Alcohol use among university students: Considering a positive deviance approach

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Psychology
• Sociology

Background:

• Harmful alcohol consumption is a persistent problem among university students.
• Positive deviance literature offers insights into understanding health-related behaviors.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate if variables from positive deviance research predict responsible alcohol consumption among university students.
• To identify predictors of different drinking patterns, including abstinence, responsible drinking, and binge drinking.

Main Methods:

• A survey was administered to university students.
• Participants were classified into three groups: abstainers, responsible drinkers, and binge drinkers.
• Multinomial logistic regression modeling was employed to analyze the data.

Main Results:

• The multinomial logistic regression model was statistically significant (p < .001).
• Several variables were identified as significant predictors of students' drinking group membership.
• The model achieved a classification accuracy of 71.2%, significantly outperforming chance (38.4%).
• The model demonstrated the strongest predictive power for identifying binge drinkers compared to abstainers or responsible drinkers.

Conclusions:

• Positive deviance variables can predict drinking behaviors in university students.
• The findings support the utility of positive deviance concepts in understanding and potentially mitigating harmful alcohol consumption.
• Interventions targeting identified risk factors may help reduce binge drinking prevalence.