The relationship between social-contextual factors and alcohol and polydrug use among college freshmen.
This article summarizes results from a survey on social-contextual risk factors and drinking and polydrug use among 317 undergraduate college students. Retrospective alcohol use was a primary predictor for prospective heavy alcohol use and drinking game participation was a primary predictor for prospective alcohol occurrences, while social-contextual factors were primary predictors for prospective drug use. Primary and secondary predictors differed for prospective alcohol severity, alcohol frequency and drug use, suggesting that there are specific risk factors associated with each type of drinking and drug-using pattern. There were also significant differences in monthly over-the-counter medication, prescription medication and drug use among students who participated in drinking games, collegiate sports, and Greek organizations. These results suggest that students who have experimented with alcohol and drug use prior to entering college may be more likely to engage in social and recreational activities where alcohol and drugs are available; therefore college prevention programs should focus on increasing alternative activities to deter alcohol and drug use.
Social Science Division, Widener University, Chester, Pennsylvania 19013-5792, USA. lns0250@mail.widener.edu
Lori
L
Simons
Stephanie
S
Klichine
Valerie
V
Lantz
Laura
L
Ascolese
Stephanie
S
Deihl
Brian
B
Schatz
Latoya
L
Wright
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology*; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D012919:Social Behavior; D013334:Students / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014495:Universities