The Effects of Alcohol Consumption on College Students

Drinking has become a tradition amongst college students, and drinking is portrayed as a vital part of the college experience. Most incoming college freshman come into college with a preexisting tendency to drink, and the college campus life can be a significant influence on alcohol consumption and the rate at which alcohol is consumed. Binge drinking is so common that it is expected of a college student to drink once getting into the university. The reasons in which students decide to binge drink can vary from students

Drinking on college campuses has become a huge problem. For example, in the 10th century only old people used to drink, but now students drink more than their parents. Students see their parents drinking, so they may think that drinking has no effect on health that anyone can drink so why can’t the students drink? Therefore, college students have been drinking alcohol since the 14th century. Barrett Seaman’s article “How Bingeing Became the New College Sport,” appearing in TIME magazine on August 29, 2005, explains how binge drinking is affecting college students. It also suggests that lowering the drinking age might help solve the problem of binge drinking. This article has much information on how and where students get drunk.

Risk factors such as sex, race, and grades are also discussed and linked with increased drinking. The social aspects of drinking, such as peer pressure and ones perceived image of themselves are discussed as well, along with student opinions on why they think other students drink.

In the article “Drinking over the Lifespan” By: Jennifer E. Merrill, Ph.D., and Kate B. Carey, Ph.D. They talk about how many college students drink heavily and experience myriad associated negative consequences. Most college student’s drink, they tend to drink more heavily than their friends who don’t attend college. Many of these drinking patterns have affected many environmental and temporal characteristic specific to the college environment, including residential campus living, the academic week, and the academic year. A study shows that about 41 percent of 18-24 year olds are enrolled in post-secondary education. When teens are emerging into adulthood, they are trying to find out their own identity, which alcohol use might come in while

Based on a research finding, some individuals indicate that when they are sober and others drink around them, it was considered boring (Seaman& Ikegwuonu , 2010, p.21). It is clear that beverages have become an activity as well as apart of socialisation. Its been described as a social facilitator during interaction and when establishing a connection with others. Data explores that peer group activity has lead to a strong connection of peer experience aligned with intoxication Seaman& Ikegwuonu (2010,p.22). This elaborates the effect of drunkenness. (Borsari & Carey 2001, p.392) stated alcohol played a vital role whether its in college , social functions or peer interactions. Alcohol being referred to as an act of rebellion has today been acknowledged as something ‘normal’ in society. (Pettigrew & Donovan, 2003). Alcohol has now been considered as a social fabric that changes ones game. Gender is a general issue where men are known to drink more than females. Why does this occur?. To begin with, the term hegemonic masculinity outlines the dominant form of a heterosexual in the western world (Germov & Poole,2011, p.241). Men are seemed to be

The consumption of alcohol as a habitual behavior has long been associated with the American collegiate experience, despite the many known negative consequences a student who partakes in drinking can encounter. Because of the danger drunken students pose to a college’s reputation and the safety of its surrounding areas, much research has been done concerning the collegiate party and drinking scenes. This research mostly studied the demographics of the student body, so strategies developed to curtail the illegal or overconsumption of alcohol could be targeted towards the specific groups that demonstrated the highest likelihood of participating in these acts. When the strategies were implemented, however, there was little decline in the number of college students who chose to party and drink (Vander Ven 2011). This failure did not point toward a flaw in the research data, but instead a lack of research into the benefits a collegiate drinker receives that are rewarding to the point he or she cannot resist. This is the topic of Getting Wasted: Why College Students Drink Too Much and Party So Hard by Thomas Vander Ven.

​Did you know 82-92% of college students consume alcohol? (Taylor) Did you drink while in college? Do you agree with alcohol on college campuses or do you disagree? Why? Restricting alcohol consumption on campuses sometimes is used to prevent alcohol abuse and alcohol-related problems. Dry campus policies, however, remain misunderstood. According to Dexter M. Taylor, “Drinking and alcohol-related problems found on dry campuses were similar to national trends on wet college campuses” (Taylor). Alcohol related problems that occur on college campuses include injuries, unprotected sex, date rape, poor academics, and health issues. If alcohol was aloud on college campuses how could this help improve these statistics? Demographic and Academic Trends in Drinking Patterns and Alcohol-Related problems on dry College Campuses an experiment of two western universities who surveyed students ages 18 and older. Due to this experiment “dry campuses were similar to national trends on wet college campuses” (Taylor). According to Frances W. Oblander, “Alcohol abuse has become a major concern on campuses. With this concern, a variety of alcohol education activities ranging from awareness days to full-blown peer counseling and education centers has emerged” (Oblander). It’s time for colleges to start educating their students about alcohol and how alcohol affects the human body. Alcohol should be allowed on college campuses. College is about finding who

Alcohol abuse is a serious health problem when it comes to college students. "The average amount of binge drinkers on college campuses is 50% of men and 39% of women" (<a href="http://www.oregoncounseling.org/ArticlesPapers/">http://www.oregoncounseling.org/ArticlesPapers/</a>). There are various reasons why students drink and serious short and long term effects on the body and mind. Alcoholism is a serious problem for college students and there are many actions being taken to try to lessen the problem among colleges throughout the country.

“From the moment freshmen set foot on campus, they are steeped in a culture that encourages them to drink, and drink heavily. At many schools, social life is still synonymous with alcohol-lubricated gatherings” (Cohen). Binge drinking is a huge aspect of the culture of college life; many college students binge drink to become socially accepted in a particular group. Binge drinking is not only

As many teenagers enter college, they begin to experiment with many things. Although not all students participate in underage drinking, it is evident that a vast majority do. Drinking is not the problem. The main problem occurs when students resort to binge drinking. In the

Alcohol use among college students has always been a popular subject among teachers, parents, researchers, and even students. The actual act of drinking alcohol is not necessarily the problem, whether legal or not. The main problem is the act of binge drinking of college students, of age or not. Drinking modest amounts of alcohol may have some consequences, but binge drinking has more negative consequences than normal modest drinking. There are many examples as to the consequences that binge drinking can cause to college student’s lives, but one of the main consequences that students face as a result of frequent drinking is poor academic final grades.

In an effort to find an article based on gender I turned to Cosmopolitan magazine. For decades this magazine has been geared toward young women, and offers advice on everything gender related. I must admit, I found it difficult to find an article worthy of writing about until I happened upon one entitled “What The Hell Happened Last Night?” written by Mona Gable. (Gable) The focus of the piece was on college binge drinking, the dangers involved, and what some universities are doing to put a stop to it. This editorial brought to mind a conversation I had recently with my nephew. He had informed me that Arizona State University was cracking down on drinking in dorms. An interesting section of the article was the mention that Dartmouth University

“80 percent of teen-agers have tried alcohol, and that alcohol was a contributing factor in the top three causes of death among teens: accidents, homicide and suicide” (Underage, CNN.com pg 3). Students may use drinking as a form of socializing, but is it really as good as it seems? The tradition of drinking has developed into a kind of “culture” fixed in every level of the college student environment. Customs handed down through generations of college drinkers reinforce students' expectation that alcohol is a necessary ingredient for social success. These perceptions of drinking are the going to ruin the lives of the students because it will lead to the development alcoholism. College students who drink a lot, while in a college

Over the years, college students’ drinking habits have become a concern due to alcohol related injuries (all studies). LaBrie, Hummer, Neighbors & Larimer (2010) note that around 500,000 alcohol related injuries and 1,700 students alcohol related deaths have occurred since 2001. Several studies have shown that using injunctive and descriptive norms are most effective in changing behaviors (Thorgersen, Kallgren (1993), Noal et al and Goldstein et al (2008). Thus, researchers are looking at the influence of injunctive and descriptive norms on college drinking. Social motives and interaction between descriptive and injunctive state that when people believe their friends approve of drinking, their own drinking behaviors increase. LaBrie, Hummer, Neighbors & Larimer (2010) looked at perceived injunctive norms (approval of drinking), alcohol related incidences and intervention/prevention programs. Their results showed it is most effective to use groups the students care about (Greek Life, race, gender, etc) to change drinking behavior (LeBrier, Hummer, Neighbors & Larimer, 2010).

On college campuses across America, the use of alcohol has been an topic in need of explanation for many years. The concept will be explaned with emphise on the negative effects of hooch. Alcohol in cardio-sport athletes is especially harmful. But at any rate the negative concepts apply to all student. Besides the fact that a large number of students are underage when they drink, alcohol can put students in dangerous situations and give them a headache long after the hangover is gone. The short and long term effects alcohol has can impair students physically and mentally, impacting their education and health.