College Drinking Is a Culture
The tradition of drinking has developed into a kind of culture—beliefs
and customs—entrenched in every level of college students' environments.
Customs handed down through generations of college drinkers reinforce students'
expectation that alcohol is a necessary ingredient for social success. These
beliefs and the expectations they engender exert a powerful influence over students'
behavior toward alcohol.
Customs that promote college drinking also are embedded in numerous levels
of students' environments. The walls of college sports arenas carry advertisements
from alcohol industry sponsors. Alumni carry on the alcohol tradition, perhaps
less flamboyantly than during their college years, at sports events and alumni
social functions. Communities permit establishments near campus to serve or
sell alcohol, and these establishments depend on the college clientele for their
Students derive their expectations of alcohol from their environment and from each other, as they face the insecurity of establishing themselves in a new social milieu. Environmental and peer influences combine to create a culture of drinking. This culture actively promotes drinking, or passively promotes it, through tolerance, or even tacit approval, of college drinking as a rite of passage.
Back to Table of Contents |
Last reviewed: 9/23/2005