NCJ Number
225672
Journal
Journal of Alcohol and Drug Education Volume: 52 Issue: 3 Dated: December 2008 Pages: 18-36
Date Published
December 2008
Length
19 pages
Annotation
The purpose of this study was to examine the perceived benefits and costs of alcohol rise among college students who perceived their drinking as normal or abnormal as well as those college students who did not meet the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV-TR) criteria for an alcohol disorder.
Abstract
Results revealed significantly higher perceived benefits of alcohol use among students reporting normal drinking behaviors and meeting the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV-TR) diagnostic criteria. A significant interaction revealed that students that met the DSM-IV-TR criteria but perceived their drinking as normal reported the highest perceived benefits of drinking. These findings supported prior research highlighting the link between perceived benefits of alcohol use and problematic drinking. Recent estimates reporting that 10 percent to 31percent of the approximately 8 million college students meet the DSM-IV-TR criteria for alcohol abuse as well as another 6 percent to 11 percent meeting DSM-IV-TR criteria for alcohol dependence create continued recognition of heavy collegiate alcohol use and the associated consequences as a significant problem on college campuses. This study tested three hypotheses by examining the attitudes of alcohol use among college students who viewed their drinking behaviors as normal or abnormal as well as those who met or did not meet the DSM-IV-TR diagnostic criteria for alcohol abuse/dependence. References, tables, and figure