Framework for alcohol education, prevention and intervention based on findings of alcohol knowledge and behavior at a small private college in East Tennessee

Author

Margarette Phyliss Bailey Noah

Date of Award

12-1988

Degree Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Education

Major Professor

Bill C. Wallace

Committee Members

Donald J. Dessart, Robert Kirk, James J. Neutens, Robert J. Pursley

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to facilitate the formulation of a curriculum framework for an alcohol education program specifically designed to meet the needs of students at Lincoln Memorial University (LMU) in Harrogate, Tennessee. This study, by providing data concerning the alcohol knowledge and drinking patterns of LMU students and using that data to develop a curriculum framework for an alcohol education program to be used at LMU has laid the groundwork for filling a significant gap in the student services provided by LMU.

An analysis of the responses of 454 LMU students produced the following major findings:

1. Of the traditional college-age students, the percent of those who abstained from drinking beer decreased between ages 18 and 22, then increased again among 25-year-olds. The percentage of abstainers from liquor consumption continued to decrease after age 22 through age 25.

2. A larger percent of LMU students were heavy drinkers of beer at ages 21, 22, and 23, but the same was not true for wine and liquor consumption.

3. The fewest moderate and heavy drinkers for all ages were those who drank wine.

4. With all beverages, higher grade-point averages were reported by those who drank less and also less frequently. With all beverages, the students who drank more and more often reported achieving lower grade-point averages. There were fewer moderate and heavy wine drinkers who reported a lower GPA than was true of beer or alcohol drinkers.

5. As the reported importance of religion decreased, the acknowledged drinking of all alcoholic beverages increased.

6. All categories of consumption of alcohol were higher among students residing in dormitories than among those who lived off-campus.

7. Female students reported higher rates of abstinence from beer and liquor consumption than males, but were more likely to drink wine.

8. Males were more likely to be moderate and heavy drinkers of beer and liquor, which accounts for women reporting greater percentages in the category of light drinkers for these particular beverages. The highest percentage of heavy drinking was of beer by men.

9. Few patterns emerged on drinking behavior related to year in school. There was a slight, but progressive, decrease in heavy liquor drinking from freshman to senior year.

10. The most frequently experienced alcohol-related problem was vomiting, followed by having a hangover, drinking and driving, attending classes after drinking, and dating problems.

11. Few students scored high on alcohol knowledge, and the majority were unable to answer half the items correctly.

These findings and the conclusions drawn from them facilitated the development of a general profile of the student body in relation to the important variables of class ranking, ratio of males to females, on- or off-campus residence, CPAs, religious values, and drinking patterns.

This profile was then used to select those concepts which needed to be included in an alcohol education program for all LMU students and to determine the extent to which the selected concepts should be emphasized and the extent to which each should be incorporated into campus-wide alcohol education activities.

Recommended Citation

Noah, Margarette Phyliss Bailey, "Framework for alcohol education, prevention and intervention based on findings of alcohol knowledge and behavior at a small private college in East Tennessee. " PhD diss., University of Tennessee, 1988.
https://trace.tennessee.edu/utk_graddiss/11936