College Drinking: Reframing a Social Problem

by George W. Dowdall

Overview

Drinking has become recognized as one of the most important problems facing today's college student. Even though college drinking has increased only modestly over the past few decades, concern about its health, behavioral, and safety consequences has risen rapidly. This book examines college drinking as a social problem within higher education, based on interviews with many leading figures engaged in addressing the problem. It assesses the evidence about how many students drink or drink excessively, and what kinds of behavioral and health problems they have as a consequence. The book answers the crucial questions of why students drink and what mixture of personal and environmental factors shape college drinking. The complex links to campus crime and sexual assault are discussed fully. Key practical questions about effective prevention programs and countermeasures are answered in detail. Students and parents can take action to lower the risk of binge drinking by consulting an appendix, which explains how to use college guide data on 400 leading institutions or data about alcohol violations and crime available for several thousand colleges. Anyone concerned with higher education today will find a full discussion of the scope of the problem and what can be done about it.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780275999810
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	12/30/2008
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	288
Product dimensions:	6.30(w) x 9.40(h) x 1.20(d)

About the Author

George W. Dowdall is professor of sociology at Saint Joseph's University.

Table of Contents

Preface

The Perspective of this Book

Plan of the Book

Chapter 1: College Drinking As A Social Problem

Chapter 2: Reframing College Drinking

Chapter 3: The Impact of College Drinking

Chapter 4: The Dark Figure Of Alcohol-Related Campus Crime: The Gap Between Reported Incidents And Victimization

Chapter 5: Work Hard, Play Hard: College Drinking, Social Life, and Sex

Chapter 6: Public Alcohol Policy And College Drinking

Chapter 7: The College Response: Reframing Prevention

Chapter 8: What More Can Colleges Do?

Chapter 9: How To Cope With College Drinking: What Students And Parents Can Do

Appendix A: Sources for Further Information.

Appendix B: Methods and Data.

Appendix C: Timeline.

Appendix D: Alcohol and Crime Data.

Editorial Reviews

This is probably the best introduction to college drinking available. . . Recommended. All levels/libraries.” —Choice

“In comparison to the other recent books on the topic, Dowdall's book is more broad based, yet also more comprehensive, and utilizes a wider range of scientific and professional resources, and provides more evidence-based suggestions for change to a wider audience. If there is a book that can reach all intended audiences (college administrators, governmental policy makers, practitioners, scientists, parents, and students), Dowdall's book seems to do it. Readers of varied backgrounds should all come away with useful information and suggestions for changes.” —The Journal of Higher Education

“Dowdall has provided the reader with an excellent instrument for not only understanding the complexities of college drinking, but also how to develop prevention programs to address this complex social problem.” —Journal of College Student Development

From the Publisher