Wrye, B. E., & Pruitt, C. L. (2017).

Perceptions of Binge Drinking as Problematic among

College Students. Journal Of Alcohol And Drug Education, 61(1), 71-90.

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45508863faff%40sessionmgr104&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#AN=E
J1142377&db=eric

Research Report Notes (x2):

As you read and analyze research reports for your literature review,
you should note important information about each study. The notes should include the
following
for an empirical article:

Problem being addressed

 Perceptions of binge drinking among college students
Purpose of the study
 To better understand binge drinking behavior
 Focuses on moral disengagement and modeling
Research questions and/or hypotheses
 N/A
Methods and/or Procedures
 Qualitative and quantitative data collected
 Survey included demographic info and binge drinking questions
 National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (Task Force on
Recommended Alcohol Questions, 2003) approved questions
 Students categorized as binge or non-binge drinkers (males who
consumed 5 or more drinks per occasion, females who consumed 4 or
more)
Description of subjects
 Students surveyed were enrolled in the freshman level Health and
Wellness class
 Offered extra credit to participate in the study
 62.08% female subject sample
 Most students were Caucasian but 20.38% identified as African American
 Public University in suburban Middle Tennessee

Results
 Some students cited social norms as a reason that it was not a problem
 Large Greek Life population did not perceive it as a problem
 Some students found it to be a problem
 All students believe the “typical college student” drinks more than they do.
Perceive the average college student to drink 5.9 drinks per session
 Number of drinks consumed and frequency of binge drinking exceeded the
standard used to measure in the experiment for multiple students
  Peer pressure also played a large role in engaging in binge drinking
 Believe binge drinking impacts health, academics, decision making abilities,
Conclusions
 Students understand the role of peer pressure and social norms
 Binge drinking is an accepted and expected behavior
 Students may alter behavior and beliefs to match their friends
 Almost everyone believes that everyone else drinks more than they do
 Compare themselves to others to justify their behavior in binge drinking
 Seen as an expectation for college, might as well participate.
 Used mix of qualitative and quantitative data to investigate attitudes and behavior
more thoroughly
Strengths of the study
 Data gathered anonymously
 Use of quantitative and qualitative data
 Looked at reasoning behind the answers
 Utilized social perceptions and framed behavior through learning theory
Limitations of the study
 Online survey did not allow for researchers to clarify or ask more in-depth
questions to their respondents
 Focus groups or interviews could have provided better results
 Wider variety of students from all across the country to increase generalizability
 Enrollment in the health and wellness course could have impacted their answers
 Participants exaggerated their responses
 Data analyzed through Social Learning Theory; more research should be
conducted to provide further evidence
 Wording and term uses within the document could have been clearer (need to
operationally define more elements)

How this helps you with your research question:

Our research question focuses on the effects of alcohol education on incoming college
students. This study analyzes behaviors and expectations that have been previously
conceived surrounding binge drinking. This could help us to analyze why alcohol
education is not effective, or help us postulate what could be changed to make it more
effective. Stigmas, social perceptions, and psychological frameworks (such as
unclaimed responsibility and justifying behavior) can help us to better understand why
and how drinking behavior/culture continues and what may need to change in order to
effectively educate young adults.