Perhaps it was fate or just really good timing. In September, student drinking became a hot-topic media issue sparked by the results of a survey of 6,282 students, released at the start of the school year by the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health conducted by Dr. Edward Adlarf. Alarming statistics abound. According to the study results published by the Toronto Star:
- 13 percent of women and 15 percent of men reported having unplanned drunken sex.
- 10 percent of us that drink either end up in a fight or sexually harassing someone.
- 16 percent reported frequent heavy drinking or bingeing (downing more than five drinks at least once a week)
- and perhaps most shocking is that 32 percent of undergrads (yeah, that’s one third) reportedly can’t get through the day and perform normally without the aid of our good friend Mr. tipsy.
So obviously it’s a hot button issue, and in typical media fashion, it’s become a case of sensational statistics made all the more sensational. Painting a picture for parents and the public of University life as a hotbed of rampant alcoholism and wanton depravity. It’s a world of drunken sex, barroom brawls, and vomit – and little Jimmy is invited.
But is this really the case? Well, I’m tempted to say that for most anyone who actually does live on campus the answer is of course not. But just to be sure, I went out and did my own survey which revealed significantly lower numbers then the original study’s, when asked how students felt about that last statistic (32 percent of undergrads have a drinking problem), the response was always skeptical.
“Yeah, right.”
“You’re lying, right?”
“Ha ha. funny..”
And so on. Of course, it needs to be mentioned that my simple informal survey of about 50 people is no match for the over 6000 used in the original study. Also, asking people if they have the symptoms of a drinking problem is probably not information most would readily admit too.
Yet, regardless of all this, I have little problem with Adlarf’s survey. The real insult, to me at least, is the way students were portrayed in the same way by the media that reported on it (CTV, Pulse24, and the Toronto Star to name a few). The idea being, that we (first year students especially) are, because of the stress of school and new responsibilities, dumb helpless victims for the cheap booze and alcohol sometimes promoted on campus.
And if there’s one thing I’ve learned, statistics alone never tell the whole story. While alcohol is something most of us are responsible around, there are times when we may drink too much for any number of reasons. The real important part often overshadowed and rarely conceded by the media is how we make ourselves responsible for our actions.
Just a few examples of responsibility:
- Women often drink with friends – if one of them gets drunk, the rest usually stop her from doing something stupid.
- Friends don’t let friends drive drunk.
- Students can also opt to live in ‘substance free’ areas if they want.
Sure, we all like to bitch about that exam next week or the essay due in 5 hours you haven’t even started yet, but we also all know that school is a stressful place, we knew that coming in and we know that when we go to a club or bar to chill and relax.
In the end, whether you’re a middle-aged over-protective parent or a wide-eyed first year student, we’re all responsible for the choices that we make and for the most part, regarding alcoholism on campus, I think we’ve all mostly made really good ones.
~ An article I wrote (still un-edited and pending publication), for TOStudents.com
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