NCJ Number
228421
Journal
Journal of Alcohol and Drug Education Volume: 53 Issue: 2 Dated: August 2009 Pages: 31-51
Date Published
August 2009
Length
21 pages
Annotation
This study examined the role of alcohol-related knowledge in a multicomponent intervention previously found to reduce alcohol consumption among first-year female college students.
Abstract
The study found that students who participated in the multicomponent intervention outperformed control students (those who did not participate in the intervention) on the measure of alcohol-related knowledge; however, level of knowledge about alcohol did not predict drinking outcomes for the intervention group, and it was positively correlated with drinking behaviors for control students. These findings suggest that although knowledge about alcohol and its effects was gained by participating in the intervention, it was not the factor in the intervention that reduced drinking behaviors. The Intervention, called "Heads Up," consists of information about drinking in the context of skills training, normative feedback, and motivational interviewing in a group setting. A total of 285 female college students from a mid-size private university in Southern California participated in the study. The study consisted of a preintervention online questionnaire, quasi-random assignment of participants into an intervention or control group, a group session (intervention or control) within the first few weeks of their first semester, and online follow-up assessments of drinking behaviors and alcohol knowledge approximately 6 months after the group session. 1 table, 42 references, and appended test used in assessing alcohol-related learning