Portal Red Investigadores de Economía

This paper evaluates the randomized Good Drinks program in four localities of Bogotá, Colombia. The intervention encourages bartenders to adopt standardized practices that promote responsible behavior in terms of alcohol consumption with the goal of reducing alcohol‐related violence and was implemented in cooperation with Colombia's largest brewery and the city's Secretariat of Security, Coexistence, and Justice. Tracing out the relationship between alcohol consumption and violence is useful because alcohol‐related incidents often lead to more serious crimes. Our experimental design allows estimating direct and spillover effects on reported incidents within and around bars. Results show that bartenders in treatment locations sell more water and food, thus contributing to more responsible behavior by patrons. However, we find no direct or spillover effects of these changes in consumption on brawls five months after the program, but some improvement on other alcohol‐related incidents. The experience of the Good Drinks program provides a better understanding of three aspects related to alcohol regulation and policy: (i) the role bartenders can play to curb excessive alcohol consumption and promote good behavior among customers, (ii) a practical experience of using less restrictive interventions for alcohol regulation, and (iii) the value of public‐private partnerships.

Reducing Alcohol‐Related Violence with Bartenders: A Behavioral Field Experiment