The Social Influences of Drinking
College is a time of great change for many students. Along with higher education and career preparation, a large part of college is social freedom. As such, a prevalent issue has been drinking culture. A study done by Patrick D. Quinn (B.A.) and Kim Fromme (Ph.D) in the Department of Psychology at University of Texas at Austin sought to examine the differences between the influences, amounts, and consequences of alcohol use between college students and their non-college peers.
The factors that the researchers examined in their longitudinal study of alcohol use and behavioral risks compared the effects of personality and peer influence on college students and their non-college peers. College students at a southwestern university in 2004 were randomly assigned to a biannual assessment, Year 1 and Year 4 assessments, or a Year 4 only assessment. At the end of four years, 331 college students completed the Year 4 survey (about 22 years old, with about 112 course credits completed). Non-college peers who completed five or less courses at a 4-year college or university were selected in 2008 who matched the demographics (age, gender, ethnicity) of the 331 students who completed the Year 4 survey, totalling 502 peers at the end of the selection.
The participants were asked to fill out four different types of online questionnaires: a self-regulation survey (their ability to control thoughts, emotions, behaviors, and temptations) a sensation seeking survey (their preference to seek out risks and thrills), and a descriptive norms survey (how many drinks they perceive their peers to drink on average). Participants also completed an alcohol use survey, which involved a daily drinking questionnaire, a self-report on the number of times they became drunk or how frequently they heavily drank, and the maximum number of drinks they drank in 24 hours. Researchers also assessed how frequently participants experienced alcohol-related problems, such as passing out or getting into fights, in the past three months.
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The results of the study showed that although college students were lower in the risk factors for drinking because they selected colleges that match their personality (generally low sensation-seeking and high self-regulation), differences in college students and non-college peers are actually larger than what results showed initially. Though college students perceived that those of their age group drank less than their non-college peers, college students at this university were noted to drink more than their non-college peers. This result may be due to differences in social roles between college students and their non-college peers. College students spend more time with each other and may not be employed full-time or have family responsibilities. On the other hand, non-college peers may have different consequences for drinking, such as missing work, and spent more time with those not within their age group due to family or work. However, non-college peers experienced more alcohol-related problems, such as missing work, having fights, or hangovers, and college students had more problems with binge drinking after college.
Though this study is limited in that only one college was sampled and no causal conclusions could be identified, understanding the possible behavioral influences of why college students or their non-college peers drink can help treat those who are alcohol-dependent. A deeper understanding of these factors can allow treatment and prevention techniques to be more specific, comprehensive, and effective. The effects of alcoholism can have far-reaching consequences into the future, and understanding how to prevent these consequences can aid a lot of alcohol-dependent individuals and their loved ones.
Though this study is limited in that only one college was sampled and no causal conclusions could be identified, understanding the possible behavioral influences of why college students or their non-college peers drink can help treat those who are alcohol-dependent. A deeper understanding of these factors can allow treatment and prevention techniques to be more specific, comprehensive, and effective. The effects of alcoholism can have far-reaching consequences into the future, and understanding how to prevent these consequences can aid a lot of alcohol-dependent individuals and their loved ones.
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