Study: UT students drink most on big football game days...
Posted: Fri Nov 23, 2007 3:07 pmWhat would it say about our students and alumni???
AUSTIN – University of Texas students tend to drink more to celebrate big football games than on traditional party days such as New Year's Eve or the last day of classes, according to a new study.
The study monitored 541 randomly selected students who entered as freshmen in 2004. The students were surveyed about their alcohol use before entering UT and then daily via the Web during the 2004 and 2005 football seasons.
"It's important for us to know what are the particularly high-risk events for college drinking," said Kim Fromme, a UT psychologist and co-author of the study with Dan J. Neal of Kent State University.
"Hook 'em Horns and Heavy Drinking: Alcohol Use and Collegiate Sports" appears in the November issue of Addictive Behaviors. It's thought to be the first study of drinking patterns across a full sports season and the first to look for links between sports-related drinking and risky behavior.
While the study found that drinking was heaviest during high-profile games, it noted that games occurring during breaks – such as Friday's contest between UT and Texas A&M University – may be exceptions because many students are home with their families.
One snapshot cited in the study was Oct. 8, 2005, when the Longhorns played the University of Oklahoma at the Red River Rivalry in Dallas. Students had an average of 3.5 drinks, with the majority consuming between 0 and 8.3 drinks – higher consumption than New Year's Eve, Halloween and the weekend before finals.
The study found that socially active women drank more when the Longhorns played out of town. The drinking occurred at watch parties and sports bars.
"For women, college game days represent more of a social occasion," Fromme said. "The biggest problem is what other kinds of behavioral risks they engage in when drinking. That includes driving afterwards or going home with a new sexual partner."
Drinking among male students spiked for all Longhorn games, be they home or away. The study said that could be because men are more likely than women to attend tailgate parties.
"Clearly, students have the means and the opportunity to consume alcohol regardless of whether the game is held on campus and they chose to attend, or whether the game is away and they watch on television," the study said.
Chuck Roper, alcohol and drug education coordinator for UT, said the school deals with more alcohol-related incidents after big football games.
"I don't think this (study) is going to raise any eyebrows around UT," he said.
But he said he was concerned about the idea that female students were putting themselves at risk after drinking at away-game watch parties.
"That part sure does give me pause," he said.
Intervention at sports bars and Greek events could help, the study suggests, but Fromme said changes in drinking will have to be social and cultural.
"Only when it is less acceptable to be drunk during college football games will we see changes," she said. "I don't think we can legally control this behavior."
AUSTIN – University of Texas students tend to drink more to celebrate big football games than on traditional party days such as New Year's Eve or the last day of classes, according to a new study.
The study monitored 541 randomly selected students who entered as freshmen in 2004. The students were surveyed about their alcohol use before entering UT and then daily via the Web during the 2004 and 2005 football seasons.
"It's important for us to know what are the particularly high-risk events for college drinking," said Kim Fromme, a UT psychologist and co-author of the study with Dan J. Neal of Kent State University.
"Hook 'em Horns and Heavy Drinking: Alcohol Use and Collegiate Sports" appears in the November issue of Addictive Behaviors. It's thought to be the first study of drinking patterns across a full sports season and the first to look for links between sports-related drinking and risky behavior.
While the study found that drinking was heaviest during high-profile games, it noted that games occurring during breaks – such as Friday's contest between UT and Texas A&M University – may be exceptions because many students are home with their families.
One snapshot cited in the study was Oct. 8, 2005, when the Longhorns played the University of Oklahoma at the Red River Rivalry in Dallas. Students had an average of 3.5 drinks, with the majority consuming between 0 and 8.3 drinks – higher consumption than New Year's Eve, Halloween and the weekend before finals.
The study found that socially active women drank more when the Longhorns played out of town. The drinking occurred at watch parties and sports bars.
"For women, college game days represent more of a social occasion," Fromme said. "The biggest problem is what other kinds of behavioral risks they engage in when drinking. That includes driving afterwards or going home with a new sexual partner."
Drinking among male students spiked for all Longhorn games, be they home or away. The study said that could be because men are more likely than women to attend tailgate parties.
"Clearly, students have the means and the opportunity to consume alcohol regardless of whether the game is held on campus and they chose to attend, or whether the game is away and they watch on television," the study said.
Chuck Roper, alcohol and drug education coordinator for UT, said the school deals with more alcohol-related incidents after big football games.
"I don't think this (study) is going to raise any eyebrows around UT," he said.
But he said he was concerned about the idea that female students were putting themselves at risk after drinking at away-game watch parties.
"That part sure does give me pause," he said.
Intervention at sports bars and Greek events could help, the study suggests, but Fromme said changes in drinking will have to be social and cultural.
"Only when it is less acceptable to be drunk during college football games will we see changes," she said. "I don't think we can legally control this behavior."
