Running Head: ALCOHOL ON CAMPUS

Alcohol On Campus Scott Kolmer CCSD 543 Azusa Pacific University

ALCOHOL ON CAMPUS

Alcohol on college campuses is a topic that has been around for quite some time, yet is still a trending topic. Students are engaging in alcohol related activities constantly as they face the freedom that comes with living away from home and with your friends. For universities it is a constant problem to attempt to regulate and enforce policies against student alcohol consumption. Some universities allow students to drink once they are of age; some even allow them to drink on campus, while others dont let students drink alcohol regardless of their age. Every institution has its own policies and expectations in regards to alcohol on campus, however they all share the common factor that it is a problem. I am going to be delving deeper into the problem of alcohol on campus, some potential strategies for this issue, and then provide my analysis on the topic. As mentioned, alcohol on college campuses is a very real issue. Research has constantly supported this through studying college students and their alcohol consumption habits. One study found that drinking college students experience an average of 3 binge drinking episodes per month (Lorant, Nicaise, Soto & dHoore, 2013). Another study claims that nearly half of college students have experienced binge drinking, if not more (Vicary & Karshin, 2002). Additionally, 54% of students binge drink within the first week of being at college (Vicary & Karshin, 2002). These statistics prove that drinking is a major piece of the college experience. I would only imagine that these numbers would continue to grow as society and the media is progressively encouraging alcohol consumption. Now that we have established that this is a problem, it is important to look at why college students choose to participate in this behavior. Obviously, every student is different and has a story. Each one will have a different reason for choosing to drink or not to drink. Research has provided us with a few different reasons that students choose to drink.

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One study suggests that due to a combination of social activities and the fact that drinking has become a norm, students expect positive consequences for drinking, instead of the likely negative consequences (Lorant, Nicaise, Soto & dHoore, 2013). This would definitely make sense, as our colleges, media, and the rest of our culture have continued to tell us that drinking is not only acceptable, but it is normal. Another study found a few more reasons for college drinking. These reasons range from liking the taste, celebrating, stress, wanting to get drunk, it being the thing to do, increasing confidence, and to be sociable (Vicary & Karshin, 2002). Clearly, there are quite a few reasons that students choose to partake in alcoholic beverage consumption. Although some of those reasons seem to be innocent and reasonable, there is a problem when the way for a student to feel confident and social is by having to drink alcohol. Some might argue that those reasons are all valid and that there is not a problem in college students drinking alcohol excessively. For college students, there are very significant problems that can occur due to drinking. Some problems that students have reported are missed classes, regretful actions, unplanned sex, injuries and drunk driving (Vicary & Karshin, 2002). These are very serious issues that could dramatically change a students life and should not be taken lightly. Knowing these things, universities are tasked with deciding whether or not to allow students to drink alcohol on campus or in general. I have personally experienced schools that allow on campus drinking, as well as schools that dont allow any drinking. Clearly, the topic of alcohol is a prominent one in college campuses as this is a serious problem for students and for universities. Now that we have discussed how problematic alcohol on campus can be, I will talk about some possible solutions that research suggests could be beneficial. One suggestion is the use of personal feedback in interventions (Walters & Neighbors, 2005). This emphasizes the influence

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of personal contact when working with a student that has engaged in drinking habits. Instead of simply sending an email telling a student about the sanctions that are being handed down, inviting the student into your office to explain personally can have a major impact. Here at APU we hold accountability hearings when students are caught drinking. In these meetings we talk through why the student made that decision as well as how to learn and grow as we move forward together. This is an extremely effective method of working with students who have broken policies in regards to drinking. Another finding is that students are often very aware of alcoholic awareness campaigns and actually have favorable perceptions of these campaigns that aim to minimize harm (Hernandez, Leontini & Harley, 2013). This is great news and should encourage universities to continue to invest in educating students. College is a time of growth and new experiences for students, and alcohol is often one of those new experiences. We, as universities, have a responsibility to try and educate students about the consequences of binge drinking, but also about how to safely and responsibly drink. Another recommendation is the use of alcohol awareness programs (Vicary & Karshin, 2002). These programs are beneficial for providing students with information that can shape their college experience. At APU, we have an online program that we collaborate with that we use as a sanction for students who are being held responsible for violating alcohol policies. It teaches them how to drink safely, and also educates them on the realities and consequences of making poor alcohol related decisions. In regards to programs for alcohol awareness, one study found that students are most receptive to ideas of harm-reduction as opposed to simply reducing their drinking (Murphy, Hoyme, Colby & Borsari, 2006). Coming right out and telling students what to do and how to live their life is not always the best strategy. However, showing them how to make better decisions that ultimately limits the amount of harm done to themselves and to others is something that they would respond

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better to. Regardless of the university or alcohol policy, there are definitely steps that should be taken to provide students with an educational background of alcohol awareness so that when they inevitably decide to consume alcohol, they can do it responsibly. One last analysis that I would like to contribute from my own experience is that college students are going to drink regardless of the policy or punishment. As an undergraduate I attended Concordia University Irvine. During my years there, the policy was that if a student was of age and participated in a quick workshop about alcohol safety, you would receive a wet sticker allowing you to consume alcohol on campus as long as you were in a wet room which meant that all students had the wet passes. I personally did go through the process of getting the sticker, however nearly all of my friends chose not to. This showed me that people do not necessarily regard for alcohol policies, even ones that are so simple and require a few short minutes to comply. Additionally, nearly all students who were underage would also drink on campus, even in dry residence halls. After graduating, the university changed its policy so that it was now a dry campus and no matter your age, you could not drink on campus. This was the institutions way of trying to limit some of the illegal binge drinking that was occurring. However, I still have friends that attend the school, and I have heard that nothing has changed. The culture is still very much that drinking is social acceptable, even for student leaders. Regardless of the university policy change, the culture stayed the same, thus leaving the actions to stay the same. This tells me that the campus culture is more influential than the actual policies of the universities. If we can utilize programs and other methods to build an awareness with students and attempt to change campus cultures into ones that are responsible with regard to alcohol, then we can truly make a difference. Policy is important, but the culture and climate of the campus is what ultimately guides students decisions.

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In summary, alcohol on campus is a major problem that plagues nearly all universities. The statistics show that nearly all students are effected by alcohol related decisions and that they can have serious consequences. We have discussed possible ideas to help the problem and ways to create a better awareness of the issue within college cultures. College is a time where students are going to make bad decisions. It is how we help them learn from those decisions that will most benefit them in the future. Moving forward, we need to be intentional in educating our students on how to experience alcohol safely and responsibly.

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References:

Hernandez, L., Leontoni, R., & Harley, K. (2013). Alcohol, university students, and harmminimization campaigns: "A fine line between a good night out and a nightmare". Contemporary Drug Problems, 40(2), 157-189.

Lorant, V., Nicaise, P., Soto, V., & d'Hoore, W. (2013). Alcohol drinking among college students: College responsibility for personal troubles. BMC Public Health, 13(1), 1-9.

Murphy, J., Hoyme, C., Colby, S, Borsari, B. (2006). College alcohol abuse: A review of the problems, issues, and prevention approaches. The journal of primary prevention, 22(3).

Vicary, J., Karhsin, C. (2002). Alcohol consumption, alcohol-related probems, and quality of life among college students. Journal of college student development, 47(1), 110-121.

Walters, S., Neighbors, C. (2005). Feedback inverventions for college alcohol misuse: What, why and for whom?. Addictive behaviors, 30(6), 1168-1182.