James Reyes
Professor Goeller
Research in Disciplines: College!
February 26, 2013
Research Proposal
Working Title: College Kids “Getting Wasted”
Topic:
I will be exploring why such a high percentage of college students are involved in binge drinking. I will focus on more of a social/cultural link toward reasons why college students drink so frequently. Many studies have shown that kids who drink in college are generally happier than kids that don’t, but is this a good thing or a bad thing and how does the universities policy towards alcohol affect binge drinking?
Research Question:
Why do such a high percentage of college students partake in binge drinking when there are many obvious negative side effects and how does the leniency of universities almost encourage binge drinking especially in underage students?
Theoretical Frame:
I am trying to understand why so many college kids binge drink every weekend when there are so many negative effects of it. Not only is it illegal for half of college students but also it is in most cases detrimental to academics as well as finances. Binge drinking tends to be a particularly expensive activity to partake in so often especially when many college kids don’t have jobs or steady sources of income. Academically, binge drinking can have a very negative side effect by causing students to range from not handing in assignments on time to even failing out of classes. Even though binge drinking can be so detrimental to students, I believe the reason that they do it is to fit in socially or culturally. Students who drink together are reported to be happier and are able to more easily make friends and connections. The students that don’t drink are seen as outcasts and are usually reported to be less happy than students who do drink. The tendency for universities to turn a blind eye when it comes to drinking and how easy it is to obtain alcohol make it a tempting activity for most college students.
Research and Plan:
One case study that I am going to look at is Measuring college students' motives behind prepartying drinking: Development and validation of the prepartying motivations inventory, which looks at the motives behind preparty drinking which can also help to get a good idea of why college students drink in the first place. The study surveyed thousands of students from two different universities and obtained the criteria for motives by asking open-ended questions. The four main categories of motives for drinking were determined to be social, coping, conformity and enhancement. This study on motives for preparty drinking can help to understand the motives for binge drinking.
Some other questions that are relevant to my topic are: Why do universities tend to turn a blind eye when it comes to binge drinking on campus and does it actually benefit the university in any way? How does binge drinking affect the financial situation of college students? Does binge drinking have other negative effects such as facilitating criminal behavior? How can the worst effects of binge drinking be prevented on college campuses?
Bibliography:
Chao, Tiffany, Dr. "Binge Drinking College Students Report Being Happier." ABC News. ABC News
Network, 20 Aug. 2012. Web. 26 Feb. 2013.
LaBrie, Joseph W., Justin F. Hummer, Eric R. Pedersen, Andrew Lac, and Taona Chithambo. "Measuring College Students' Motives behind Prepartying Drinking: Development and Validation of the Prepartying Motivations Inventory." ScienceDirect.com. Elsivier, 1 Aug. 2012. Web. 26 Feb. 2013.
Marczinski, Cecile A., Estee C. Grant, and Vincent J. Grant. Binge Drinking in Adolescents and College Students. Hauppauge, NY: Nova Science, 2009. Print.
Vander, Ven Thomas. Getting Wasted: Why College Students Drink Too Much and Party so Hard. New York: New York UP, 2011. Print.
Wechsler, Henry, and Bernice Wuethrich. Dying to Drink: Confronting Binge Drinking on College Campuses. [Emmaus, Pa.]: Rodale, 2002. Print.
Woodyard, Catherine D., Jeffrey S. Hallam, and John P. Bently. "Drinking Norms: Predictors of Misperceptions among College Students." ResearchGate. American Journal of Health Behavior, 11 Jan. 2013. Web. 26 Feb. 2013.
I wonder if drinking is a way of aiding socializing by conforming to expected norms and -- maybe most importantly -- lessening social inhibitions. I saw a student documentary made at Writers House years ago that featured a soccer player with a clear drinking problem who clearly drank too much to reduce his social inhibitions, especially before dates or before going to parties where he would meet women. That video is not available online, unfortunately, but I mention it because it confirmed for me that drinking to excess is a "social lubricant."
ReplyDeleteWhat studies show that students that binge drink are generally happier? I have never heard this before. I have heard the opposite, actually, that people who binge drink normally do it because of some internal problems going on in their lives. Maybe they would be happier due to being careless? Being worry-free typically leads to a lack of stress and more happiness.
ReplyDeleteInteresting topic. Binge drinking among college students has definitely been an increasing problem. I think it's all due to the idea that the college years are the only years in a person's life to go wild and party hard. You can't really do that when you are in your 30's settling down with a spouse and children. I feel like it's an understanding when going into college as a freshman, so students go to the extremes, even if it means pushing toward the possibility of getting their stomachs pumped.
You also raise an interesting point about the efforts of colleges to fix this problem. So many students are of age and have the right to drink. Many also have high tolerances, so their ability to take on more alcohol is strong. It's tricky to know when to tell an individual to stop, which is a situation I think colleges try to avoid. It starts contradicting the freedoms of the student as a citizen.