ALCOHOL CONSUMPTION HABITS AMONG YOUNG ADULTS: PERCEPTIONS OF PERSONAL ALCOHOL CONSUMPTION IN COMPARISON TO THE PEER GROUP’S

In the United States, binge drinking is considered a ‘normal' experience among teens and young adults; however, excessive alcohol consumption often results in severe or even fatal consequences. In order to combat this critical health problem among this impressionable population, prevention efforts have been implemented. The authors launched a survey that collected data from July 1st, 2015 to July 6th, 2015. Four hundred and seventeen individuals between the ages eighteen and twenty-four years, who self-reported engaging in binge drinking within thirty-days prior to participation in the survey, provided responses to a thirteen-question survey using the SurveyMonkey online platform. Those who self-reported not engaging in binge drinking within thirty days prior to the study were excluded from the study. The survey asked participants about their personal alcohol consumption habits in relation their peers' drinking patterns, if they have a friend or friends who engage in problematic drinking, and if they feel they themselves or their friend identified as having problematic drinking patterns may have or does have an Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD). Cross-tabulations, Pearson chi-squared tests, and logistic regression modeling were used to investigate the relationship between misperceptions of personal alcohol consumption in relation to the peer group and identifying having “that friend,” a friend with problematic drinking habits. The results showed that those who misperceive their alcohol consumption to be lower than the peer group more often identify as having “that friend” than those who misperceived their alcohol consumption to be higher than the peer group. The results from this study suggest that further efforts to reduce binge drinking among the young adult population may benefit from targeting peers to help their friends who may be struggling with an AUD.