The "Pros" and Cons of Drinking Alone

 

                            

College students are often no stranger to a local dive bar, a party,

or a friend’s twenty-first birthday party,

and the drinking culture often associated with university students arguably spans decades.

Even in some cases it is to some students' shock, that they may discover that their parents are better at beer pong than they are.

This is not to say that this is the universal experience, naturally there are many students who do not

partake in alcohol consumption,

and they can reap the benefits of a healthier liver and spare themselves an embarrassing story or two. 

But for the students who do,

however, the current education that they receive on alcohol safety consumption may not be enough.

A rather taboo, yet concerning issue that arises for some students,

is the prospect of drinking in a social versus solitary environment.

In a personal instance, I have even noticed printing on alcohol bottles that read, “Drink Responsibly-And With Friends.”

The subliminal messaging is certainly there, and quite concerning.

Additionally, drinking alone can be more appealing for students that may struggle with substance dependency as well,

due to the environment causing a lower alcohol tolerance.

This phenomenon is also explained as, ‘The compensatory-response model also has implications for drug tolerance (Siegel, 1983, 2005).

For example, if you have a habit of always drinking in a particular setting, then the various cues in that setting—

people greeting you as you walk in the front door of the bar;

the stool you always sit on—become CSs for the effect of alcohol.

The presence of these CSs will initiate

physio logical reactions that compensate for the alcohol you are about to consume.

As a result, in the presence of these CSs, you should have greater tolerance for alcohol than you would in their absence.” (Powell, 2023 “Introduction to Learning and Behavior” 9th Ed page 173).”

It seems odd to some, but being in a social environment that is unfamiliar may truly assist students who may struggle with drinking alone themselves. 

Furthermore, the prospect of drinking alone may prove to be enticing towards students and other populations that already struggle with discrimination as well.

A recent psychological study that explored alcohol consumption among different minority populations had also noted that,  

“...Among Hispanics and blacks, frequent unfair treatment appeared to be more strongly associated with alcohol dependence symptoms than with negative drinking consequences…

Also, in both groups the effect of unfair treatment on dependence appeared greater than the effect of racial/ethnic stigma.”

(Chartier, K. G., Karriker-Jaffe, K. J., Cummings, C. R., & Kendler, K. S. (2017).

Review: Environmental influences on alcohol use: Informing research on the joint effects of genes and the environment in diverse U.S. populations.)

This study, and potentially others, may also be able to explore in the future the impact of social stigma,

discrimination,

and racism can influence students down the unfortunate slope of drinking alone.

For now, it is quite imperative that universities should update their

current education system on alcohol safety consumption,

and to also educate students on this usage of it as well. 

References

Chartier, K. G., Karriker-Jaffe, K. J., Cummings, C. R., & Kendler, K. S. (2017). Review: Environmental influences on alcohol use:

Informing research on the joint effects of genes and the environment in diverse U.S. populations.

The American journal on addictions, 26(5), 446–460. https://doi.org/10.1111/ajad.12478 

Powell, 2023 “Introduction to Learning and Behavior” 9th Ed