Alcohol and Violence in American Colleges Essay Example

students start drinking during their campus years, but gradually quit the habit after they graduate to live more productive lives. However, some unfortunate students may incur lasting marks as a result of their drinking, for instance, they may lose arms or legs in accidents that result from drunken-driving.

These implications keep many concerned parties unnerved. According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) (2015), some of the grave crimes done in campuses include intentional manslaughter, arson, rape, burglary, aggravated assault, robbery, larceny-theft, and murder. All these offenses have so far been on the rise. Sex crimes have increased by 50% from 2001 to 2011 (The FBI, 2015). This research seeks to analyze the role alcohol plays in the rising cases of campus violence including fights, battery, etc.

There has been an underreporting of these incidents (White & Hingson, 2013); hence, by probing this issue, the researcher intends to get clearer facts so that he can more accurately generalize the state of these institutions in the entire country. The investigation also seeks to discuss the means via which the savagery can be reduced.

Review of Literature

After analyzing the psychosocial correlates and the prevalence of sexual assaults related to the use of alcohol amongst college students, Howard, Griffin, and Boekeloo (2008) found that alcohol-related sexual violence majorly affected freshmen and female students more as compared to the male students. The females who reported variants of alcohol-related violence also tended to report sexual assaults. Males, on the other hand, only reported other forms of violence. Of every five female students, one tended to report some kind of sexual harassment, which could include unwanted sexual advances, forced intercourse amongst others

(Howard et al., 2008).

Heavy drinking appears to be engraved in the cultural transition to college, thus, a perspective that centers on minimizing the adverse outcomes of heavy drinking should be considered. This recommendation is grounded on findings from studies that posit that students in colleges have reserve plans that they use to protect themselves and their colleagues from danger when drinking. The strategies cover preparatory planning to guarantee that the surrounding is safe for drinking, caretaking plans when one or a friend has drunk too much, and safety precautions to reduce perils when out drinking (Howard Griffin, Boekeloo, Lake, & Bellows, 2007). However, attention needs to be centered on the failure or success of the initiatives outlined in connection with the different forms of harm.

Though students may have some form of protection, a false sense of security may develop in them, and they fail to assess objectively their potential vulnerability with regards to certain type of dangers, for instance, alcohol-linked sexual assault. The findings clearly point out that alcohol is at the pivot of risk for female campus students who report sexual victimization as a result of the consumption of alcohol. Nonetheless, what motivates this drinking and whether the young women are conscious of the fact that alcohol increases their risk of being sexually assaulted is not evident. This risk increases further as drinking becomes more frequent.

Males too, for their own reasons, get themselves in relational and social contexts that prevail in violence and victimization is in multiple forms. This condition sets them apart as a subset of adults who are at high risk (Howard et al., 2008). Without a scrutiny of the developmental or

contextual factors, it is tough to determine the temporal relations or origin of these findings. One can conclude that the efforts to identify and understand the risks and consequences for the young men are insignificant. The Walter, Anderson, Dunn, and Florkowski (2014) study investigated how drinking and nondrinking students perceived their safety in campus.

The research found that most drinkers felt safe on campus and experienced a false sense of security. The study further established that there was a link between alcohol consumption and verbal aggression. Male drinkers were noted to be particularly more disposed to violence as opposed to the female drinkers. Walter et al.

(2014) also observed that poor academic performance often resulted from alcohol consumption. These findings were almost predictable. Students who drink usually tend to take risks. White and Hingson (2013) research on the excessive consumption of alcohol and its associated consequences amongst college students found that the annual fatalities that come about from the use of alcohol amount to 1800 students. These deaths occur through various ways including road accidents. Nearly 600,000 students between 18 and 24 sustain injuries as a result of their recklessness with regards to alcohol consumption.

These statistics are quite alarming. The investigators also noted that gender differences in the use of alcohol amongst college students have significantly narrowed over the last 60 years. As of 2011, the proportion of female students who consumed alcohol was roughly equal to that of the male students. Some of the consequences of alcohol drinking reiterated in this study include physical assault, which affects the largest percentage of alcohol users, suicide attempts, health complications, injuries, death, police involvement, property damage, and addiction (White

& Hingston, 2013). These implications are quite harrowing because the victims often are in the prime of their life.

Alcohol also interacts with an assortment of prescribed and illegal drugs such opioids, and related sedatives, tranquilizers, and narcotic analgesics. When combined with prescription drugs, the blood-alcohol concentration (BAC) needed for lethal doses gets reduced significantly. Since the integrated use of alcohol and other drugs peaks between 18 and 24 years of age, which is the typical age bracket for most college students, young adults are at the highest risk of suffering the consequences of using such cocktails. Heavy alcohol consumption in such cases can rapidly develop into medical emergencies. White and Hingston (2013) also note that the rate of use of alcohol in colleges has been relatively steady for the past 30 years despite efforts to try and reduce it. The implication here is that there have been vain efforts to counter students’ indulgence in drugs and alcohol.

Sulkowski and Lazarus (2011) investigated contemporary responses to savage attacks on campuses, and proposed several strategies to mitigate the violence. Amongst them include the proposals to improve the availability of crime data to parents and students, use security technologies in colleges, permit members of campus fraternity to carry hidden weapons, employ criminal profiling, use threat-assessment strategies, and effectuate emergency response plans to go about attacks. The study found that the support to increase the data available on campus crimes is quite limited. On the same note, there was little backing for the idea of allowing people to carry concealed weapons in colleges, increase the use of security technologies, and use criminal profiling strategies to pinpoint menacing students.

However, many students

support the idea of using threat assessment procedures, improve threat reporting, and emergency management plans as strategies to counter whichever sort of violence that threatens peace on campuses (Sulkowski & Lazarus, 2011). No one strategy can work alone to solve the issue of campus violence and even when several plans are combined, they can only reduce and rather than address the problem in its entirety. Assessing threats can allow one to identify better the risk and decide on the most appropriate intervention strategy. However, it cannot help address the issue of underreporting of violence or potentially violent persons amongst students to individuals who may prevent the attacks.

More should be done in this area to boost the reporting of threats. Colleges should train emergency response teams to execute the right response plans in times of crises. Sulkowski and Lazarus (2011) conclude by acknowledging what grand a task it is to end violence in campuses and emphasize that it is a goal worthy of pursuit and success can only be realized via integrated efforts. The studies reviewed point out that alcohol-related aggression is a grave menace both without and within college campuses. However, the methodological issues pertaining to the correlational nature of what has been found hinder the issuing of statements pointing to an essential link between alcohol consumption and aggressive behavior. For instance, developmental and contextual factors are often not considered.

At best the only thing that can be determined from these findings is the proportion of students reporting alcohol-related offenses. Also, a problem of directionality arises so that it is not certain whether aggressive people tend to consume more alcohol, or it is the drinking that

elicits the aggression in the drinker. Additionally, the reports of alcohol-related violence have been on the rise, and these studies have not explained the cause of it. However, despite these deficiencies, a clear, compelling link between alcohol and aggression on campuses is imminent.

This research seeks to probe the reasons for the increased alcohol consumption and consequently violence and establish if there is a correlation between the two and crimes in colleges. Research Hypothesis: There is a correlation between the consumption of alcohol and violence in that an increase in the consumption of alcohol results in a rise in incidences of violence and both of these issues have been increasing on campuses because there are no effective intervention plans to counter the growing use of alcohol amongst students in colleges. Peer pressure and the denial of college administrations of the existence of this problem are the primary reasons for the rising use of alcohol among these students.

Methodology

Participants and Apparatus

To assess the implications of alcohol and its role in campus violence and crime, the researcher will commence by carrying out a field survey. The study will be done on 1000 college undergraduates using cross-sectional samples from different colleges across the United States. To make a random selection of the participants, the researcher will include the work the Princeton, New Jersey American List Council published, which constitutes of a list of college students in America who are either living on college premises or in their homes.

The respondents will comprise both male and female students, drinkers and nondrinkers. The study will analyze more specifically crime prevalence amongst college students, i.e. whether it was decreasing or increasing,

and the factors connected to crimes in campuses. Only continuing students will be used in the study.

Procedure

The investigator will administer a self-enumerated questionnaire to each student respondent to complete it.

Both open and close-ended questions relevant to the study subject will be used where appropriate to expound on the variables under measurement. For example, “about the time of this happening, were you under the influence of alcohol or drugs?” is a close-ended question. If the student checks, “high on drugs,” then he/she will proceed to answer “which drugs do you suspect were involved?” which is an open-ended question. The variables that will be assessed include the basic demographic information, information on drug use, academic level, experiences of violence and crimes since becoming a student, and present efforts to mitigate the violence in the particular college. The independent variables will comprise the respondents’ gender (RG) and student grade level (GL). The dependent variables will include the frequency of alcohol use at college (FAUC), instances of victimization from alcohol-related crimes (VARC), the drugs most closely connected crime (DCC), and the present efforts to mitigate the violence in the specific college (PEMVC).

The researcher’s assistants will be on standby to give any clarifications as the respondents will be completing the surveys. Regarding measurement, each variable will be assessed at its level. The first variable, the respondents’ gender will be assessed at the nominal level. The students’ grade level will be measured at the interval level because the responses will be sorted in the order of rank, i.e. from freshman onwards. The third variable, i.e.

whether the respondent takes alcohol/alcohol use at college, will be assessed at the ordinal level

for the responses can be ranked from more or less. For example, never (%), a few times in a month (%), weekly (%), and daily (%). The fourth variable, the instances of victimization from alcohol-related crimes, will be assessed at the interval level since the values that will be presented will have true numeric meanings. The fifth variable, the drugs most closely connected to crime, will be measured at the nominal level since the respondents will be naming a value, for instance: “alcohol (%), tobacco (%), steroids (%), heroine (%), marijuana (%), inhalants (%),barbiturates (DNRS) (%), cocaine (%), amphetamines (%), hallucinogens (%), Quaaludes (%), and all (%).” The fourth and fifth variables will also involve face-to-face interviews to obtain the students’ suggestions for the cause of the increased alcohol consumption and violence on campuses. These two variables will also help the researcher gauge whether the students who will be responding believe that alcohol consumption can be surmised as the chief factor responsible for the increasing incidences of violence and crimes in colleges.

The sixth variable will firstly involve the respondents answering whether there were counter-strategies in their respective colleges to combat alcohol and drug use. If such efforts exist, they will also note them down and indicate how content they are with such measures. A five-point Likert-type scale will be used to measure their level of contention, i.e. from 5(very contented) to 1(very discontented).

Analytical Procedure

The data gathered will be scored and tallied, and then summary presentations of the same will be made. The researcher will use descriptive statistics e.g.

frequency count, percentage, and mode to establish the overview of the state of the colleges. The

researcher will after that calculate the correlation between alcohol consumption and violence. The researcher will compare the findings from this research with the conclusions from the literature review to again see if there is a correlation. If they concur, the researcher will safely conclude that the consumption of alcohol is indeed critical to the existence of violence in colleges. To find out the reason for the rise in alcohol consumption and violence, the researcher will compute the correlation between the prevalence of crimes (instances of victimization from alcohol-related crimes) and the effectiveness of the counter-strategies set up in the different institutions to look into the same.

At this point, the researcher will posit appropriate strategies to check the students’ rate of alcohol consumption. If the data sets do not correlate, the researcher will reevaluate the study procedures to identify flaws and make proposals for further research on the issue of college crimes and alcohol use.

Hypothetical Results

Overall, there was only a slight variation between the data that the students gave and the data in the studies in the literature review. While nearly half of the respondents (40%) indicated that they never drank, another 40% stated that they drank alcohol weekly. Another 10% claimed that they consumed alcohol on a daily basis. The proportion of students who indicated that they had experienced more than 20 incidences of violence while in college was 20%.

A bivariate correlation was performed on the data and indicated the strength of the relationship between the consumption of alcohol and violence. The consumption of alcohol was associated with increasing violence: r (500) = .80, p1 < .01, large effect size. The degree and

strength of the relationship was positively correlated and indicates that increased consumption of alcohol may be hazardous to your safety, which concurs with the findings from the literature review. The correlation (p2) between the prevalence of crimes (VARC) and the effectiveness of the strategies set up in the different institutions to counter the same is negative, which implies that the more efficient the strategy, the less prevalent will be the alcohol-related crimes.

Implications

The findings show consisted use of alcohol in reported incidents of violence. Though the simultaneous use of other drugs and alcohol could have confounded the results of this study, only alcohol use data was collected since alcohol is the most commonly used substance amongst college students. Frequent drinkers amounted to half of the respondents. The number of campus programs dealing with campus violence is also minimal. These results indicate that institutions of higher learning will need to do more to counteract the spread and use of alcohol within their confines.

The use of alcohol is on the rise because there are no working plans to prevent this development. The measures inexistence currently are seemingly deficient. Such will need to be revised and made more stringent or replaced altogether. Several factors hamper the formulation of prosperous intervention plans to minimize violence on campuses. Among them is the fact that the relevant parties, i.e. members of college communities, have not yet identified the magnitude of the problem.

There is so much underreporting of incidents of violence. The importance of instructing the academic community and more so the student fraternities to perceive violent behavior as crimes that can be reported cannot be overemphasized. If all would understand that

violent behavior would likely involve the justice system then many would be deterred from engaging in violence. Also noteworthy is the fact that the interventions that have been implemented have not been evaluated comprehensively to establish their efficiency. These findings show that US colleges are not safe havens.

All manner of violence occur in these institutions. The academic community has come under increased pressure to confront the issues connected to alcohol-related violence, diminish violence in campuses, and give the public accurate information concerning the magnitude of the problem of violence in campuses. Any well-coordinated effort by colleges to fight such crimes should be led by endeavors directed against alcohol-related violence. The solutions will need to be effective and changes must occur in campus culture, norms, and traditions.

The colleges that will refuse to confront these issues will have a high risk of adverse outcomes with regards to students’ enrollment and retention and financial support from legislators and alumni. Violence in campuses can indeed be alleviated but only if all unite their efforts to achieve this goal.

References

1. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), (2015). Preliminary Semiannual Uniform Crime Report, January-June, 2015. Retrieved from https://www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/crime-in-the-u.s/2015/preliminary-semiannual-uniform-crime-report-januaryjune-2015/home
2. Fromme, K., Corbin, W., & Kruse, M. (2008). Behavioral risks during the transition from high school to college. Developmental Psychology, 44(3): 1497-1504.
3. Hingson, R. W., Zha, W., & Weitzman, E. R.

   (2009). Magnitude of and trends in alcohol-related mortality and morbidity among US college students ages 18-24, 1998-2005. Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, 16(2): 12-20.

4. Howard, D. E., Griffin, M. A., & Boekeloo, B. O.

   (2008). Prevalence and psychosocial correlates of alcohol-related sexual assault among university students. Adolescence, 43(172): 733-750.

5. Howard, D. E.,
   

Griffin, M., Boekeloo, B., Lake, K., & Bellows, D.

(2007). Staying safe while consuming alcohol: A quantitative study of the protective strategies and informational needs of college freshmen. Journal of American College Health, 53(3): 247-254.