Alcohol

Issues Available Online

O'MALLEY, P.M. AND JOHNSTON, L.D. Unsafe Driving by High School Seniors: National Trends from 1976 to 2001 in Tickets and Accidents after Use of Alcohol, Marijuana and Other Illegal Drugs

Objective: This study reports trends from 1976 to 2001 in the number of tickets or warnings that high school seniors receive, the number of vehicle accidents in which they are drivers and the number of these events that occur after use of alcohol, marijuana or other illegal drugs. Method: The data come from the Monitoring the Future study, in which nationally representative samples of high school seniors have been surveyed annually since 1976. Results: Results demonstrate that the problem of unsafe or inappropriate driving among American youth is of considerable magnitude, although there has been a downward trend when adjusted for number of miles driven. The frequency of tickets received and vehicle accidents that occurred after use of alcohol has diminished markedly compared to the incidence of tickets and accidents after use of marijuana over the interval from 1976 to 2001. Conclusions: Despite the decline in the number of vehicle accidents occurring and tickets received after drinking or using illicit drugs, aggressive policies are still needed to deter youths from engaging in such risky behaviors. (J. Stud. Alcohol 64: 305-312, 2003)

TAPERT, S.F., MCCARTHY, D.M., AARONS, G.A., SCHWEINSBURG, A.D. AND BROWN, S.A. Influence of Language Abilities and Alcohol Expectancies on the Persistence of Heavy Drinking in Youth

Objective: It has been suggested that neuropsychological functioning and cognitive factors influence substance use and treatment outcomes in youth. This study examined a model in which language skills moderate the extent to which expectancies about the positive effects of alcohol predict the persistence of alcohol involvement in youth over an 8-year period. Method: Participants were substance use disordered adolescents recruited from inpatient alcohol and drug treatment centers (N = 139). Exclusion criteria included major head trauma, neurological illness and psychiatric disorders. Participants were administered neuropsychological tests, expectancy questionnaires and substance involvement interviews that spanned an 8-year period from ages 16 to 24 on average. Substance involvement was assessed by self-report, collateral reports and urine toxicology screens. Results: Using latent class growth analysis of alcohol use over 8 years, participants were classified as abstainers, infrequent users, worse with time or frequent users. Language ? Expectancy interactions were significant at all time points (p range .05 to .0001, effect size ?2 range 0.03 to 0.20). This interaction significantly predicted 8-year alcohol dependence symptoms over and above effects accounted for by covariates or main effects (F = 2.98, 5/100 df, p < .05; R2? = 4%, ? = 0.21, p < .05). Conclusions: For youths with above average language skills, positive alcohol expectancies predicted alcohol use frequency and dependence symptoms in the 8 years following treatment; expectancies were less related to outcomes for youths with poorer language scores. Results suggest that verbal skills may magnify the relationship between alcohol expectancies and drinking behavior. (J. Stud. Alcohol 64: 313-321, 2003)

THOMBS, D.J., OLDS, R.S. AND SNYDER, B.M. Field Assessment of BAC Data to Study Late-Night College Drinking

Objective: This field study of late-night college drinking sought to (1) test the ability of the 5+/4+ measure to screen for higher levels of intoxication and (2) examine the relation between estimated and actual blood alcohol concentration (BAC). Method: During a 15-week spring semester, college students returning to their residence halls between 10:00 PM and 3:00 AM on Wednesday through Saturday nights were anonymously interviewed to collect BAC and self-report data (n = 1,020). Results: Although 70.9% had not been drinking on Wednesday nights, a majority of the intercepted students had been drinking on the other three nights. Mean BACs on these three nights were in a moderate range (48 to 51 mg/dl), but the 5+/4+ measure classified many students as heavy episodic drinkers at relatively low BACs. For example, 66.3% of those meeting the 5+/4+ criterion for the night had BACs < 100 mg/dl. Students with BACs ranging from 70 to 90 mg/dl exhibited the greatest accuracy in estimating their BAC; those with lower BACs tended to overestimate their level of intoxication; whereas those with higher BACs tended to underestimate it. Conclusions: Field assessment of student intoxication is an important tool for examining research questions in college drinking. The 5+/4+ measure classifies many college students as heavy episodic drinkers, even though their intoxication level is below conventional thresholds used to define drunkenness. In addition, there is a discernible pattern of BAC estimation in the field that corresponds to intoxication level. (J. Stud. Alcohol 64: 322-330, 2003)

BORSARI, B. AND CAREY, K.B. Descriptive and Injunctive Norms in College Drinking: A Meta-Analytic Integration

Objective: Many college students overestimate both the drinking behaviors (descriptive norms) and the approval of drinking (injunctive norms) of their peers. As a result, consistent self-other discrepancies (SODs) have been observed, in which self-perceptions of drinking behaviors and approval of drinking usually are lower than comparable judgments of others. These SODs form the foundation of the currently popular Òsocial norms approachÓ to alcohol abuse prevention, which conveys to students the actual campus norms regarding drinking behaviors and approval of alcohol use. However, little attention has been paid to the factors that can influence the magnitude of SODs. This research was conducted to address these issues. Method: This meta-analytic integration of 23 studies evaluated the influence of five predictors of SODs: norm type (injunctive or descriptive), gender, reference group, question specificity and campus size. These studies rendered 102 separate tests of SODs in descriptive and injunctive forms, representing the responses of 53,825 participants. Results: All five predictors were significantly related to self-other differences in the perception of norms. Greater SODs were evident for injunctive norms, estimates by women, distal reference groups and nonspecific questions, as well as on smaller campuses. Conclusions: More systematic attention should be given to how norms are assessed. In particular, SODs can be maximized or minimized, depending on the specificity of the behaviors/attitudes evaluated and the reference groups chosen for comparison. (J. Stud. Alcohol 64: 331-341, 2003)

BARNETT, N.P., MONTI, P.M., SPIRITO, A., COLBY, S.M., ROHSENOW, D.J., RUFFOLO, L. AND WOOLARD, R. Alcohol Use and Related Harm among Older Adolescents Treated in an Emergency Department: The Importance of Alcohol Status and College Status

Objective: Patients treated in an urban emergency department were studied to determine if college status, gender and having alcohol as a reason for medical treatment were related to alcohol use and related problem behaviors. Method: Patients ages 18-19 years (N = 250; 55% men) who had or had not been drinking alcohol prior to the event that precipitated their medical treatment were assessed on their alcohol use, alcohol-related problems and drug use. Results: There were high levels of alcohol use, tobacco use and other drug use in the sample, regardless of the reason for medical treatment. Analyses consistently showed that patients treated for alcohol-related reasons had more severe drinking patterns and problems than patients who were alcohol negative. Patients not enrolled in college showed similar patterns of alcohol consumption as their college-attending peers, but had more severe alcohol-related behaviors and problems. Few gender differences were found and no interactions were found between gender, alcohol -status and college status. Conclusions: Findings indicate that older -adolescents who receive medical treatment for alcohol use are not inexperienced drinkers. Furthermore, in this convenience sample, college students did not appear to be at greater risk for substance use or problems. Findings underscore the potential usefulness of alcohol intervention programs for alcohol-involved medical patients, and the need to attend to the alcohol and drug use of nonstudent populations. (J. Stud. Alcohol 64: 342-349, 2003)