Alcohol use in college students is a multifaceted problem which can cause harm to student populations. Alcohol use has been associated with poor cognitive functioning, decreased physical health outcomes, and a litany of social issues related to increased violence, motor vehicle accidents, sexual assault, etc. While surveys of alcohol use have established the scope of the problem, little research exists concerning the behavioral factors which may predict use. Additionally, there is a dearth of research concerning substance use, in general, in transgender individuals- a population which may already be at increased risk for behavioral health conditions. This study aims to identify associations between alcohol use and sexual encounters in a sample of transgender college students.
The study’s analytic sample is derived from a large national study titled the Online College Social Life survey, conducted across 22 post-secondary institutions in the United States. Response data from a total of 36 students was used, according to inclusion criteria of transgender identification, prior alcohol use, and current enrollment. The following variables were included in the study’s measures: alcohol use in the timeframe of a hookup, heavy episodic drinking, sexual history, sexual risks, contraception use, and general sexual protection use. The data was analyzed using descriptive statistics.
Results of the analysis found the majority of the sample reported at least one hookup since enrolling in their college/university (69.4%), and about half reported alcohol use occurring around the time of the hookup encounter. Heavy episodic drinking was involved in the vast majority of alcohol-associated hookups (84.6%), and high-risk sexual behavior was reported in a quarter of individuals with a history of alcohol-associated hookups (24%).
Takeaway: transgender individuals share at least comparable rates of heavy episodic drinking with cisgender individuals, and this paper suggests the rate may be even higher. Hookups associated with alcohol use may pose a variety of consequences to transgender individual. Transgender health and wellness is an understudied subject matter, and additional research is needed in order to improve the wellbeing of individuals within this underserved demographic.