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Although previous surveys have indicated high rates of illicit and prescription drug misuse among college students, few have assessed negative consequences, personal concerns, or interest in interventions for drug use. In a survey of 262 college students who self-reported lifetime use of an illicit drug, 69% reported at least one negative consequence over the course of their lifetime and 63% in the past year. Many also reported being moderately concerned (28%) about their drug or medication misuse and moderately interested in some form of intervention (76%). The frequency of marijuana use and medication misuse in the past month was related to increased negative consequences and personal concerns even when controlling for the frequency of past month alcohol use. There were relatively few differences as a function of gender or year in college. (Contains 3 tables.)

Alcohol use and sexual assault on college campuses are highly prevalent and the focus of numerous prevention and intervention efforts. Our goals were to gain a greater understanding of the relationship between coercive sexual experiences, utilization of protective behavioral strategies and alcohol expectancies and consumption among male and female college students. We surveyed 370 college students regarding their past year experiences and found that 34% of women and 31% of men reported unwanted sexual contact, 6% of women and 13% of men reported engaging in sexually coercive behavior, and 4% of women and 9% of men reported experiencing both unwanted contact and engaging in sexually coercive behavior. Findings indicated students who experienced unwanted sexual contact reported significant differences in alcohol expectancies. More specifically, those who engaged in sexually coercive behaviors had significantly higher sex-related alcohol expectancies. In addition, recipients of unwanted contact reported higher alcohol consumption, used fewer protective strategies when drinking, and experienced more negative consequences due to their alcohol use. Results suggest that campus alcohol and sexual assault prevention efforts should include information on alcohol expectancies and use of protective strategies. (Contains 2 tables and 1 note.)

The authors used social marketing to design and test advertisement components aimed at increasing students' interest in attending an alcohol program focused on reaching students who drink heavily, although the authors offered no such program. Participants were undergraduate students in introductory psychology courses (N = 551). Questionnaires included measures assessing demographic information, alcohol use and negative consequences, and interest in attending an alcohol program in response to exposure to 1 of 12 systematically varied advertisements. The authors found that approximately 20% of participants across all ad types indicated some level of interest in attending the alcohol program. Students who use alcohol reported more interest in attending when an informational message was used. Of the participants offered food, 41.9% indicated the food offered in the advertisement impacted their interest in attending. Results suggest market segmentation plays a role in developing effective advertisements to recruit different groups of students based on their reported drinking behavior. (Contains 3 figures.)

To link to full-text access for this article, visit this link: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.addbeh.2010.08.009 Byline: Rebekka S. Palmer, Jason R. Kilmer, Samuel A. Ball, Mary E. Larimer Keywords: Alcohol; College students; Mandated students; Defensiveness Abstract: The efficacy of the Alcohol Skills Training Program (ASTP; Miller, et al., 2000) was evaluated in 204 heavy-drinking college students randomly assigned to either ASTP (n =119) or an assessment-only control (n =85) condition. The volunteer ASTP sample (n =119) was also compared to a sample of students mandated to ASTP following a first-time sanction (n =90). At baseline, mandated students reported lower levels of peak drinking, negative consequences, readiness to change and higher defensiveness than voluntary students. However, the voluntary sample showed reductions in problem drinking indicators over time such that there were no differences from mandated students at follow-up. There were no outcome differences between volunteers assigned to ASTP versus assessment-only. A new measure of defensiveness was evaluated and had a significant moderating effect on ASTP outcome for peak drinking consumed on a peak occasion at follow-up among mandated students.

Objective: This study investigates the relationship between marijuana use, perceived norms of use by friends and students in general, and negative experiences or problems from alcohol and drug use. It was hypothesized that students would overestimate the marijuana use of students in general and that perceptions about the prevalence of marijuana use would be related to drug-related consequences. Method: In this study, 5,990 participants provided information on the perceptions and consequences of drug use via an online survey or via a paper-based survey. Results: Although two thirds of participants reported no marijuana use, 98% of respondents incorrectly predicted that students in general use marijuana at least once per year. Perceptions of use by friends and students in general accounted for variance in drug use and related problems or experiences. Conclusions: Given the relationship between norm misperception and behavior with marijuana use, future research could explore the impact of targeting misperceived norms through prevention and intervention efforts., MARIJUANA IS THE MOST COMMONLY USED illicit drug among college students, with approximately 25%-30% of undergraduates using in the past year and 16% using in the past month (Bell et [...]

Objective: This research explored the relationship between typical alcohol consumption and interest in participating in a brief alcohol intervention study and between typical consumption and actual participation in the study among students recruited to participate in an intervention study. We predicted a curvilinear relationship as a potential explanation for mixed findings from previous examinations of risk status and participation in alcohol intervention research. That is. we expected an inverted U-shaped relationship, with those at the lowest and highest ends of the drinking spectrum expressing the least interest in participation. We expected the same pattern to hold for likelihood of actual participation among study invitees. Method: Self-reported typical consumption and interest in participating in an alcohol intervention study were assessed among 1,115 (59.7% female) college students. A subsample of these students (n = 377) who expressed interest and reported at least one heavy-drinking episode in the previous month were subsequently invited to participate in a brief intervention study. Results: Drinkers were more likely than nondrinkers to report interest in participating, and there was a positive relationship between likelihood of expressing interest and typical consumption. However, the predicted quadratic relationship was evident with those at the lowest and highest ends of the drinking spectrum expressing the least interest in participation. The same pattern was also evident for actual participation among the heavy-drinking subsample invited to participate in the alcohol intervention study. Conclusions: A nonlinear relationship may account for mixed findings regarding the relationship between risk status and participation in alcohol intervention studies. Results are interpreted in terms of psychological relevance and defensiveness. Findings highlight the need for added effort in recruiting, and/or alternative recruitment strategies for, those at highest risk., ALCOHOL USE AND ABUSE by college students is a major health issue on university campuses. Students on many campuses are invited to participate in alcohol intervention research that may help [...]

Alcohol use and sexual assault on college campuses are highly prevalent and the focus of numerous prevention and intervention efforts. Our goals were to gain a greater understanding of the relationship between coercive sexual experiences, utilization of protective behavioral strategies and alcohol expectancies and consumption among male and female college students. We surveyed 370 college students regarding their past year experiences and found that 34% of women and 31% of men reported unwanted sexual contact, 6% of women and 13% of men reported engaging in sexually coercive behavior, and 4% of women and 9% of men reported experiencing both unwanted contact and engaging in sexually coercive behavior. Findings indicated students who experienced unwanted sexual contact reported significant differences in alcohol expectancies. More specifically, those who engaged in sexually coercive behaviors had significantly higher sex-related alcohol expectancies. In addition, recipients of unwanted contact reported higher alcohol consumption, used fewer protective strategies when drinking, and experienced more negative consequences due to their alcohol use. Results suggest that campus alcohol and sexual assault prevention efforts should include information on alcohol expectancies and use of protective strategies.

Objective: The current study tested the efficacy of a brief intervention designed to reduce drinking and drinking-related consequences among first-year fraternity members. Method: Twelve fraternities were randomly assigned to receive either a motivational enhancement intervention with individual and housewide feedback components (n = 6 houses) or a treatment-as-usual control condition (n = 6 houses). Individual feedback was delivered either by peer interviewers or professional research staff. Participants were assessed during their pledge (first) year of house membership and during a follow-up period 1 year later. Results: Of the participants who completed follow-up (N = 120), fraternity members who received the brief intervention reported significant reductions in alcohol use (total average consumption) and typical peak blood alcohol concentrations when compared with fraternity members in the control condition. No differences in drinking-related consequences were observed. Fraternity members who received their individualized feedback from peer interviewers and professional members of the research staff reported similar outcomes. Conclusions: Results provide support for the efficacy of a brief motivational enhancement intervention in reducing drinking within this high-risk population. The cost-effective use of peer interviewers appears to be a promising strategy for delivering individualized prevention programming in college populations. (J. Stud. Alcohol 62: 370-380, 2001), EXCESSIVE USE OF ALCOHOL represents a significant threat to public health in the United States. Approximately 100,000 deaths and nearly $150 billion in economic costs are attributable to problem alcohol [...]

Relapse prevention (RP) is an important component of alcoholism treatment. The RP model proposed by Marlatt and Gordon suggests that both immediate determinants (e.g., high-risk situations, coping skills, outcome expectancies, [...]