Off-Campus Residence as a Risk Factor for Heavy Drinking Among College Students

Background: College student alcohol use is a public health problem. Objectives: The aim of this study was to examine associations between residence and drinking behaviors among college students. We hypothesized that living off-campus independently or with peers would be associated with riskier drinking than living on-campus, and living with parents would be associated with less risky drinking than living on-campus. Methods: We analyzed data from two separate studies conducted at two four-year universities in the Northeast. Study 1 examined data from 1286 students (57% female) attending a private university. In Study 2, analyses were replicated and extended with 2408 students (67% female) from a public university. We conducted regression analyses that controlled for age, race, gender, and class year to determine the unique association of residence on typical and peak drinking, frequency of heavy drinking, and alcohol-related consequences. Results: In both samples, students living off-campus without parents reported more frequent alcohol consumption, larger drinking quantities, more frequent heavy drinking, and a greater number of alcohol-related consequences than students living on-campus (ps <.001). In Study 2, students living off-campus with their parents exhibited significantly fewer risky drinking behaviors than those living on-campus (ps <.001). Conclusions: Living off-campus – either independently or with peers – is a risk factor for heavy drinking and consequences. This group exhibits more risky drinking behaviors and alcohol-related consequences than students living on-campus, independent of age and class year. Therefore, students moving off-campus may be appropriate targets for alcohol misuse prevention programs.     

An Evaluation of the BASICS Alcohol Risk Reduction Model Among Predominantly Hispanic College Students

Although Hispanic college students consume alcohol in equal proportion to other ethnic groups, studies have not examined whether established alcohol-risk-reduction approaches are effective in this population. Accordingly, this study examined effectiveness of the Brief Alcohol Screening and Intervention for College Students (BASICS) risk-reduction model for reducing alcohol consumption and related problems in two samples of predominantly Hispanic college students (N = 206 and 405). The study also examined whether factors such as gender, baseline risk level, and readiness to change moderated program impact. Students first participated in an in-depth assessment of drinking patterns followed by relatively brief intervention including psychoeducation and personalized normative feedback. Behavioral outcomes were assessed six months after the intervention and included alcohol-risk scores, alcohol consumption-related problems, consumption, drinking and driving frequency, and stage of change. Supporting the effectiveness of BASICS, both samples showed significant improvement across all these outcomes. Moderator analyses suggested greater program impact among heavier drinkers and among high in change contemplation at assessment. Overall, the results strongly support use of the BASICS intervention model among Hispanic students. The study's limitations are noted.     

Assessing college students' perceptions of tolerance to alcohol using social cues: The Social Tolerance Index

Increased tolerance to alcohol is considered a risk factor for developing future problems. While college students are considered a high-risk population in relation to alcohol use it is suggested that tolerance operates differently in this population than in chronic drinking samples. Individuals' perceptions about their level of tolerance measured by social cues and comparisons to peers may influence drinking behavior. The present study evaluated the Social Tolerance Index (STI), a measure designed to examine perceptions about personal tolerance to alcohol using social cues in college students. College students (n = 177) completed measures of social tolerance, social desirability, drinking rates, and demographic information at baseline, 2-week, and 4-week follow-up assessments to assess test–retest reliability. A confirmatory factor analysis was conducted on the STI. In addition, tests of discriminant, construct and predictive validities were also conducted. The STI demonstrated good reliability and validity for use in a college student population.     

Misperceiving the college drinking norm and related problems: a nationwide study of exposure to prevention information, perceived norms and student alcohol misuse

OBJECTIVE: This study examined (1) the prevalence of misperceptions of college student drinking norms across campuses nationwide, (2) the importance of perceived norms in predicting high-risk drinking, (3) the association of exposure to alcohol education information with students' perceptions of campus drinking norms and (4) the differences in high-risk drinking rates between schools where exposure to alcohol information is associated with more accurately perceived norms and schools where exposure to information is unrelated to perceptions or is associated with greater misperceptions. METHOD: Multivariate analyses were used to analyze an aggregate database of the National College Health Assessment survey administered to 76,145 students from 130 colleges and universities nationwide from spring 2000 through spring 2003. RESULTS: Regardless of the actual campus drinking norm, a consistently large percentage of students nationwide overestimated the quantity of alcohol consumed by their peers. Students' perception of their campus drinking norm was the strongest predictor of the amount of alcohol personally consumed in comparison with the influence of all demographic variables. Perception of the norm was also a much stronger predictor when compared with the actual campus norm. Reduced levels of high-risk drinking and negative consequences were found among students attending the relatively few schools where exposure to prevention information was associated with less exaggerated perceptions of the drinking norm compared with students attending other schools. CONCLUSIONS: Misperceived drinking norms are a pervasive problem. Schools that do not seek to reduce these misperceptions with their prevention information are neglecting a potentially powerful component of prevention.     

Alcohol Use Severity Among Hispanic Emerging Adults in Higher Education: Understanding the Effect of Cultural Congruity

Background: Identifying and understanding determinants of alcohol use behavior among Hispanic college students is an increasingly important public health issue, particularly during emerging adulthood. Studies examining ethnocultural determinants of alcohol use behavior among Hispanic college students have focused on direct associations with cultural orientation (e.g., acculturation and enculturation); yet there is a need for research that accounts for the complex interplay of other culturally relevant sociocultural factors. Objectives: This study examined associations of behavioral acculturation, behavioral enculturation, and cultural congruity (perception of cultural fit between the values of the academic environment and the student's personal values) with alcohol use severity (AUS); and tested if gender moderated those associations. Methods: A hierarchical linear regression and moderation analysis were conducted on a sample of 167 Hispanic emerging adults (ages 18–25) enrolled in college. Results: All predictor variables entered in the regression model accounted for 20.9% of the variance in AUS. After controlling for demographic variables and depressive symptoms, behavioral acculturation and enculturation did not have a statistically significant association with AUS. Further, gender did not moderate either of these associations. Conversely, greater cultural congruity was associated with lower reports of AUS. A moderation analysis suggested that cultural congruity predicted lower reports of AUS among men, but not among women. Conclusions: This was the first known study to examine the association of cultural congruity with alcohol use. Findings highlight the value of examining contextual factors of culture and moving beyond reductive measures of cultural orientation.     

Perceiving the Community Norms of Alcohol Use among Students: Some Research Implications for Campus Alcohol Education Programming*

Data drawn from a comprehensive survey of alcohol use in a college student community (N= 1, 116) show most students holding a moderate personal attitude regarding alcohol use while misperceiving their peer environment as being much more liberal. Drinking behavior is significantly related to gender, type of living unit, personal attitudes toward drinking, and also the degree of consistency/discrepancy between the individual's own attitude and his or her perception of the campus norm regarding drinking. Students who saw the campus norm to be similar to their own attitude were found to drink more heavily, and in more public settings, than students with discrepant attitudes and perceptions. Implications of findings for alcohol abuse prevention programs on college campuses are discussed.     

Alcohol perceptions and behavior in a residential peer social network

Personalized normative feedback is a recommended component of alcohol interventions targeting college students. However, normative data are commonly collected through campus-based surveys, not through actual participant-referent relationships. In the present investigation, we examined how misperceptions of residence hall peers, both overall using a global question and those designated as important peers using person-specific questions, were related to students' personal drinking behaviors. Participants were 108 students (88% freshman, 54% White, 51% female) residing in a single campus residence hall. Participants completed an online baseline survey in which they reported their own alcohol use and perceptions of peer alcohol use using both an individual peer network measure and a global peer perception measure of their residential peers. We employed network autocorrelation models, which account for the inherent correlation between observations, to test hypotheses. Overall, participants accurately perceived the drinking of nominated friends but overestimated the drinking of residential peers. Consistent with hypotheses, overestimating nominated friend and global residential peer drinking predicted higher personal drinking, although perception of nominated peers was a stronger predictor. Interaction analyses showed that the relationship between global misperception and participant self-reported drinking was significant for heavy drinkers, but not non-heavy drinkers. The current findings explicate how student perceptions of peer drinking within an established social network influence drinking behaviors, which may be used to enhance the effectiveness of normative feedback interventions.     

Perception of High Alcohol Use of Peers Is Associated With High Personal Alcohol Use in First-Year University Students in Three Central and Eastern European Countries

Objectives: The objectives of this study were to assess discrepancies between estimated peer and personal drinking behavior and to determine associations between perceptions of peer and personal drinking behavior among university students from Hungary (HU), Lithuania (LT), and the Slovak Republic (SK). Methods: 2,554 freshman university students completed an online questionnaire on the frequency of their personal alcohol use, the number of heavy drinking occasions and on their perception concerning the corresponding drinking behavior of a typical student. Associations between perceived peer and personal use were analyzed by means of logistic regression, adjusting for sex. Results: The majority of students across all countries thought their peers drink more frequently and are more often involved in heavy drinking occasions than themselves. Students who perceived the frequency of peer alcohol use to be higher were more likely to drink alcohol twice a week or more often (SR: OR = 3.81, 95% CI = 2.51–5.79; LT: OR = 3.16, 95% CI = 2.11–4.75; HU: OR = 2.10, 95% CI = 1.53–2.87) compared with students who drink alcohol monthly or less. Those who perceived the number of peer heavy drinking occasions as high were more likely to report heavy drinking weekly or more often (SR: OR = 3.16, 95% CI = 1.92–5.20; LT:OR = 3.56, 95% CI = 2.14–5.94; HU:OR = 1.41, 95% CI = 0.79–2.51) compared with students who report heavy drinking less than monthly. Conclusions/Importance: University students perceived peer alcohol use to be higher than their personal use. Given the association between perceptions and personal alcohol use, future research should investigate if targeting perceptions in the surveyed countries may have an impact on alcohol use.     

Hazardous drinking and weight-conscious drinking behaviors in a sample of college students and college student athletes

ABSTRACT

Background: “Weight-conscious drinking” refers to behaviors to restrict calories in conjunction with consuming alcohol and is associated with numerous negative consequences. This behavior has been observed in the college student population but has not been examined among college student athletes. Methods: This cross-sectional study assessed drinking, hazardous drinking levels (Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test—Consumption [AUDIT-C] sum score), and weight-conscious drinking behaviors (for weight loss purposes and for intoxication purposes) using a paper-and-pencil survey that was completed by students at a large, private university in the Southwest United States. The sample for this study included college student nonathletes (n = 482; 212 males and 270 females) who completed the survey in 1 of 34 classes and college student athletes (n = 201; 79 males and 122 females) who completed the survey during practice. These analyses examined whether hazardous drinking level and other personal covariates (gender, race, and athlete status) predicted the 2 weight-conscious drinking behaviors of interest. Results: Among the subsample of students who drank, the same proportion of participants indicated weight-conscious drinking behavior for weight loss and weight-conscious drinking behavior for intoxication (both 24.9%; n = 122). In the multivariate analyses, students with higher hazardous drinking scores and females were significantly more likely to report engaging in both weight-conscious drinking behaviors. In those analyses, neither weight-conscious drinking behavior varied by athlete status. Conclusions: In this sample of college students, hazardous drinking most predicted weight-conscious drinking behavior and superseded gender and athlete status. In response, college health professionals should consider evidenced-based approaches to address hazardous drinking.     

College student drinking: perception of the norm and behavioral intentions

Social norm campaigns assume that college students desire to increase their drinking, and may eventually do so, to match inflated perceptions of peer drinking. We assessed 171 college students on self-reported drinking, desired drinking and perception of peer drinking at baseline, and assessed 139 of those students one month later. Participants who believed their peers drank more than they were hypothesized to desire to increase their alcohol consumption to match the perceived norm. This hypothesis was not supported; however, 91% of participants believed their peers drank more than themselves. It was also hypothesized that participants who wished to drink more would drink more in the future. Participants who desired to increase their drinking did not report a significant change in drinking behavior one month later, but participants who initially desired to maintain or decrease their drinking reported significant decreases across the following month. College student overestimation of peer drinking and the college environment are discussed. Social norm campaigns should consider behavioral intentions, and the underlying assumptions of these campaigns should be further tested.     

Ethnicity specific norms and alcohol consumption among Hispanic/Latino/a and Caucasian students

Previous research has shown that social norms are among the strongest predictors of college student drinking and that normative misperceptions of more similar groups' drinking behavior may be more influential on individual drinking than those groups perceived to be more different. However, limited research has explored the moderating role of ethnicity in this context. The current study examined the differential impact that Hispanic/Latino/a and Caucasian students' normative perceptions of both typical and same-ethnicity college students' drinking behavior had on their own drinking. Participants (N=5,369 students; 60.4% female; 81.4% Caucasian; mean age 19.9 years) from two colleges completed web-based surveys assessing their alcohol consumption, and their perceptions of the drinking behaviors of both the typical college student and the typical same race/ethnicity college student at their campus. Results demonstrated that perceived norms were significantly associated with likelihood of drinking regardless of race or ethnicity specificity, but that Hispanics/Latinos/as typically had weaker relationships between ethnicity-specific norms and drinking than general student norms and drinking. The opposite was true for Caucasians such that the relationship between same-race norms and drinking was stronger than the relationship between general student norms and drinking. Further, Hispanic/Latino/a students with high perceived norms were less likely to have consumed any alcohol than Caucasians with similar normative beliefs. Further, a campus site interaction suggests that the size of the minority population on campus relative to other students may influence the relationship between norms and drinking. Implications and targets for future investigation are discussed.     

Alcohol Use in Emerging Adulthood: Can Moffitt's Developmental Theory Help Us Understand Binge Drinking Among College Students?

ABSTRACT

It is well-known that college students are at an increased risk for alcohol use and binge drinking compared to their same-age peers who are not in college. We use Moffitt's developmental taxonomy, specifically, her discussion of adolescence-limited offending, to contextualize this finding regarding this minor form of deviance. We also incorporate Arnett's notion of emerging adulthood to argue that the maturity gap, as described by Moffitt, can extend beyond adolescence. The current research used data from Wave III of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (N = 4,264). We examined differences in sample characteristics between respondents who were currently enrolled in college full-time and those who were not. We also estimated several logistic regression models to determine how full-time college status and two measures of maturity were correlated with weekly binge drinking. We found that respondents who were full-time college students had an increased risk for binge drinking and were also less mature than their peers. Further analyses indicated that full-time college students were at an increased risk for binge drinking because they lacked maturity and the lack of adult roles that characterize the college years gives students more freedom to binge drink. These results supported both Moffitt's explanation of adolescence-limited offending and Arnett's notion of emerging adults.     

The Proactivity of People Who Use Drugs as a Political and Ethical Imperative

Background: Alcohol consumption often appears to be under social influence. However, we know relatively little about whether some people are particularly likely to exhibit similar drinking patterns to their peers. Objectives: Here we tested the extent to which trait social approval concerns and trait self-control are associated with the likelihood that individuals display similar heavy episodic drinking patterns to their peers. Method: One thousand and fifty-six young adults participated in an online study. We measured trait social approval concerns (the Need to Belong scale) and trait self-control (the Self-Control scale) alongside personal heavy episodic drinking and perceptions of peer heavy episodic drinking. Results: Beliefs that one's peers (other students) drank heavily were associated with heavier personal episodic drinking. This relationship was moderated by trait self-control: The correlation between personal heavy episodic drinking and perceived peer drinking was much stronger in those with low self-control compared with those with high self-control. Contrary to hypotheses, trait social approval concerns did not moderate the relationship between perceived peer drinking and personal heavy episodic drinking. Conclusions: Social norms about drinking could act as a form of informational cue for one's own alcohol consumption, but the extent to which individuals follow or override this cue may depend on individual differences in self-control.     

Examining the Role of Source Credibility and Reference Group Proximity on Personalized Normative Feedback Interventions for College Student Alcohol Use: A Randomized Laboratory Experiment

Background: Personalized normative feedback (PNF) interventions are designed to reduce misperceived drinking norms by delivering feedback regarding the actual drinking behavior of college students, thereby leading to subsequent reductions in one's own drinking. Objective: We examined the roles of data source credibility and reference group proximity in the effectiveness of a laboratory-based PNF intervention to reduce perceived drinking norms and thereby decrease intentions to drink. Method: Following completion of an online preintervention survey and using a 2 (highly credible data source/low credible data source) × 2 (proximal reference group/distal reference group) between-subjects factorial design, 104 college student drinkers were randomly assigned to condition. Participants then completed a postintervention questionnaire to assess for changes in various aspects of drinking. Results: Highly credible feedback was associated with greater reductions in perceived weekly drinking by American college students compared to feedback with low credibility. Similarly, more proximal than distal reference group feedback led to greater reductions in perceived weekly drinking by a same-gender/same-class year students at one's university. No condition effects emerged for intended drinks per week. Conclusions: PNF interventions may benefit from considering data source credibility and reference group proximity to reduce misperceptions of college student drinking, depending on the goals and resources of practitioners implementing such programs. Even the use of such a distal reference group as American college students can indeed lead to a reduction of normative perceptions provided there is an emphasis on the credibility of the data source.     

The Role of Alcohol Expectancies in the Associations Between Close Friend,Typical College Student,and Personal Alcohol Use

Background Perceptions of peer drinking and alcohol expectancies have been consistently associated with alcohol use among college students. There is evidence that perceived peer drinking also shapes alcohol expectancies. Research has yet to address the potential differential impact of perceived drinking by close friends versus by typical college students on alcohol use among first-semester college students. Relatedly, mediation of these associations by specific domains of alcohol expectancies has yet to be examined. Objectives: The first aim of the present study was to investigate whether perceptions of close friend drinking were more strongly associated with alcohol expectancies, alcohol use, and consequences of alcohol use than perceptions of typical college student drinking. The second aim focused on which alcohol expectancy domains partially accounted for the association between close friend drinking, typical college student drinking, and alcohol use and consequences. Method: Participants (n = 400 first-semester college students) completed survey questionnaires, which included measures of perceived close friend/typical student alcohol use, alcohol expectancies, and drinking behaviors. Results: Results showed that close friend alcohol use was more strongly associated with alcohol use and consequences compared to typical college student use both directly and indirectly through expectancies about alcohol enhancing social behaviors. Conclusions/Importance: These findings suggest that first-semester college student drinking is more influenced by perceived alcohol use among close friends than typical college students. Future intervention efforts for alcohol use on college campuses may benefit from including close friend network components along with targeting alcohol expectancies regarding social behaviors.     

Depressive Symptoms and Drinking Outcomes: The Mediating Role of Drinking Motives and Protective Behavioral Strategies Among College Students

Background: College students with depressive symptoms tend to engage in more hazardous drinking and experience more alcohol-related consequences to cope with their symptoms. Given the perceived tension reducing effects of alcohol among these students, it is important to explore how protective factors, such as protective behavioral strategies, account for the relationships among depressive symptoms, drinking motives, and alcohol-related outcomes. Objective: To examine the mediating role of drinking motives and protective behavioral strategies on the associations that depressive symptoms have with typical weekly alcohol consumption, hazardous drinking, and alcohol-related negative consequences in a sample of college student drinkers. Methods: Traditional age college students (n = 566, 73% women; 58% White, non-Hispanic) completed measures of depression, drinking motives, protective behavioral strategies, weekly alcohol use, hazardous drinking, and alcohol-related negative consequences. Results: Coping with depression motives and controlled consumption PBS explained the association between depression and weekly alcohol consumption and hazardous drinking whereas coping with depression motives and serious harm reduction PBS explained the depression-negative consequences relationship. Conformity motives and serious harm reduction PBS explained the association between depression and hazardous drinking and alcohol-related negative consequences. Conclusions: Findings suggest that students with more depressive symptoms would benefit from clinical interventions tailored to address negative reinforcement drinking motives and, by extension, increase student utilization of PBS related to minimizing harm. Clinical and research implications are provided.     

Alcohol Use among College Athletes: Do Intercollegiate,Club, or Intramural Student Athletes Drink Differently?

Background: Varsity student athletes are a high-risk drinking group, exhibiting a greater propensity to binge drink than their non-sport peers. Moreover, as intercollegiate athletic involvement increases, so too does alcohol consumption. There is little research, however, which examines drinking behaviors of students who participate in nonvarsity athletics. Objectives: Identify differences in alcohol-related behaviors and associated consequences among U.S. varsity, club, and intramural athletes, and nonathlete college students. Methods: Secondary data analysis of the 2011 National College Health Assessment (n = 29,939). Results: Intramural athletes binge drank more frequently (M = 1.1, SD = 1.7) than club athletes (M = 1.0, SD = 1.6), intercollegiate athletes (M = 0.9, SD = 1.5), and nonathletes (M = 0.6, SD = 1.3) and also experienced greater alcohol-related consequences. Intramural athletes consumed the most during their last drinking episode (M = 4.1, SD = 4.0) and reached the highest blood alcohol concentration (BAC) (M = 0.062, SD = 0.09).Compared to club and varsity athletes [M = 0.8, SD = 1.4; t (8,131) = ?9.6, p < .001], intramural-only athletes reported binge drinking significantly more frequently (M = 1.2, SD = 1.7) and also reached significantly higher BACs during most recent drinking episode (M = 0.064, SD = 0.08) than organized sport athletes [M = 0.057, SD = 0.08; t (8,050) = ?3.0, p = .003]. Conclusions: Intramural athletes represent a higher-risk drinking group than other athlete and nonathlete college students. Future research should investigate factors contributing to drinking differences among different athlete groups.     

Drinking,Cigarette Smoking,and Employment Among American College Freshmen at a Four-Year University

Background: For American college students, alcohol and cigarette use are important health concerns, and employment concurrent with school attendance is on the rise. Given the lifelong importance of employment and substance use trajectories begun in college, parsing out the relationship between the two is meaningful. Objectives: This study's purpose is to determine whether employment during college is associated with substance use. Methods: Cross-sectional associations between employment (work hours, earnings) and substance use (drinking frequency, drinking quantity, smoking frequency) were estimated using partial proportional odds models in a sample of N = 1457 freshmen attending a large, public 4-year university in 2011, after accounting for demographics, personality, social environment, and parental influences. Results: Working 10 more hours and earning $50 more per week as a freshman had modest positive associations with higher smoking frequency and with moderate drinking frequency and quantity prior to adjustment. After adjustment, work hours remained modestly associated with moderate drinking frequency and quantity. No adjusted associations were found among employment measures and smoking or between weekly earnings and drinking frequency. Different relationships emerged for moderate versus heavy alcohol use frequency and quantity. Conclusions: Both employment and substance use are commonplace among college freshmen. After extensive controls for potential confounders, the relationship between the two appears modest. Employment may yet play a role in college student substance use, but work hours and earnings are likely only small parts of a larger web of influences on drinking and smoking.     

Impulsivity and Problem Drinking in College: Examining the Mediating Role of Sex-Related Alcohol Expectancies and Alcohol Use at Sex

Background: Dispositional impulsivity has been consistently implicated as a risk factor for problem drinking among college students and research suggests that this relationship may be explained in part by alcohol expectancies. A subset of alcohol expectancies, sex-related alcohol expectancies, is particularly linked to problem drinking among college students. The acquired preparedness model of risk postulates that people with dispositional impulsivity develop stronger sex-related alcohol expectancies, are subsequently more likely to drink at problematic levels in sexual situations, and thus, engage in more problem drinking. Objectives: Using this model, the current study examined whether sex-related alcohol expectancies and alcohol use at sex mediated the relationship between impulsivity and problem drinking among college students. Methods: College students (N = 101) completed self-report measures of alcohol use, sex-related alcohol expectancies, and five dimensions of impulsivity: negative urgency, positive urgency, sensation seeking, lack of premeditation, and lack of perseverance. Results: Two facets of impulsivity—sensation seeking and lack of premeditation—provided unique contributions to problem drinking. Sex-related alcohol expectancies significantly mediated the effects of lack of premeditation and sensation seeking on problem drinking. In support of the acquired preparedness model, the relationship between the impulsivity traits and problem drinking was serially mediated by sex-related alcohol expectancies and alcohol use at sex. Conclusions: Results suggest that sensation seeking and lack of premeditation continue to be areas of intervention for problem drinking among college students, and implicate sex-related alcohol expectancies as an area of intervention for alcohol use at sex and problem drinking.