Drinking motives and alcohol use among college students with the alcohol flush reaction

Abstract

ABSTRACTBackgroundThis study investigated the relationship between drinking motives and alcohol use among a nationally representative sample of college students with the alcohol flush reaction (AFR). We surveyed and analyzed the data of 2,245 male and 2,326 female college students in a nationally representative sample of 82 colleges in South Korea.MethodsOf our study population, 725 males (32.3%) and 812 females (34.9%) reported to currently suffering from AFR. Multiple regression analysis was used to identify the association between drinking motives and drinking behavior, measured via the AUDIT.ResultsRelative to drinking because of peer pressure, students drinking for pleasure (males: β = 2.622,p<.0001; females β = 2.769,p<.0001) or stress/depression (males: β = 2.479,p<.0001; females β = 2.489,p<.0001) had higher AUDIT scores. Among students drinking because of stress/depression, seniors (males: β = 3.603,p<.0001; females: β = 3.791,p= 0.000), smokers (males: β = 1.564,p= 0.000; females β = 1.816,p= 0.007) and/or liberal arts students (males: β = 6.1136,p<.0001; females β = 4.2105,p<.0001) consumed more alcohol than their peers. Relative to conformity motives, enhancement and coping motives were found to have a greater influence on alcohol intake among college students with alcohol flush reaction.ConclusionConsidering that the flush reaction can occur in AFR individuals after just one sip of wine, our results show that educators and policymakers must take action to deal with this problem.