Alcohol use is a significant public health concern among adolescents and college students. Not only is underage alcohol use a health concern, but also increases poor academic performance, vandalism, mental health issues, and more among college campuses. Therefore, reducing use and the risks associated with use is a major goal of college campuses and there are new evidence-based tools designed to help.
The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism published CollegeAIM in September 2015. CollegeAIM is an evidence-based tool for education administrators and campus health professionals to develop prevention strategies to reduce harmful underage drinking. It can be used for campus officials to identify high-risk groups and then create a strategic plan to effectively decrease drinking risks. CollegeAIM is successful in targeting students at an individual and interpersonal level through education and counseling. In the community, enforcing the 21 age drinking limit, restricting happy hours and promotions, and Sunday alcohol bans have been effective. The only institutional strategy through CollegeAIM that was effective was prohibiting alcohol use/sales at sporting events. CollegeAIM helps college campuses identify the areas that they should target to create change in alcohol use.
Another tool that has been developed to prevent underage alcohol use is a mobile app called “Talk. They Hear You”. This tool is geared more towards adolescents before they enter college and is specifically designed to equip parents to discuss alcohol use with their children. This app has been successful in overcoming common barriers that adults face when trying to have this kind of discussion, and therefore can potentially decrease adolescent drinking habits.
Evidence-based tools such as CollegeAIM and “Talk. They Hear You” are important because not only do they discourage use of less effective prevention strategies, but they can help create positive outcomes in college alcohol use and delay alcohol use onset in those who are underage.
Take Away: Tool that use social influence as evidence to prevent underage drinking can be effective in decreasing risk of underage drinking on college campuses as well as delaying alcohol use in underage adolescents and young adults.