Exploring the distribution of alcohol violation-types in North Carolina between 2000 and 2011.

BACKGROUND: We used an exhaustive dataset of violations from the NC Alcohol Law Enforcement (ALE) agency to analyze 12 years of alcohol-related violations in NC. METHODS: Descriptive statistics were used to explore distribution and epidemiology of alcohol citations, including distributions by demographic factors, month, day of the week, and time of day. RESULTS: Approximately 47,065 citations were issued by ALE during this time. The majority of the citations were issued to non-Hispanic (96%), white (89%), males (65%). The median age was 19 years old (range 18-94). The months with the most citations were August through October and April. Citations issued on Thursday through Sunday accounted for approximately 87% of all citations issued. The most common types of violations were underage possession of beer/wine (55.5%), providing beer/wine to someone underage (13.6%), and underage possession of liquor (8.8%). CONCLUSION: This is the first study to examine the epidemiology of alcohol-related violations over a large geographical area. Other states, provinces, and/or countries can use these findings to exam if their distribution alcohol-related violations are comparable with this study, and explore associations between such data and alcohol use behaviors.

Challenges and recommendations to enforcement of alcohol policies on college campuses: an administrator's perspective.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to examine challenges and recommendations (identified by college administrators) to enforcing alcohol policies implemented at colleges in the southeastern United States. METHODS: Telephone interviews were conducted with 71 individuals at 21 institutions. RESULTS: Common challenges included inconsistent enforcement, mixed messages received by students, and students' attitudes toward alcohol use. The most common recommendations were ensuring a comprehensive approach, collaboration with members of the community, and enhanced alcohol education.

Alcoholic beverage preferences and associated drinking patterns and risk behaviors among high school youth.

BACKGROUND: Very little is known about the types of alcoholic beverages preferred by youth in the U.S. and the relationship between beverage preference and demographic and behavioral characteristics of these youth. PURPOSE: To determine the type of alcoholic beverages consumed by adolescent drinkers and how it varies by drinking patterns. METHODS: In 2010, an analysis was performed using 2007 data from the Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) conducted among public school students in eight states that included a question on the type of alcohol usually consumed. Analysis was restricted to the 7723 youth who reported consuming at least one drink of alcohol in the past 30 days. Beverage type preferences were analyzed by demographic factors, drinking patterns, and other health-risk behaviors. Logistic regression analyses were conducted to examine the correlates of type-specific alcohol consumption. RESULTS: Liquor was the strongly preferred alcoholic beverage of choice (43.8%), followed by beer (19.2%) and malt beverages (17.4%), with a very low preference for wine (3.7%) or wine coolers (3.4%). A higher preference for liquor or beer was observed among older youth, among those with a riskier pattern of alcohol consumption (e.g., greater frequency of consumption, binge drinking, or drinking and driving), and among youth who engaged in other risk behaviors. CONCLUSIONS: Riskier patterns of drinking and other health-risk behaviors are associated with an increased preference for hard liquor and beer. Improved surveillance of alcoholic beverage preferences among youth will enable a better understanding of the factors related to youth drinking, allowing the development of more effective interventions.

Assessment of source and type of alcohol consumed by high school students: analyses from four States.

PURPOSE: : This study provides population-based estimates of the source and type of alcohol usually consumed by high school students in 4 states and assessed their relationship to drinking patterns. METHODS: : Pooled data were used from 4 states (Arkansas, Nebraska, New Mexico, and Wyoming) that included questions from the 2005 Youth Risk Behavior Survey for high school students (total N = 13,504). Logistic regression models were used to determine whether the drinking pattern for these students was independently associated with alcohol source or usual type of beverage. RESULTS: : Overall, 29.7% of high school students in these 4 states drank in a binge pattern, 13.2% were current drinkers who did not binge drink, and 57.1% were nondrinkers. Approximately one-third of the high school students who reported current alcohol use in these 4 states obtained their alcohol by giving money to someone else to purchase it. Liquor was the usual type of alcohol consumed by 38.7% of students who drank, followed by beer (21.3%), and malt beverages (21.1%). Youth who drank in a binge pattern were 3 times more likely to give someone money to buy alcohol for them and 2 times more likely to consume either liquor or beer as their usual alcoholic beverage compared with current drinkers who did not binge drink. CONCLUSIONS: : These findings emphasize that when implementing evidence-based strategies to prevent underage drinking, such as enforcement of underage drinking laws and increasing alcohol excise taxes, attention should be paid to the source of and the usual type of alcohol consumed, and how these vary by drinking pattern.

Drinking likelihood, alcohol problems, and peer influence among first-year college students.

Excessive alcohol consumption is a predominant health concern on college campuses in the United States. A stepwise multiple regression analysis was used to examine the predictive values of demographic factors in relation to alcohol subscales (Drinking Context Scale, College Alcohol Problems Scale-revised, and Social Modeling Scale) with the outcome of number of drinking days in the past 30 days among a sample (n = 224) of first-year college students. The final model predicted 37.5% of the variability in drinking days in the past month. All variables, except for race, were significantly associated with the outcome (p < .05).