Abstract
Objective: To describe the prevalence and frequency of heavy drinking episodes among Canadian undergraduates.
Methods: Data are drawn from the Canadian Campus Survey, a national mail survey, conducted in the fall of 1998, with a random sample of 7,800 students from 16 universities.
Results: Overall, 62.7% and 34.8% of students reported consuming 5 or more drinks and 8 or more drinks, respectively, on a single occasion at least once during the fall semester. On average, drinkers reported having 5 or more drinks almost 5 times during the fall semester, and having 8 or more drinks almost twice during the same period. The groups reporting the highest rates of heavy drinking were males, those living in university residences, those with low academic orientation and those with high recreational orientation.
Interpretation: Generally, this study has shown that heavy drinking is highly engrained in Canadian undergraduates ‘drinking patterns, and is related to a number of factors. These factors can be used to develop targeted prevention efforts.
Résumé
Objectif: Décrire la prévalence et la fréquence des accès de forte consommation d‘alcool chez les étudiants universitaires.
Méthode: Les données proviennent de l‘Enquête sur les campus canadiens, une enquête nationale réalisée par la poste au cours de l‘automne 1998 auprès d‘un échantillon aléatoire de 7 800 étudiants de premier cycle de 16 universités.
Résultats: Dans l‘ensemble, 62,6 % et 34,8 % des étudiants déclarent avoir pris respectivement cinq verres ou plus et huit verres ou plus par accès de consommation au moins une fois au cours du semestre d‘automne. En moyenne, les buveurs déclarent avoir consommé cinq verres ou plus à cinq reprises environ au cours du semestre d‘automne, et huit verres ou plus à près de deux reprises. Les groupes déclarant les taux les plus élevés sont les hommes, les étudiants vivant en résidence universitaire, ceux faiblement orientés vers les activités scolaires et ceux fortement orientés vers les loisirs.
Conclusion: Cette étude montre que la consommation abusive d‘alcool est fortement ancrée dans les profils de consommation d‘alcool des étudiants universitaires canadiens de premier cycle, et que ce comportement est associé à de multiples facteurs. Ces facteurs peuvent être utilisés pour élaborer des mesures préventives ciblées.
Footnotes
Acknowledgement: This study was partially funded by the Brewer‘s Association of Canada.
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