Australian Drug and Alcohol Review 1986; 5:3-7

Student Drinking Patterns: Experience in an Australian Population

Jeffrey Wilks Department of Psychology, University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland.

Abstract: The drinking patterns of 232 undergraduate students at the University of Queensland were examined and comparisons made with other reports of alcohol consumption by tertiary youth. Several similarities in drinking patterns were revealed. Most students appear to oe light-moderate drinkers, with males consummg alcohol more frequently and in greater quantities than females. Sex differences were also noted in beverage preference. The need to standardize measures and increase comparability between studies is discussed.

Keywords: Student alcohol use; drinking patterns.

Introduction

By the time they leave high school most teenagers have at least tried an alcoholic drink. According to recent surveys, up to half of them will probably have established a regular pattern of alcohol use. ~3 Those who continue on to tertiary studies then find that alcohol is readily available and that drinking is very much a part of the students' social life. However, in contrast to many studies of college students in the United States, '7 comparatively little research has focussed on the drinking patterns of Australian tertiary youth.

Unlike high school students, who by virtue of their age are restricted in certain activities, university students are under few such con- straints. Legally, most are able to drive cars, vote in elections and drink on licenced premises. These young people are now taking on adult responsibi- lities and developing their own values. Their drinking behaviour, at this time, is of particular interest to researchers since it reflects a number of social influences. ~~°

It has also been suggested that the drinking behaviour and attitudes toward alcohol of stu- dents in the helping professions (e.g., psychology, medicine, law and the health sciences) are worthy of investigation as many of these young men and women may later come into professional contact with clients who have drinking problems." '~

Finally, the value of monitoring the drinking and drug use patterns of high school students has been well demonstrated in New South Wales over the past 10 years. ~' ,2. ~ No such monitoring has previously been undertaken for tertiary level

students. One task of the present study was to provide preliminary baseline data on drinking for a sample of undergraduates and to compare the findings with those available from a previous study of tertiary level students conducted in Brisbane during 1980." In that study the same research instrument was used, though with slight modifications. Comparisons over a four year period may therefore be suggestive of stability or change in student drinking patterns.

Method Sample Characteristics

The data reported here were collected as part of a larger study investigating social and cultural influences on the drinking behaviour of young Australians.~, ~,0

The subjects were 232 students (114 male, 118 female) enrolled in introductory psychology courses at the University of Queensland who volunteered to take part in the study and received course credit for participation. Female subjects were, on average 18.0 years of age (SD = 1.4, range 17-24) and males averaged 19.1 years (SD = 2.1, range 17-25). Most respondents (78%) had been living at home in the six months prior to the study and 57% were still living with parents. Only four students were married. Reli- gious affiliation was predominantly Catholic (34%), followed by Church of England (25%), Uniting Church (13%), and others (15%). A further 13% of the students reported no religious affiliation. A 5-point measure of church attend- ance (1 = weekly; 5 = never) revealed similar

mean ratings for males (3.7) and females (3.5; F = 2.4, n.s.).

Selected comparisons with the larger population of students at the University revealed that this sample contained a slightly higher proportion of students currently living at home with their parents (57% vs 49% of full-time internal stu- dents) but that the age ranges (17-24 for females, 17-25 for males) adequately represent a majority of the general student body (64% of females and 68% of males are in this range). Furthermore, introductory psychology courses attract students from a variety of other departments, some of which have the units as compulsory courses for their degrees (e.g., occupational therapy and social work). The figures for enrolment during 1985 (1,752 students) indicate that the introduc- tory psychology courses are well established. Comparisons with previous studies where respon- dents were drawn from the same subject pool ~ ' also suggest that the present sample is representa- tive of young undergraduates at the university.

Procedures The study was advertised on the departmental

noticeboard as an investigation concerned with family relations. Prior to signing up for the study, students were informed that both of their parents and a close friend of the same sex would be requested to complete a short, confidential ques- tionnaire. The rationale and development of this matched sampling design have been discussed in an earlier paper. ~ The only restriction to particip- ation in the present study was that the students be between 17 and 25 years of age.

Both group and individual testing sessions were conducted at the university with subjects complet- ing a variety of measures on family relations, decision making, drinking behaviour and percep- tions of both legal and illegal drug use in Australia. Alcohol consumption was measured using the Khavari Alcohol test (KAT)."

The KAT consists of 12 questions which ask respondents to report their usual frequency of

drinking, the usual amount consumed per occa- sion, the maximum amount consumed on any one occasion, and the frequency of this maximum intake. Four identical questions are asked for each of the three beverages: beer, wine and distilled spirits. Frequency of drinking is reported on an ordinal scale ranging from 0 to 11, where zero represents never having tried beer, wine or spirits, through to 11 indicating daily use. For additional calculations to determine annual consumption levels each frequency category is assigned a loading value ranging from 0 (never tried) through to 365 (daily consumption). The full list of loading values is given in Khavari and Farber' , p.1529.

To facilitate a direct comparison with the previous study by Engs", her measures of abso- lute alcohol content in a 285ml beer (10.4g), 90ml glass of wine (8.2g) and 30ml 'nip' of spirits (9.2g) were adopted. In calculating the daily average of absolute alcohol consumed by students the usual quantity of alcohol (in grams) is multiplied by the frequency loading value for each of the three beverages separately. The beverage totals are then summed and divided by 365 to give a daily estimate.

In this report only the usual drinking patterns reported by students are presented. Comparisons with the 1980 study are reliant solely on the published work and since maximum consumption or variations in drinking styles were not discuss- ed, only general findings can be compared.

Results Drinking Patterns

Most students in this study (89.7%) reported that they currently drank alcoholic beverages. The comparison of tertiary studies presented in Table 1 shows that this high proportion of current drinkers is not uncommon among young men and women.

In terms of drinking frequency however, more males than females drank on a monthly (82.5% vs 69.5%) and weekly basis (63.2% vs 36.4%). Sex

Table 1: Comparison of Tertiary Studies: Percentage of Respondents Reporting Current Alcohol Use

Current Users(%) Year Researcher Sample Size Student Population Males Females

1967 Sargend 5 2 3 4 5 Universities - - Sydney 87 88 1976 Sargend ~ 725 Universities - - Sydney 91 93 1977 Nell '~ 316 Teacher Education - - Sydney 88 79 1978 Adams '7 643 University - - Sydney 92 96 1980 Engs" 1449 Human Service- Brisbane 85 90 1984 Wilks 232 University - - Brisbane 93 86

differences were also apparent in beverage choice students (8.8%) drank beer this often (Table 2). with over half the male students (56.6%) drinking Instead, female students showed an overall prefer- beer on a weekly basis, whereas few female ence for drinking wine and spirits.

Table 2: Current Drinkers Consumption of Beer, Wine and Spirits: Percentage of Respondents by Sex

Males Females All Respondents

Frequency* Beer Wine Spirits Beer Wine Spirits Beer Wine Spirits

At least once a year 84.9 95.3 88.7 45.1 93.1 85.3 65.4 94.2 87.0 Once a month or more 77.4 62.3 77.4 30.4 63.7 66.7 54.3 63.0 72.1 Once a week or more 56.6 19.8 38.7 8.8 24.5 31.4 33.2 22.1 35.1 3 or 4 times a week 18.9 5.7 8.5 3.9 4.9 4.9 11.5 5.3 6.7 Daily 0.9 1.9 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.5 1.0 0.0

N 106 106 106 102 102 102 208 208 208

*At each level the percentages are inclusive of those beneath them in the same column.

Table 2 demonstrates the importance of obtain- ing detailed information about different bever- ages, and highlights how misleading figures may be obtained by combining the consumption fi- gures for men and women. This is particularly true for beer, since less than half of the female

students in this study drank beer, even as infre- quently as once a year.

In Table 3 a comparison of students' mean alcohol consumption per day and drinking classi- fications is made for the present sample and the previous study conducted during 1980.

Table 3: Students' Mean Alcohol Consumption (Grams per Day + SD) and Drinking Classifications in 1980 and 1984: Percentage of Respondents by Sex and Year of Study

Drinking Classification

Alcohol Moderate- Very Consumption* Light Moderate Heavy Heavy Heavy

N (G per Day) None (0-19g) (20-39g) (40-59g) (60-79g) (80+g)

Males 1980 803 20.3+-37.9 14.7 58.4 15.8 5.2 2.9 3.0 1984 114 20.7+-23.9 7.0 58.8 22.8 3.5 3.5 4.4 Females 1980 646 8.7+-11.2 9.7 79.2 8.5 1.9 0.3 0.4 1984 118 6.7+-10.5 13.6 79.7 5.1 0.8 0.8 0.0 First Year 1980 715 13.6-+36.1 13.8 69.1 11.3 3.6 0.7 1.4 1984 232 13.8-+19.8 10.3 69.4 13.8 2.2 2.2 2.2

*Means in both studies were calculated from the number who drank per day, and not the total in each group.

The comparison reveals some striking similar- ities. Firstly, male students were almost identical in their average daily consumption of alcohol, though in 1980 more variance was reported. While there were more male abstainers in the 1980 study and more moderate male drinkers in the 1984 sample, the proportions of light drinkers were very similar.

The comparison of female drinking patterns again revealed similar proportions of light drink- ers in both samples. The 1980 study contained fewer abstainers and more moderate drinking

female students which would account for the slightly higher daily consumption rate. Overall, male students drank more frequently and consum- ed significantly greater amounts of alcohol than did females in 1980 (t = 7.5, 817 df, p < .001) and 1984 (t = 5.5, 206 df, p < .001).

Finally, to reduce any confounding effects of age, Table 3 shows the comparison for students who were in their first year of study. This includes all subjects in the 1984 sample but a reduced number (N = 715) of 1980 respondents.

Again the proportions in the various drinking classifications were very similar, as were the figures for daily consumption, though students in the 1980 sample still showed more variance in their average daily intake.

Discussion In several distinct areas the results of this study

emphasize the value of monitoring the drinking patterns of young adults undertaking tertiary studies. Firstly, as the comparison with earlier investigations revealed, most of these young men and women currently use alcoholic beverages. Males tend to drink more frequently and consume larger quantities of alcohol than females; a pattern previously noted among undergraduates at the University of New South Wales." Sex differences were also observed in beverage preferences, with female students showing a preference for drinking wine and spirits. Other studies have reported s imi lar p r e f e r enc e s for female t e r t i a ry students ''''S''~ and women working in the home. '~

Comparisons such as these allow an overall picture of alcohol use by young adults to be developed. Fur the rmore , by establishing standardized methodologies and formats for re- porting, researchers will have less difficulty in determining how similar or different their samples are from those in other studies. This point was highlighted in Table 3, which showed that most tertiary level students are probably light to moderate drinkers. Very low mean levels of consumption among undergraduates ~9 are there- fore as atypical as very high levels.

Secondly, as a screening measure, continuous monitoring may help to identify those students who are at risk for alcohol-related problems because of their drinking. In the present study, nearly 8% of the young men were classified as heavy or very heavy drinkers (60+ grams per day). As Reynolds and her colleagues have noted, very few heavy drinkers consider themselves to have a drinking problem. 2° A task for future research therefore, would be to examine the situational contexts in which drinking occurs and to identify those socio-cultural supports which promote heavy alcohol consumption.

To this end, students in the 1984 sample were required to keep Drinking Diaries for a two week period. Preliminary analyses show that drinking is primarily a social event which involves friends and occurs in a variety of settings. Considerable experimentation with alcohol is also undertaken.

As these young people are currently studying to become the future professionals and policy- makers of this country, their drinking and drug- taking behaviours in the formative years are an

important area of investigation. The use of com- parrative studies, with standardized methodolo- gies, is suggested as an effective means by which long-term monitoring and evaluation might be undertaken.

Acknowledgements Thanks are extended to Diane Hawke for

preparation of this manuscript.

Correspondence and requests for reprints to: Jeffrey Wilks, Department of Psychology, Univers- ity of Queensland, St. Lucia, Queensland 4067.

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