Alcohol use and abuse among college women: A one-year follow-up study

Abstract

<p>Is drinking among college women a relatively harmless phase, or does it point to longer-term problems? A sample of women (N = 149) from a large Midwestern university were surveyed about their alcohol use one year after they first completed an alcohol questionnaire. Approximately half of the sample (N = 70) were identified as alcohol abusers at Time 1, and the other half of the sample (N = 79) served as a control group. The two groups were compared on the average number of drinking occasions, average amount of alcohol consumed, number of binge drinking occasions in the last two weeks, and number of negative consequences related to their drinking. The groups differed significantly on all of these variables, with the abuse group drinking more, more often, and bingeing more than the control group. The abuse group also incurred a higher number of negative consequences related to their drinking (i.e., overdosing on alcohol, feeling more depressed or anxious after drinking, being raped, having unprotected sex, missing class, and legal trouble) relative to the control group. There was also evidence to suggest that women in the abuse group relied on alcohol more for social lubrication and/or self-medication purposes than the control group did.</p>