Table A.

Summary of Studies Examining Pregaming among High School Students and Incoming College Students

Studies Conducted with Current High School Students
Citation	Sample Description and Prevalence	Method of Assessing Pregaming Behavior	Key Findings
Zamboanga, Borsari, Ham, Olthuis, Van Tyne, & Casner (2011)	N = 233 high school students ages 14 through 18 who both consumed alcohol and pregamed in the past 30 days Approximately 40% of students reported pregaming in the past 30 days	Students reported how many times they pregamed on a 6-point scale over the past month (1 = one time … 6 = six times or more).	Being older, reporting high levels of hazardous alcohol use, and high frequency of drinking games participation predicted higher odds of reporting pregaming behaviors. Those who pregamed frequently were more likely to be male and also reported higher levels of hazardous alcohol use than those who pregamed less frequently. A high proportion of pregamers reported pregaming before parties and sporting events.
Wahl, Sonntag, Roehrig, Kriston, & Berner (2012)	N = 757 9th and 10th grade German students (~1/3 of the sample reported predrinking, and of these predrinkers, ~1/3 reported predrinking rarely, ~1/3 reported predrinking occasionally, and ~1/3 reported predrinking often or always)	Students who said they sometimes drank were asked, “Do you normally drink alcohol before going out?” and selected one of the following options: hardly ever, seldom, sometimes, often, or (almost) always.	Boys were more likely to pregame than girls. Proportion trends suggest that a higher percentage of 9th graders compared to 10th were predrinkers. Frequent predrinkers (i.e., reported predrinking often or always) were more likely to report hazardous alcohol use and experience more negative drinking consequences (e.g., frequent fights and alcohol-induced blackouts) than non-predrinkers. Predrinkers stated more often than non-predrinkers that they drank with the intention of getting drunk. 84.9% of predrinkers reported predrinking at home, 78.7% of predrinkers reported predrinking before attending private events, and 77.2% reported predrinking before going to bars or pubs.
Weisler, Wahl, Lucius-Hoene, & Berner (2013)	N = 33 German adolescents and young adults ages 15–22 who currently use alcohol	Participants were divided into eight discussion groups which lasted between 10–30 minutes. Adolescents were asked about their attitudes toward public alcohol consumption and a typical evening of drinking and related pregaming behaviors.	Participants described what a typical evening of pregaming would look like, including how they locate convenient places to drink, how they procure alcohol and what types of drinks they typically have, and how pregaming fits into the chronology of the rest of the evening. Each group had its own pregaming ritual; control (e.g., learning one’s limits with respect to alcohol consumption, escaping parental monitoring) and the ability to deal with age-specific challenges emerged as two major themes of the discussions. Participants identified wanting to save money, celebration of group cohesion, and reducing or eliminating negative emotions as reasons for pregaming.

Studies Conducted with Incoming College Students
Citation	Sample Description and Prevalence	Method of Assessing Pregaming Behavior	Key Findings
Kenney, Hummer, & LaBrie (2010)	N = 477 incoming college freshmen who reported drinking on at least one occasion in the past year 45% of students reported prepartying during high school	After being prompted to “think back over [their] last months of high school,” students were asked, (1) “How many days per month did you typically preparty?”, (2) “How many drinks did you typically consume when you prepartied?”, and (3) “On occasions when you prepartied, how many drinks did you typically consume overall (including drinks consumed during and after prepartying)?”	Compared to non-prepartiers, prepartiers consumed more alcohol during their last months of high school. Prepartying during high school was associated with heavier alcohol consumption and increased negative alcohol-related consequences during the first month of college. The number of average weekly drinks did not increase for prepartiers from high school to college, however it did increase for non-prepartiers.
Haas, Smith, Kagan, & Jacob (2012)	N = 1,171 incoming college freshmen who reported prior alcohol use (participants were surveyed during orientation activities) 65% of students reported pregaming 3 months prior to college entry	Pregaming frequency was assessed by asking students the percentage of times they pregamed in relation to their overall drinking frequency during the three months prior to college entry; responses were coded on a 7-point scale, such that (0) = NA/I don’t drink, (1) = Never, but I DO drink, (2) = Very rarely (less than 10% of the times I drink), (3) = Occasionally (more than 10% but less than 50% of the times I drink), (4) = About half the time I drink, (5) = Most of the time (over 50% but not every time), and (6) = Every time I drink. Students also reported the typical number of drinks they consume while pregaming and the average amount of time spent predrinking; these variables were used to estimate pregaming B ACs.	Pregaming was predictive of negative alcohol-related problems, even after controlling for overall alcohol consumption and demographics. Heavy alcohol use, high frequency of drinking games participation, and the endorsement of expectancies stating that alcohol will make one attractive or woozy were associated with high frequency of pregaming. Gender, ethnicity, and Greek affiliation did not moderate the associations between pregaming and negative alcohol-related problems.

Studies Conducted with Current College Freshmen and Sophomores
Citation	Sample Description and Prevalence	Method of Assessing Pregaming Behavior	Key Findings
Haas, Kagan, & Smith (2013)	N = 708 incoming college freshmen who reported alcohol use (measured during orientation and then 8–9 weeks after the beginning of the semester) 61.7% of students reported pregaming in baseline surveys, and 79.9% reported pregaming in follow-up surveys	Pregaming frequency was assessed by asking students the percentage of times they pregamed in relation to their overall drinking frequency during the past summer and during the fall semester; responses were coded on a 7-point scale, such that (0) = NA/I don’t drink, (1) = Never, but I DO drink, (2) = Very rarely (less than 10% of the times I drink), (3) = Occasionally (more than 10% but less than 50% of the times I drink), (4) = About half the time I drink, (5) = Most of the time (over 50% but not every time), and (6) = Every time I drink. Students also reported the typical number of drinks they consume while pregaming and the average amount of time spent predrinking; these variables were used to estimate pregaming BACs.	Not only was there an approximate 20% increase in pregaming prevalence over the first 8 to 9 weeks of college, but students also consumed more drinks (and therefore reached higher BACs) per pregaming occasion after the first several weeks of college. 8 to 9 weeks after the beginning of the semester, students were more likely to pregame on drinking occasions than they were before college started (21% vs. 40% of all drinking occasions). Students who were initially non-pregamers who also (1) endorsed fun seeking and drive oriented personality attributes and (2) who expected alcohol to make them social, woozy, and attractive, were more likely to report pregaming initiation 8 to 9 weeks after college began.
Barnett, Orchowski, Read, & Kahler (2013)	N = 750 college students from multiple universities who filled out surveys throughout their freshmen and sophomore years Pregaming was reported by 3 out 4 drinkers	For every biweekly assessment, students were shown a past-week calendar grid and were asked, “Did you pregame on this day?”	The increased levels of intoxication associated with drinking on days when pregaming occurred was directly accounted for by the increased number of drinks consumed on pregaming days (and not by the rapid consumption of drinks associated with pregaming). Freshmen were more likely to pregame on drinking days than sophomores. Pregaming was more common during the fall semester, in the early weeks of the semester, and on the weekends (especially on Fridays).
Hustad, Mastroleo, Urwin, Zeman, LaSalle, & Borsari (2013)	N = 354 students who violated their campus’s alcohol policy (50% freshmen) 43.5% of students reported pregaming, and 37.6% of students reported both pregaming and tailgating	Students reported (1) the number of days they pregamed or tailgated, (2) the number of drinks consumed on typical pregaming and tailgating occasions, and (3) the duration of typical pregaming and tailgating occasions, all over the past 30 days. Note: In this study, tailgating was defined as “the consumption of alcohol prior to and in the same general vicinity of a concert or sporting event (e.g., a football game).”	Students who pregamed consumed alcohol more frequently, reached higher BACs, reported experiencing more alcohol-related consequences, and endorsed more positive alcohol beliefs than non-pregamers. Students who pregamed and tailgated drank alcohol more frequently, engaged in heavy drinking more frequently, reached higher BACs, endorsed more descriptive norms of peer drinking, reported more positive beliefs about drinking in college, and engaged in pregaming more frequently than participants who only reported pregaming, suggesting that students who pregame and tailgate are at even more risk than those who only pregame.