College Students Who Returned Home Due to Pandemic Drinking Less

Due to the Pandemic College Students are Actually Drinking Less, not More!

Addiction treatment specialists and researchers are concerned that the global COVID-19 pandemic and related lockdowns will lead to a surge in alcoholism and drug addiction. Early indications suggest that such concerns may not be unfounded, but at least one population cohort appears to be reducing the risk of alcohol use disorder (AUD). A recent study found that there’s been a significant decline in drinking by U.S. College students who went home because of the pandemic.

Based on the study’s findings, researchers with the Rutgers University Center of Alcohol & Substance Use Studies concluded that:“[r]eturning to live with parents during emerging adulthood may be protective for heavy drinking.

The study—“Changes in Alcohol Consumption Among College Students Due to COVID-19: Effects of Campus Closure and Residential Change”—compared students who “lived with peers pre-closure and moved home to live with parents post-closure with those who remained living with peers or remained living with parents in terms of changes in frequency and quantity of drinking.”

Study participants who moved from living with peers to living with parents reported that total number of drinks per week dropped from 13.9 to 8.5 and that the number of days they drank decreased from 3.1 to 2.7. Those who remained with their peers reported that the weekly number of drinks stayed about the same—from 10.6 to 11, but the number of drinking days climbed from 3 to 3.7. Students who had been living with parents prior to closure reported that weekly numbers climbed from 6.7 to 9.4, while number of drinking days rose from 2 to 3.3.

Numerous studies have concluded that increases in substance abuse are common during young adults’ transition out of high school.

While studies have linked the “college experience” with increases in heavy drinking, other studies have also shown that increases in heavy episodic drinking and the frequency of drinking climbed in both those who go off to college and those who move away from home for other reasons. In short, these studies suggest that the living situation plays more of a role in increased drinking and high risk drinking behavior than the college experience itself. Meanwhile, at least two other studies have concluded that living with one’s parents during college help protect students from excessive alcohol consumption and related problems. The COVID-19 pandemic provided researchers with a natural means of examining these issues more closely.

The study’s researchers determined that while parental supervision may play a role in reducing drinking, other factors are also at work. “Drinking is a social behavior for college students, and without social interaction students are less likely to drink heavily,” said lead researcher, Dr. Helene White. As noted in the study’s findings, moving home disrupted student interaction with their peer networks “that include close friends who serve as “drinking buddies.”

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Sources:

Jackson, Kristina M. Ph.D.; Hayes, Kerri M.P.H.; Stevens, Angela K. Ph.D.; White, Helene R. Ph.D. “Changes in Alcohol Consumption Among College Students Due to COVID-19: Effects of Campus Closure and Residential Change.” Dec. 16, 2020. Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs. Retrieved at: https://www.jsad.com/doi/full/10.15288/jsad.2020.81.725

Preidt, Robert. “Pandemic Has Cut Into College Kids’ Drinking, Study Shows.” Dec. 16, 2020. U.S. News & World Report. Retrieved at: https://www.usnews.com/news/health-news/articles/2020-12-16/pandemic-has-cut-into-college-kids-drinking-study-shows