University students may be drinking less than they have in the past, according to preliminary results from the 2002 U.Va. Health Behaviors Survey.
"The numbers that have come out are preliminary numbers only," said Jennifer Bauerle, social norms marketing coordinator for Student Health. "We are in the process of working with the Center for Survey Research [at U.Va.] to weigh the data."
While another study, the Health Promotions Survey, focuses on positive drinking behaviors, the Health Behaviors Survey looks at the overall experience of University student substance abuse, including illegal drugs and tobacco.
"Last year we looked at the Health Promotions Survey and the Health Behaviors Survey that were sent out at the same time, and the numbers [for drinking] were pretty consistent," said Susan Bruce, director of the Center for Alcohol and Substance Education.
The Health Behaviors Survey, run by the Department of Psychiatric Medicine, is a confidential mail survey sent to approximately 2,000 randomly chosen University undergraduate students each year.
Preliminary 2002 results indicate that the average University student drinks 3.6 alcoholic beverages per week. First-year students reported drinking 3.4 drinks per week in 2002, a significant decrease from 6.9 drinks per week in 2000.
Fraternity men dropped from 21.7 drinks per week in 2000 to 6.8 per week in 2002. Numbers also dropped for first-year men from 9.8 per week in 2000 to 3.8 in 2002.
The results are partly attributable to social norms marketing that began on Grounds in fall 2000.
"What happens oftentimes is that students will increase their drinking to what they think the norm is when in fact the norm is much lower," Bauerle said. "What social norms marketing aims to do is hold a mirror to the truth as to what people's actual norms are."
University social norms marketing targeted first years through "The Stall Seat Journal." The publication, sponsored by Student Health and posted on dormitory bathroom doors, publicized social norms messages that student perception of drinking at the University overestimates actual student drinking levels.
The Stall Seat Journal bases its social norms messages on the annual University Health Promotions Survey.
"The important part is that you be specific with the school you're at," Bauerle said. "We survey students here, on Grounds."
Although past Health Behaviors Surveys indicate a plummet in first-year drinking, it also indicates that "high-risk drinking" still remains a problem.
The Health Behaviors Survey defines high-risk drinking as four drinks for women or five drinks for men in one sitting or on one occasion.
In the two weeks before the 2001 survey, 56.5 percent of respondents reported engaging in high-risk drinking.
Further, 91.8 percent of fraternity members and 81.2 percent of sorority members participated in high-risk drinking in the two weeks before the survey.
Bruce and Bauerle said they hope upcoming programs targeting upperclassmen may help change such numbers.
Bruce suggested other factors may contribute to the first-year drinking decrease as well, including funding received by Party Patrol and grants to the University Police to increase forces on weekends and nights.
Bruce hopes to continue to expand use of a $257,000 Department of Education grant received last July to increase social norms marketing and alcohol education in the Greek community.
"Our feeling is that we're encouraging student ownership as much as possible," Bruce said. "We have paid money to get students to be trained as [Training for Intervention Procedures] trainers to go back and educate their chapters."
Bauerle said social norms marketing soon will expand to target the entire undergraduate population. A group of Commerce school students also are working with Student Health to develop a social norms marketing campaign.
"We took it to seven focus groups," Bauerle said. "Based on that, we're working with a graphic designer to test it one more time before it comes out."
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