Public Health College Alcohol Study

The purpose of this study is to find the relationship between a college student’s alcohol use and their academic performances. The effects of alcohol on academic performance is important to study because it will allow society and researchers to gauge how to achieve maximum academic performance in both college and in other areas of life. This information will help society change or adjust their lifestyle so that they are able to make the most out of their college experiences while maintaining high academic achievements. The Harvard School of Public Health College Alcohol Study (CAS) has defined heavy drinking as five or more drinks in a two hour period for men and four or more drinks in this period for women (Singleton, 2007). This definition …show more content…
However, in this study factors that related to social backgrounds of a student were controlled in order to find the true relationship between consumption and academic performance. 745 students at a liberal arts college were formally interviewed during one semester between a period of the Fall 2003 and Spring 2005. Students were questioned about their thoughts on themselves as light, moderate, or heavy drinkers. The frequency of consumption as well as how much they consumed when they did drink were recorded in accordance to the CAS standard measure of heavy drinking. How often the students attended off campus parties, whether they drank or abstained from drinking was also asked in the interview. Singleton then gathered information related to the academic performance of the students including their semester GPA during the semester each student was interviewed as well as their cumulative GPAs from official records. Previous academics were also gathered by a student’s SAT scores and high school rank. An analysis of demographics from gender, race, athletic status, and parental backgrounds were then conducted in order to control each student’s social background. Results showed gender, partying frequency, and parental income all had positive relationships with alcohol consumption. Both alcohol …show more content…
Even while controlling a student’s background social and parental status, the relationship between the two still exist. With the use of the previous research studies, the relationship between alcohol consumption and its effects on academic performance will be further studied. It will be predicted that heavy alcohol consumption by college students will result in a negative impact on their academic