Association of Psychological Factors to Alcohol Consumption Behavior among U.S. College Students

Abstract

This study explores college students’ alcohol consumption behavior and evaluates theeffect of different psychological factors on consumption patterns. Randomly selectedstudents from two different universities completed surveys with perceived scales for stress,self esteem and anxiety and an alcohol consumption questionnaire. Non-parametricanalyses suggests that low self esteem, higher stress and anxiety level and younger ageincrease the likelihood of drinking alcohol. These findings were consistent between bothuniversities. These findings have important implications for the selection of appropriateinterventional strategies and health education among college populations.