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College Students' Use of Fraudulent Identification to Obtain Alcohol: An Exploratory Analysis

NCJ Number
167131
Journal
Journal of Alcohol and Drug Education Volume: 41 Issue: 2 Dated: (Winter 1996) Pages: 92-104
Author(s)
K F Durkin; T W Wolfe; D W Phillips III
Date Published
1996
Length
13 pages
Annotation
College student use of fraudulent identification to obtain alcohol was surveyed using 272 subjects enrolled in undergraduate sociology courses at a large university.
Abstract
The self-administered survey contained items designed to assess respondent personal experience with using fraudulent identification to obtain alcohol and questions designed to measure two major components of social learning theory, differential associations and definitions about fraudulent identification use. Nearly half the respondents said they had used fraudulent identification to obtain alcohol. Students who belonged to a fraternity or a sorority were much more likely than other students to report they had used such identification. Black students were much less likely than other students to indicate they had engaged in this behavior. The two components of social learning theory, differential associations and definitions, were strongly associated with using fraudulent identification to obtain alcohol. Frequency of drinking was also strongly related to this behavior. Recommendations to ameliorate the fraudulent identification problem are offered that focus on law enforcement, the establishment of policies and procedures to make it more difficult for underage students to obtain alcohol, prevention and education programs, and peer group influence. 39 references and 3 tables