need to address heavier drinking on individual occasions among younger people, as well as sustained weekly consumption in middle age.
“Generation Z are redefining what it means to socialise and celebrate, and they’re doing it with less alcohol – that’s something we should be paying attention to, not just as researchers, but as a society,” added Dr Thompson.
Gen Z might be saying no more often, but the Aussie pub isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. And neither is the occasional big night out. But if Gen Z is changing one thing, it might be the assumption that having a good time and having a drink are automatically the same thing. Sorry, Tooheys, but they won’t have two.
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