The ongoing SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has altered many aspects of society across the globe, creating a large demand for research concerning the effects it may have on human behavior.  Harmful drinking among college student populations in the United States remains to be a large-scale public health crisis, with literature frequently being published characterizing the commonalities that surround the practice.  This study aims to identify the influence that the COVID-19 pandemic has had on alcohol consumption in college students, specifically as it pertains to previously established norms. 

The study’s sample consists of 507 undergraduate students from a large public university in the western United States, recruited in April 2020, one month after initial COVID-19 lockdown policies were implemented (N=507, 65.5% female).  Participants completed a survey which assessed students’ demographics, alcohol consumption in the past 30 days (via Daily Drinking Questionnaire) and perceptions of their personal drinking changes since the pandemic lockdowns, as well as that of their peers.  Specifically, students were asked how each of the following changed for them as well as their peers: the frequency of alcohol consumption, amount of alcohol consumed per occasion, and number of binge drinking occasions.  Data analysis was performed using bivariate correlations and multiple regression analysis.   

Results of the study found that, overall, the sample population reported decreased alcohol use during the initial month of the pandemic lockdown.  Students also reported overall lower perceptions of peer alcohol use. In the students who perceived increased alcohol use among their peers, their estimates were inaccurately high (19.98%-28.21% perceived proportion of students increasing alcohol intake vs. 2.67 to 10.45% of students reporting alcohol consumption increase).  Students who reported moving home with their parents during the lockdown reported lower rates of all measures of alcohol consumption, as well as lower perceived rates of peer alcohol consumption.   

Takeaway: while perception of peer alcohol intake may be greater than reality, a larger number of college students have decreased alcohol intake as a result of the pandemic.  The authors attribute this phenomenon to a number of factors related to social distancing, bar closings, inability to visit friends, etc. More research is needed to address the changes in college student behavior that have been influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Graupensperger S, Jaffe AE, Fleming CNB, Kilmer JR, Lee CM, Larimer ME. Changes in College Student Alcohol Use During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Are Perceived Drinking Norms Still Relevant? Emerging Adulthood. Published online March 12, 2021:2167696820986742. doi:10.1177/2167696820986742