Drinking in College

               Going to college? Chances are, you’re going to take some classes, meet new people, and drink, a lot. Statistics show that 83% of college students drink. Also, 41% of college students engage in binge drinking. Binge drinking is generally defined as consuming five or more drinks in one sitting. Some research even suggests that many college students drink far more than five drinks in one sitting.

               That’s quite a bit of drinking. But is where people initially take up this behavior? The research says no. College-aged people, 18-24 years old, may account for more heavy drinking than any other age group, but drinking goes back even further. By their senior year in high school 72% of students have consumed alcohol, 55% have been drunk, and 26% are binge drinking. Yes, high school students are drinking, but college students are consuming far more.

               What is it about college that is causing people to drink more than they ever have, or ever will? One way to look at this is through the eyes of a functionalist. A functionalist would be looking for how drinking is functional for students in college. Drinking is functional for college students because it is almost always associated with social events. These social events allow people to make new friends. College students who are drinking can also be functional in other ways. Students that drink at bars or clubs are functional for those places because they provide a consistent flow of revenue. Students may also be able to relieve the large amounts of stress that comes with college by drinking and socializing.

               Drinking can also be very dysfunctional for college students. Studies suggest that college students engaged in drinking are at higher risks for grades problems, fights, and death.

               I’m not saying that drinking in college is good or bad. Drinking has its functions and dysfunctions for those who participate. It’s up to you to look at each side and form an opinion of your own that’s based on research.

Bibliography:

Melissa Goslawski, Mariann R. Piano, Jing-Tan Bian, Emily Church, Mary Szczurek, Shane A. Phillips, Binge Drinking Impairs Vascular Function in Young Adults, Journal of the American College of Cardiology, Available online 23 April 2013, ISSN 0735-1097, 10.1016/j.jacc.2013.03.049.

(http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0735109713015866)

Keywords: Alcohol; endothelium; vasculature

National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. n.d. “Research Findings on College Drinking and the Minimum Legal Drinking Age.” Retrieved (http://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/CollegeDrinkingMLDA.pdf).