Relationship Between College Bing Drinking and Violence

¶ … College Binge Drinking and Violence

According to the National Institute of Alcoholism and Alcohol Abuse, binge drinking is a pattern of drinking alcohol that brings blood alcohol concentration to 0.08 gram percent or above, and typically corresponds to consuming 5 or more drinks for males or 4 or more drinks for females within about a 2-hour period (College pp).

According to a 1999 Harvard University School of Public Health College Alcohol Study, of the 44% of U.S. college students who admitted to binge drinking during the two weeks before the survey, the majority were white, age 23 or younger, residents of a fraternity or sorority (Fact pp). More than 70,000 college students are victims of alcohol-related sexual assault or date rape, while two-thirds report reckless behavior such as unprotected sex, unplanned sex, or driving while drunk (Binge pp). Alcohol poisoning is a severe and potentially fatal physical reaction to an alcohol overdose, and is the most serious consequence of binge drinking (Binge1 pp).

The Harvard study also revealed that frequent binge drinkers consume some two-thirds of all the alcohol college students drink, and account for three-fifths of the most serious alcohol related problems on campuses, such as vandalism, becoming injured, trouble with campus police, and driving while drunk, and according to another study of college students, alcohol was involved in 74% of sexual assaults (Heckman pp).

The consequences of binge drinking by college students is not limited to the drinkers themselves, for according to students who attended schools with high rates of heavy drinking experienced a greater number of secondhand effects, such as disruption of sleep or studies, property damage, and verbal, physical, or sexual violence, and moreover, residents of neighborhoods near colleges report higher rates of noise disruptions, property damage, and police visits than neighborhood surrounding schools with lower drinking rates and people who did not live near a college (Lee pp). Other consequences of binge drinking include live and neurological problems, alcohol related suicides, the risk of sexually transmitted disease, crimes of violence, antisocial behavior, low academic performance, and related social dysfunctions (Dietrich pp). According to a recent study by the Core Institute, students who engage in binge drinking were over 3 times more likely to be victims of physical violence than were non-binge drinkers, and binge drinkers were more than twice as likely to have experienced forced sexual touching than non-binge drinkers and nearly 3 times more likely to have experienced unwanted sexual intercourse (Hensley pp). A 1996 survey showed that 20% of Americans aged 18-30 reported binge drinking, and according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, more than 2,000 youth died in alcohol related car accidents in 1996 (AMA pp)

Several alcohol-related campus fatalities have occurred in recent years, including a University of Michigan student who celebrated his 21st birthday by downing 20 shots in 10 minutes (Alcohol pp). Studies have reported that in the United States, alcohol has been involved in 98% of college rapes, 95% of violent crime on campus, two-thirds of college student suicides, increased incidences of traffic fatalities, unplanned sexual activity, physical and sexual assault, unintentional injuries, physical and cognitive impairment, and poor academic performance (Burton pp). According to some therapists, college men who are unsuccessful with women are more likely to indulge in binge drinking, they shift their focus to bonding with the guys (Profnet pp). Binge drinking is arguably the most important health issue among college students and is associated with several behavioral and health problems for both the binge drinker and those around them (Rodriguez pp). Alcohol is the major contributing factor behind most crimes of violence such as sexual assaults, aggravated batteries and fights, and is prevalent in lesser crimes such as panhandling, criminal damage to property and disorderly conduct (Hall pp).

Efforts to prevent binge drinking in colleges are advanced through a variety of programs that range from unique single-school projects to cross-college initiatives and some surveys of programming (Seibring pp). For example, at Northern Arizona, freshmen are shown a series of vignettes that address, among other issues, college drinking, and at Washington State University, a six-week series of lectures for freshman are aimed not at telling students not to drink, but warning them of state laws and the consequences of violating them (Dhaliwal pp). Many studies have found that heavy drinking starts before college, thus programs preventing excessive alcohol use must begin in high school or earlier (Venable pp). On average, institutions that emphasized prevention approaches decreased most in binge drinking (Elfessi pp). Efforts to prevent and treat adolescent problem drinking could have an impact on the progression of alcohol-related disease (Rivara pp). In 2004, the Department of Alcohol and Drug Programs announced that 13 California counties will share $10.2 million over three years to reduce binge drinking in their communities (California pp).

Work Cited

"Alcohol 101: Colleges, communities can reduce binge drinking." Knight Ridder/Tribune

News Service. September 02, 2001. Retrieved October 22, 2005 from HighBeam Research Library Web site.

"AMA: National Initiative to Reduce Binge Drinking Brings Positive Change to College Campuses And Communities." PR Newswire. August 24, 1999.

Retrieved October 22, 2005 from HighBeam Research Library Web site.

Binge Drinking Epidemic. http://ncadi.samhsa.gov/govpubs/prevalert/v5/2.aspx

Binge1 Drinking in Adolescents and College Students.

http://www.health.org/govpubs/rpo995/

Burton, Scot. "An experimental assessment of the effects of two alcoholic beverage health warnings across countries and binge-drinking status." Journal of Consumer Affairs. December 22, 2002. Retrieved October 22, 2005 from HighBeam Research Library Web site.

"California Announces Federal Funding to Target Binge Drinking." Business Wire.

September 18, 2004. Retrieved October 22, 2005 from HighBeam Research Library Web site.

College Alcohol Study. http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/cas/

Dhaliwal, Jess. "Colleges band together to fight binge drinking."

University Wire. September 10, 1999. Retrieved October 22, 2005 from HighBeam Research Library Web site.

Dietrich, Uta C. "College students' binge drinking at a beach-front destination during spring break." Journal of American College Health. May 01, 1998.

Retrieved October 22, 2005 from HighBeam Research Library Web site.

Elfessi, Abdulaziz M. "Prevention efforts underlying decreases in binge drinking at institutions of higher education." Journal of American College Health. March 01, 2002. Retrieved October 22, 2005 from HighBeam Research Library Web site