Studentstuff.com

Drinking and Dorms: Don’t Believe Everything You Hear

Does where you live influence how you live?

Making the choice to live in a co-ed dorm should not lead to stereotyping about what you like to do with your free time or how you live your life, but two researchers from Brigham Young University Brian Willoughby and Jason Carroll are ensuring judgments will be made.

Their study about the rate of binge drinking amongst college students who live in co-ed dorms and college students who live in single sex dorms came out in the Journal of American College Health this week, and they say their findings indicate that students in co-ed dorms are more likely to not only drink alcohol, but binge drink on a weekly basis–41% in fact, compared to 17% of the same sex dorm residing counterparts.

The associate professors claim that they investigated whether other factors could explain the difference. But age, religiosity, impulsivity and relationship status didn’t matter. Despite this,  I’m not sure I agree with their interpretation of their findings.

Sure, when interpreted one way, there data shows there is a correlation between living in co-ed dorms and drinking. What about the other variables involved, and the inconsistencies in the study? Consider that 510 students were surveyed, and 442 of them–87%–lived in co-ed housing. Why were the numbers not balanced? Were they in line with national college-living norms or were the number of students a random choice?

There are other questions that come mind, though: What about up-bringing and exposure to responsible drinking prior to college? And what about fraternities and sororities–sure these living situations are not on-campus, but they are single sex housing sanctioned by university student life groups that were not mentioned and that, as far as I was aware of, were not often dry residences. And what about morals and being open-minded? Aren’t students who opt for co-ed dorms more likely to want an experience and try new things?

Before the 1960’s, universities followed the idea of in loco parentis, in place of a parent. Students were subject to curfews, and could be expelled for being “morally” undesirable as imposed by the university. Good times. Nowadays, though, schools do not usually step in to tell students who to be or how to be–instead, they offer counseling services and reach out to students without judging their behavior. They are still teaching students how to be adults, but without a strict code. As a pirate might say, they’re more like guidelines.

Is the problem really student housing situations? Or is the problem that our society is not willing to teach kids about alcohol? Or, is the problem rooted in parenting? How can we really be sure that a living situation is causing more alcohol consumption?

It’s okay to believe what you hear in the news, but don’t just take “facts” at face value. Use those thinking skills you’ve developed over the years to critically look at the information you are given, really attempt to understand what you are reading, and draw your own conclusions. Don’t be afraid to question something just because someone on the radio, or television, or on the internet says it is true.