How To Reduce High-Risk College Drinking: Use Proven Strategies, Fill Research Gaps
What Is New About High-risk College Drinking?
“Most colleges visited saw alcohol abuse as a serious problem on the campus in terms of
student drunkenness and the social, physical, and property damage or injury that resulted.
Approximately 15% of the schools visited had already become involved in alcohol education or abuse
prevention activities but the vast majority were looking for ideas and guidance.…Antisocial
behavior, which if committed by a sober person would never be tolerated, is readily accepted if
the person is drunk. Probably the greatest impediment to action on many campuses is that
drunkenness is looked upon as normal.”
The Whole College Catalog About Drinking, 1976
College student drunkenness is far from new, and neither are college and university efforts to
control it. What is new, however, is the potential to make real progress on this age-old problem,
based on scientific research results. New, research-based information about the consequences of
high-risk college drinking and how to reduce it can empower colleges and universities,
communities, and other interested organizations to take effective action. Although significant
information gaps remain, the availability of solid, science-based guidance means we no longer have
to reinvent the wheel each time we address the problem—or inadvertently perpetuate programs and
approaches that do not make any difference.
