In an ongoing study of adolescents, University Psychology Prof. Joseph Allen has found correlations between popularity and alcohol use. He and a colleague from the University of North Carolina are continuing to research to determine whether this trend continues from students’ high school years into their college experiences.
For the past 10 years, Allen has been researching a sample of 185 students from local schools in an attempt “to understand how adolescent experiences in social experiences shape their development over time.”
Allen found that adolescents at age 13, if well liked by peers, were well adjusted socially but more likely to get involved with alcohol and drugs than less popular students.
These popular students are described in two categories by Psychology Prof. Mitch Prinstein of the University of North Carolina. The first group of students includes those who are well-liked by students and adults. The second group includes those who were probably considered popular during high school, such as the prom king and queen. The second group of students are often not liked by their peers, however, and they are also the students who, Prinstein said, “are particularly at risk for alcohol use” at a younger age because they are more often placed in social situations where alcohol is more prevalent. Though research concerning how popularity in high school affects college life is still in progress, Prinstein explained that college is “often a much more academically homogenous group of peers than in high school” and therefore it is hard to determine whether high school popularity will shape a student’s college life. Allen, however, is continuing to follow the same set of students as they enter college, to see how their high school statuses affect their college experience.
Allen has completed research on students up to age 19 in reference to popularity and likeliness of alcohol use. Allen found that “through age 19 [popular] students are still likely to drink at higher rates than less popular peers.” Prinstein has also begun research at the college level at UNC: The freshman class completed a questionnaire in which students were asked about their alcohol habits and will be asked to complete the survey again in a few months. He expects the survey to show how college may change students’ drinking habits as a result of their new social life.
Allen maintained the importance of this research lies in the fact that while most studies on adolescents are focused on students’ economic statuses, Allen’s research focuses on students’ social statuses, providing another perspective on what factors impact adolescent behavior.
“Popular kids are well-socialized, but part of being well socialized as an adolescent includes such things as drinking,” Allen said.
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