When Campus Security Did Enforce Drinking Restrictions, Heavy Drinking Decreased
BOSTON, Mass.--(COLLEGIATE PRESSWIRE)--Oct 1, 2003--Rates of heavy drinking among 11 Massachusetts public colleges and universities varied widely, as did the enforcement of a uniform alcohol policy put in place following the alcohol-related deaths of two college students, according to a study published in the October issue, Journal of Studies on Alcohol.
The study also found that ``stricter enforcement by campus security officers of policies that limit underage drinking was associated with lower rates of heavy drinking by students.`` The study surveyed students and administrators after a statewide policy restricting drinking on campuses was announced in 1997.
Despite the policy`s disciplinary code, including the ``three strikes and you`re out`` provision, the most frequently reported student experience with enforcement was being asked to be less noisy or disruptive while drinking. Less than one in 20 students reported having been asked to show their ID at fraternity or sorority parties. Only about one quarter reported having their personal items or rooms searched for alcohol.
The study by John Knight, M.D. and colleagues at the Center for Adolescent Substance Abuse Research at the Children’s Hospital of Boston and Harvard University, found that ``only a minority of students saw a reduction in drinking or were aware of changes in the alcohol policy for their campus during the first year.`` More than 1,200 students were surveyed in 1999 and 21 deans of students and campus security chiefs were surveyed in 1998 as a part of the study. The Substance Abuse Policy Research Program (SAPRP) of The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) funded the Knight study.
``This study provides a snap shot of what happened one year after the Massachusetts Board of Higher Education (MBHE) voted to place new restrictions on drinking at all state colleges and university campuses. We don`t know how the policy is enforced today, but it does not appear to have been enforced uniformly the first year after it was put in place. Parents who are visiting colleges and universities with their teenage children should ask about the school`s policy on underage drinking, and how the policy is currently enforced,`` Knight said.
The MBHE policy included restricting alcohol to specific, supervised locations; requiring advance registration of all social events involving alcohol; restricting legal possession of alcohol to separate residence halls for students 21 and older; new sanctions on students violators, up to and including expulsion (three strikes and out); and parental notification of all alcohol policy violations by underage students.
The student survey measured rates of any drinking, heavy drinking or frequent heavy drinking. Students were also asked how strongly the alcohol policy was enforced. Across the entire sample, less than one fourth of students reported that the alcohol policy was ``strongly enforced,`` 41 percent said that it was ``enforced,`` and about 20 percent said that it was ``weakly enforced`` or ``not at all enforced.``
The study specifically found that the activities of campus security officers to limit alcohol possession and use on campus are related to student drinking. Campus security officers are likely to interact directly with student drinking while enforcing alcohol policies, and their reports of stricter alcohol policy enforcement were associated with lower levels of heavy drinking. Campus security chiefs were asked about rules that limited possession and use of alcohol on campus, stopping and searching students entering the campus, searching students entering residences or common areas, and checking student IDs at campus events. Chiefs were also asked about the regularity of procedures used to limit drinking at student gatherings in dorm rooms, dorm parties, fraternity/sorority parties, on-campus dances and concerts, intercollegiate and intramural sports, pre- and post-game parties, and homecoming celebrations.
The rates of heavy drinking among schools in this study varied from 40 percent to 70 percent, while rates of frequent heavy drinking varied from 15 percent to almost 39 percent. The proportions of students who believed that the new alcohol policy was enforced or strongly enforced varied from 35 percent to 90 percent.
While most deans of students reported that they supported the new MBHE policy, nine out of the eleven deans surveyed reported that their school still allowed alcohol in at least some residence halls. Eight deans reported having dorms or floors that were designated as alcohol-free. None of the deans reported student expulsions, despite the ``three strikes and you`re out`` rule.
Other findings of the study included:
* Students who reported strong policy enforcement included a heavy proportion of heavy drinkers. Those who drank the most felt that the policy was also enforced the most;
* Percentage of students residing in on-campus housing was strongly and positively associated with drinking, heavy drinking and frequent heavy drinking for all students and underage students; and
* Less than one percent of students reported being referred to treatment, despite a six percent prevalence rate of alcohol dependence among students nationwide.
SAPRP (www.saprp.org) is a $54 million dollar research program that funds policy research related to alcohol, tobacco and drugs.
Based in Princeton, N.J., RWJF (www.rwjf.org) is the nation`s largest philanthropy devoted exclusively to health and health care. It concentrates its grantmaking in four goal areas: to assure that all Americans have access to quality health care at reasonable cost; to improve the quality of care and support for people with chronic health conditions; to promote healthy communities and lifestyles; and to reduce the personal, social and economic harm caused by substance abuse - tobacco, alcohol and illicit drugs. To this end, the Foundation supports scientifically valid, peer-reviewed research on the prevention and treatment of illegal and underage substance use, and the effects of substance abuse on the public`s health and well-being.
|
