Recent studies have indicated that American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) young adults have higher rates of heavy alcohol use and alcohol use disorder (AUD) when compared to other racial/ethnic groups of the same age. Alcohol use during young adulthood can lead to a variety of issues throughout adulthood such as problematic drinking, health inequities, and early mortality. Individual alcohol use is also thought to be influenced by normative misconceptions related to the frequency and amount of peer alcohol consumption and peer approval of drinking. This study examines the influence of descriptive and injunctive drinking norms on alcohol use among AI/AN college students.

                The study’s sample consisted of 356 AI/AN college students from a large, public, Southern Plains university. Participants completed an online survey that assessed daily alcohol use during a typical week and alcohol-related consequences. Descriptive norms were assessed by asking participants to estimate how much alcohol four groups consume (typical male/female student and AI/AN male/female student). Injunctive norms were measured by participants to report the maximum number of drinks they believe each group consumes. Participants also completed the Scale of Ethnic Experience (SEE) to measure cultural identification. Data was analyzed using repeated measures analyses of variance (ANOVAs) and negative binomial regressions.

                Results of the data analysis showed that male participants consumed more alcohol per week than females, but there were no significant gender differences in number of alcohol-related consequences experienced. Participants overestimated gender-specific descriptive and injunctive norms for all groups except AI/AN males. Students estimated lower alcohol consumption for AI/AN groups than non-AI/AN groups for both descriptive and injunctive norms. The negative binomial regression analyses indicated that for women only best female friend descriptive norms significantly predicted drinks per week. Among men, descriptive AI/AN male, descriptive best male friend, and injunctive typical male norms significantly predicted drinking for men. Ethnic identity was not a significant moderator between perceived and actual alcohol consumption.

Takeaway: Social norms regarding alcohol consumption may provide predictive value when assessing drinking among American Indian/Alaska Native college students.

Lopez, S.V., Leffingwell, T.R., Cole, A.B.. Social norms of alcohol use among American Indian/Alaska Native college students [published online ahead of print, 2022 May 16]. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors. 2022;10.1037/adb0000835. doi:10.1037/adb0000835