Alcohol and cocaine use among first-year college students

We surveyed 1528 first-year students at the University of Virginia, 1 month after their arrival on campus, who had used alcohol at some time in their lives. Our survey was designed to identify alcohol and cocaine use, and related psychosocial patterns. Men drank more and more often than women. Our data suggest that body weight should be considered in defining those who drink heavily and often. We define 'frequent heavy drinking' as five or more drinks in a row each week for men and three to four drinks or more in a row each week for women. Frequent heavy drinkers, cocaine users, and students with psychosocial problems appeared disproportionately among students planning to join fraternities and sororities. Although first-year students used cocaine infrequently, its users followed the patterns of frequent heavy drinkers. We believe efforts to correct alcohol and cocaine misuse by college students should be directed, in part, at social organizations such as Greek-letter societies. Also, we must attend to psychosocial features that predispose to alcohol and cocaine misuse.