Perceived drinking norms among black college students: The race of reference group members

Abstract Social norms have been consistently shown to influence alcohol use among college students. Much of the research in this area is focused on mostly White samples. This study sought to expand our understanding of social norms theory by examining perceptions of normative alcohol use among Black...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Addictive behaviors 2013-10, Vol.38 (10), p.2586-2588
Main Authors: Martin, Jessica L, Groth, Gabrielle, Buckner, Lindsay, Gale, Michael M, Kramer, Melanie E
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
African American
African Americans - ethnology
African Americans - psychology
Alcohol Drinking - ethnology
Alcohol Drinking - psychology
Alcohol use
Alcoholic Beverages - statistics & numerical data
Analysis of Variance
Black
Black people
College student drinking
College students
Female
Humans
Male
Norms
Peer Group
Perceptions
Psychiatry
Regression Analysis
Risk Factors
Social Identification
Social norms
Social Perception
Students - psychology
United States - epidemiology
Young Adult
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Summary:Abstract Social norms have been consistently shown to influence alcohol use among college students. Much of the research in this area is focused on mostly White samples. This study sought to expand our understanding of social norms theory by examining perceptions of normative alcohol use among Black students and determining the impact of the race of reference group members on personal alcohol use. Participants ( N = 130; 73.8% female) completed an online questionnaire. Results of repeated measures of analysis of variance indicated that participants perceived all referent groups (i.e., White, same race, typical student) as drinking significantly more than they did. Results of hierarchical regression analysis indicated that perceptions of typical student drinking significantly predicted personal alcohol use. Implications for practice and research are discussed.
ISSN:0306-4603
1873-6327
DOI:10.1016/j.addbeh.2013.06.003