31, Durkin, Wolfe, & Lewis, Binge Drinking on College Campus

Binge Drinking: Involves the consumption of large quantities of alcohol in a single drinking episode.
Specific Definitions:
- Men: Consuming at least five alcoholic drinks in a single sitting.
- Women: Consuming at least four alcoholic drinks in a single sitting.

Binge drinking is common on college campuses, with about 44 percent of students reporting engagement in binge drinking during the previous two weeks (Wechsler et al., 1994; 2002b).

Identified demographics include:
  - Gender: Men are more likely to binge drink than women.
  - Race: White students binge drink more than non-white students.
  - Extracurricular Affiliations: Student athletes, fraternity brothers, and sorority sisters are more prone to binge drinking (Wechsler et al., 1994; 1995; NIAAA, 2002).
  - Note: These demographics are correlates, not causative factors; they do not explain the underlying motivations.

Social Bond Theory: Developed by Travis Hirschi, this theory suggests that motivation for deviant behavior exists in everyone, but the chance of engaging in deviance depends on the strength of the bond between the individual and society. A weak bond leads to deviance, while a strong bond discourages deviance (Hirschi, 1969).
Applications: Social bond theory has been applied to various deviant behaviors, including alcohol use, juvenile delinquency, marijuana use, and cheating.

Attachment to Others: Refers to ties with significant others, such as family and friends.
Commitment to Conformity: The determination to succeed as a student, worker, or religious individual.
Involvement in Conventional Activities: Participation in schoolwork, chores, volunteering, and other acceptable activities.
Belief in Morality, Rules, and Laws: Acceptance of a conventional value system, including respect for authority.

The theory posits that a strong attachment, commitment, involvement, and belief prevent excessive drinking, while lack of any of these encourages binge drinking.
The current study aims to validate this theory in relation to binge drinking behavior.

Participants: 361 freshmen at a private university in Ohio were surveyed in September 2003.
Follow-up: A second questionnaire was administered in April 2004 to assess changes in binge drinking behavior.
- Response Rate: The total response rate was 48.6 percent, with 158 completed questionnaires.

Binge drinking was assessed via the following questions:
- For male students: Number of times consuming five or more drinks in a row.
- For female students: Number of times consuming four or more drinks in a row.
Definition of a Drink:
- Twelve-ounce beer or wine cooler, a shot of liquor, or a six- to eight-ounce glass of wine.

Attachment Indicators: Statements assessing respect for parents, communication about future plans, living situation.
Commitment Indicators: Religious attendance frequency, importance of prayer, academic performance measures (GPA).
Involvement Indicators: Hours spent working, studying, and participating in extracurricular activities.
Belief Indicators: Opinions on moral standards and respect for authority.

Binge Drinking Prevalence: 32% of students engaged in binge drinking.
Social Bond Correlations: Binge drinkers had weaker social bonds especially in terms of commitment and belief components.
  - Statistically Significant Findings:
    - Students attending religious services less than once a month had 38.1% binge drinking prevalence versus 24.6% for others.
    - High School GPA of B or lower led to 50% of students binge drinking compared to 28% with higher GPAs.
    - Low acceptance of moral beliefs: 40.7% binge drinking versus 22.2% high acceptance.
    - Low respect for authority: 46.8% binge drinking compared to 24.7% high respect.

Increased Binge Drinking Prevalence: 36.1% of students binge drinking at the end of the year, a slight increase.
Significant Differences: Only two commitment indicators showed significance at p < .01:
- Church attendance less than once a month: 48.6% binge drinkers vs. 25.0% others.
- Low religious commitment: 47.8% binge drinkers vs. 27.0% others.

Mixed Support for Social Bond Theory:
- Commitment and belief components negatively correlated with binge drinking; stronger commitment to conformity and moral beliefs resulted in lower binge drinking rates.
- Attachment and involvement components appeared less effective for explaining binge drinking as opposed to juvenile delinquency, indicating varying importance across developmental stages.

Hirschi, Travis. 1969. Causes of Delinquency. Berkeley: University of California Press.
Leonard, Kimberly K., and Scott H. Decker. 1994. "The Theory of Social Control: Does It Apply to The Very Young?" Journal of Criminal Justice 22: 89–105.
NIAAA (National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism). 2002. High-Risk Drinking in College: What We Know and What We Need to Learn. Washington, D.C.: Author.
Wechsler, Henry, et al. 1994. "Health and Behavioral Consequences of Binge Drinking in College: A National Survey of Students at 140 Campuses." Journal of the American Medical Association 272: 1672–1677.
Wechsler, Henry, et al. 1995. "A Gender Specific Measure of Binge Drinking among College Students." American Journal of Public Health 85:982–985.
Wechsler, Henry, et al. 2002a. "Second-Hand Effects of Student Alcohol Use Reported by Neighbors of Colleges: The Role of Alcohol Outlets." Social Science and Medicine 55:425–435.
Wechsler, Henry, et al. 2002b. "Trends in College Binge Drinking During a Period of Increased Prevention Efforts." Journal of American College Health 50:203–217.

What are the four elements of social bond theory?
Did the study in the article support social bond theory? Why or why not?
Do you believe that binge drinking "represents a very serious threat" to college students? Defend your answer.