<p>Don't know how accurate those numbers are as they depend upon the honesty and the selectivity of those who bother to answer the survey, but the campus police and health resources do back up the large numbers of alcohol abuse. Considering that only a portion of drinkers end up at the student clinic or caught by the campus police, it is a frightening thing. And it is not isolated to any type of school other than the religious ones who totally ban alcohol. However, I know parents whose kids have gotten in trouble at schools such as Grove City, Augustana, Elon where drinking is not well tolerated by the administration. Apparently there are active drinking scenes there too. I wish I knew the solution to all of this. The dangers of uncontrolled drinking are far reaching from hygiene, health, and damages. Too many of the stupid things that occur on campus, accidents that happen have their base in substance abuse.</p>
<p>Mini, what was the drinking scene when you were at Williams? I do know that when I was an undergrad, it was a problem. Binge drinking, unfortunate incidents due to drinking,drugs, it was all there. I was not an active part of thise scene, and yet was well aware of it.</p>
<p>
[quote]
I know parents whose kids have gotten in trouble at schools such as Grove City, Augustana, Elon where drinking is not well tolerated by the administration.
[/quote]
That's interesting. Drinking at Grove City is pretty much a "hanging offense," from what I've read. Meaning expulsion....not execution, of course.</p>
<p>
[quote]
However, I know parents whose kids have gotten in trouble at schools such as Grove City, Augustana, Elon where drinking is not well tolerated by the administration. Apparently there are active drinking scenes there too.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Earlham is a "dry" campus with strict enforcement. I saw a published binge drinking rate of 30% and they do send the occasional kid to the hospital for alcohol poisoning. So, just as a pure guess, my hunch would be that Elon is probably in the same range, perhaps a little lower as the South has less binge drinking than the Midwest and Northeast schools.</p>
<p>Weschler has surveyed schools that range from 0% binge drinking to 80%. The two lowest binge drinking types of schools in his surveys are women's colleges and commuter schools, both with binge drinking rates of around 31% on average in the '99 survey. Non-competitve and competitive schools have less binge drinking than very competitive and highly competitive schools -- most likely a reflection of socio-economic correlations.</p>
<br>
<blockquote> <p>perhaps a little lower as the South has less binge drinking than the Midwest and Northeast schools.<<</p> </blockquote>
<br>
<p>Now I'd like to see that data! Tell that to an acquaintance of mine whose son died of binge drinking at a frat party, peripherally attached to Auburn.
Come to think of it, I'm not sure I'd believe the data, because down here much of the drinking is off campus, sometimes even outside the frat system (not that they aren't drinking there,too). Depending on how the data is collected, some of the heaviest abuses might not be counted. Don't know how you could have anymore binge drinking than what occurs leading up to, during and after the Iron Bowl?!
Maybe it is a combination of the 12-14% Af-Am at Alabama, and a higher percentage who don't drink for moral conviction.</p>
<p>Can any current Eph CCers respond with their experiences with this (perhaps start this thread in the Williams forum)?</p>
<p>ladylazarus:
Here's a link to a slightly older thread that will give you many usernames of current Ephs, recent grads, paleo-grads, and current parents. It will also give you a pretty accurate sense of where everyone is coming from....</p>
<p>Cangel:</p>
<p>I know hard to believe that there could be more binge drinking than the southern frat boys, isn't it? </p>
<p>However, Wechsler's surveys have been consistent in this regard. In his summary report following the third survey (Journal of American College Health, Vol 48, March 2000, page 205), he gives the binge drinking rates broken down by geographic region:</p>
<p>1993:</p>
<p>50.1% Northeast
48.1% North Central
43.2% South
33.6% West</p>
<p>1997:</p>
<p>45.1% Northeast
48.0% North Central
40.7% South
33.4% West</p>
<p>1999:</p>
<p>47.9% Northeast
48.6% North Central
42.4% South
34.4% West</p>
<p>You can read any of Wechsler's Survey reports here:</p>
<p>Here is a more colorful monograph presentation detailing some of his key findings. This is a good place to start for a summary of Wechsler's findings.:</p>
<p>
[quote]
Don't know how accurate those numbers are as they depend upon the honesty and the selectivity of those who bother to answer the survey, but the campus police and health resources do back up the large numbers of alcohol abuse.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>The just-published Williams numbers come from a very large survey sample: over 1000 students, more than half the campus.</p>
<p>Wechsler's national survey is also a pretty large sample: about 15,000 -- although the individual school sample sizes may be a little small in some cases.</p>
<p>The tendency to binge drink with this generation might be exacerbated by the popular "pre-gaming" in someone's dorm room prior to most college functions (which are usually dry.) Drinking games like beer pong and also the heavy emphasis on "hooking up" - where you barely know the person your having sex with (hence, the need to be drunk)- mioght also exacerbate it.</p>
<p>For comparison, here's a link to a 1998 survey at Dartmouth, showing a binge drinking rate of 48%. The Dartmouth survey used the same definition as the Williams study (five drinks in a row at least once in the prior two weeks) for both men and women. This is a slightly higher threshold than the Wechsler studies which use that defintion for men, but only 4 drinks for women.</p>
<p>Interestingly, 47% of incoming first-year students were binge drinkers in high school, suggesting that it is worth considering that a school's admissions profile may correlate closely with campus alcohol consumption.</p>
<p>Thank you so much, ID, for that link to the Harvard monograph. I am printing it as "required" reading for my family!</p>
<p>Do you know how can I get the stats for the school my son will be attending? I am about to google it....</p>
<p>Interesting data from a 1997 Dartmouth student survey:</p>
<p>
[quote]
In the past year: </p>
<p>62% had played drinking games.</p>
<p>51% had vomited because of alcohol use in a private setting (such as a bathroom).</p>
<p>19% had vomited because of alcohol in a public setting.</p>
<p>11% had deliberately vomited so they could drink more.</p>
<p>20% had urinated in a public setting while under the influence of alcohol.</p>
<p>27% had a blackout while drinking.</p>
<p>Yet, only six percent thought they might have a drinking problem.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Questions were raised about binge drinking in the AfAm culture. It's not at all common. As a matter of fact, an invitation to a party at the home of an AfAm family or another venue is likely to signal alcohol-free event. I have come to learn to bring my own in the form of a hostess gift....and am usually one of two or three who will drink at an event. Even amongst young adult AfAms, drinking isn't popular. I'm really not sure why. </p>
<p>I've had conversations with professional AfAms who lament about taking business trips with their white counterparts and the drinking that goes on. There's a real difference.....at all income levels.</p>
<p>Momsdream:</p>
<p>I wonder if it relates to the strong historic role of Southern Baptist and similar evangelical churches in the Af-Am community?</p>
<p>I'm guessing here, but I would surmise that Southern Baptist and other evangelical whites probably have a lower alcohol consumption as well.</p>
<p>Even when religious conviction is not a heavy influence on an individual, the historic effect on the culture is still in play.</p>
<p>"I sympathize with Momrath's weariness in this regard. It has become tedious to address the same malarky over and over."</p>
<p>I should think if she didn't want the data, she shouldn't repeatedly ask for it. And I commend Williams for the courage to provide it, and, as always, my check will be in the mail.</p>
<p>This continued reference to the Wechsler study as if it is proof of dangerous drinking behavior on campus is nonsense. Could you use the data to indicate relative differences in drinking habits from one campus or one region to another? Perhaps, but to define 5 drinks in one sitting as deviant or dangerous behavior is a bit silly. When I was that age, I would quite often be involved with poker games at which to drink a 6-pack of beer over the course of the evening was not uncommon. As long as no driving was involved, it hardly came close to dangerous behavior. Everyone was still able to concentrate on the game. No one got sick - or even close to it. I doubt that anyone was even legally intoxicated given the amount of elapsed time involved. Yet, according to Wechsler we had "binged". Rubbish.</p>
<p>The problem is, they aren't drinking 6 drinks in the course of an evening. They are drinking them one after another, perhaps in the course of an hour or so. I do not think it is rubbish. If the following was quoted above, I apologize - I've read the whole thread but over the course of a few days didn't just review it to see what others may have posted:</p>
<p>"The Study defines binge drinkers as male students who had five or more and female students who had four or more drinks in a row at least once in a two-week period (the 5/4 measure). While five drinks may seem like a small quantity to some people, we have found it to be a marker for the presence of problems experienced by students who drink alcohol. For example, frequent binge drinkers, nearly one-quarter of all students, account for over three-fifths of all the students who report being injured, committing vandalism, and experiencing problems with the police. The 5/4 measure represents a danger signa warning of health, social, economic, and legal consequences ahead."</p>
<p>
[quote]
The problem is, they aren't drinking 6 drinks in the course of an evening. They are drinking them one after another, perhaps in the course of an hour or so.
[/quote]
the study doesn't say anything like that, which is part of my problem with it. It is a very poorly defined study. The two week period is also problematic....why two weeks? Which two weeks? All the respondents could be referring to having gone to a keg party homecoming weekend. What if they never do it again until next homecoming? This is what is called advocacy research: create a methodology that supports your premise, rather than one which tests it. When the NYT does it, it's called a "push" poll. They're fishing for "data" that supports a headline they've already written.</p>
<p>When college students report finding vomit in the dorm hallways, I'd say there is a drinking problem. I lived in an international dorm for foreign students in a country overseas, and even though beer and hard liquor were readily available to all of us, by that country's laws, I didn't see people getting @^*%-faced drunk, or see anyone throwing up from drinking too much. Different place, different people, different drinking culture. The college behavior at some colleges I read about right here on CC does not seem like responsible behavior, in many instances, and it's plausible to me that it is dangerous behavior.</p>