Characteristics of Alcohol Consumption among Male St. Scholastica Students: Differences in Drinking Quantities Heavier and Lighter then the Mean

 Terrence R. Warness
Center for Addiction Studies
University of Minnesota Duluth

Faculty Research Supervisor:
J. Clark Laundergan, Ph.D.

Research Funding:
The Miller-Dwan Foundation

February 2006

Executive Summary

This report examines characteristics of alcohol consumption among 72 male students at the College of St. Scholastica who took part in the National College Health Assessment (NCHA) survey in the spring of 2005. The purpose is to describe characteristics of alcohol consumption and consumers among St. Scholastica’s male population.

Males were broken into three categories based on their responses to survey question number thirteen (13) “The last time you partied/socialized, how many alcoholic drinks did you have?” The mean number of drinks for alcohol-using males on their last partying occasion was 8.27. Categories of males were then identified as “below the mean” drinkers (N=28), consisting of males who consumed less than 8 drinks on their last partying occasion, and as “at or above the mean drinkers” (N=21), consisting of males who consumed 8 or more drinks on their last partying occasion. A third category was identified as “nondrinkers” (N=23), consisting of males who responded that they consumed zero alcoholic drinks on their last partying occasion. While the sample size for the present report may seem quite small, it must be noted that only 27% of St. Scholastica’s total student population is male, which is reflected in the small number of males that were sampled. It should also be noted that the male students’ mean of 8 drinks on their last partying occasion is double the mean of four (4) drinks that St. Scholastica females reported, giving added importance to the findings of this report, as it appears that the males at St. Scholastica tend to be far heavier drinkers than the females.

The three categories’ answers to numerous other survey items were then compared to discover and describe health and lifestyle differences between the three categories.

Substantial findings resulting from this analysis are that:

• At or above the mean drinkers practice “safe drinking measures” less than their below the mean drinking counterparts, as illustrated by Table One:

TABLE ONE

“Never” Used “safe drinking measures” by Drinking Categories

Safe Drinking Measure % Below Mean % At/Above Mean

*Note: Reported percentages are within each drinking category, as shown in each column.

• At or above the mean drinkers experience more negative consequences as a result of their drinking than do below the mean drinkers, as shown in Table Two:

TABLE TWO

Negative Consequences Resulting From Consumption by Drinking Categories

Consequence % Below Mean % At/Above Mean

• At or above the mean drinkers are the most involved in risk taking activities such as drug use and sexual intercourse, as Table Three:

TABLE THREE

“Never” Engaged in “risk taking behaviors” by Drinking Categories

Risk taking behavior % Nondrinkers % Below Mean % At/Above Mean

• Sexually active at or above the mean drinkers tend to use contraception in sexual activity more than the other two categories, especially when condoms are considered, and sexually active nondrinkers tend to use contraception the least. For example, 45% of sexually active at or above the mean drinkers reported using a condom during their last occasion of vaginal intercourse, while 25.9% of sexually active below the mean drinkers and only 13% of sexually active nondrinkers reported the same.
• At or above the mean drinkers experienced a number of physical ailments or illnesses within the past school year, such as mononucleosis and strep throat, more than any of the other categories. At or above the mean drinkers also reported higher levels of a number of sexually transmitted infections. All three groups reported high levels of back pain. This can be seen in Table Four:

TABLE FOUR

Experienced Physical Ailments or Illnesses by Drinking Categories

Ailment/Illness % Nondrinkers % Below Mean % At/Above Mean

• At or above the mean drinkers reported experiencing feelings of depression in the past school year the most, while nondrinkers reported experiencing feelings of depression in the past school year the least. This can be seen in Table Five:

TABLE FIVE

“Never” Experienced Feelings of Depression by Drinking Categories

Feeling % Nondrinkers % Below Mean % At/Above Mean

• At or above the mean drinkers experienced the most negative academic consequences resulting from impediments in their lives. To exemplify this, about 24% of at or above the mean drinkers reported receiving a lower grade in a class due to their alcohol use, while only 7% of below the mean drinkers (and none of the nondrinkers) reported the same.
• At or above the mean drinkers have the highest percentage of students averaging “C” level grades in school, with 19% of them reporting this. Only 3.7% of below the mean drinkers (and none of the nondrinkers) reported averaging “C” level grades in school. Conversely, 60.9% of the nondrinkers reported averaging “A” level grades in school, while 29.8% of below the mean drinkers and 47.6% of at or above the mean drinkers reported the same.

Differences in quantities of alcohol consumption are clearly related to the health and lifestyles of males at the College of St. Scholastica. The heaviest drinkers are the least likely to use “safe drinking measures” while drinking, and they experience the most negative consequences in both their personal and academic lives from drinking. They are the most involved in risk taking activities such as drug use and sexual intercourse, but also tend to use contraception during sexual activity the most. At or above the mean drinkers experience a number of physical and mental ailments or illnesses more than the other drinking categories, and they also are the category that is most negatively affected academically by their drinking. Trends such as these highlight the importance of efforts aimed at reducing harmful consequences related to heavy drinking. Understanding these trends is just the first of many steps in an effort to alleviate them.