Intoxication and Crime Risk

Abstract

Despite low overall crime rates, physical and sexual attacks are not uncommon at many American residential universities and colleges based, in part, on a strong association between intoxication and crime risk. Drawing upon concepts from a routine activities perspective and using ordinal logistic regression, this study contextualizes the effects of students’ “party” routines on their risk of recurrent crime victimization while at college. Findings show that, for women, spending time at bars doubles their risks of repeat physical attack and unwanted sexual contact. For men, crime risk is better predicted by types of substances used. Specifically, alcohol and pharmaceutical drugs increase men’s risk of repeat physical attack, whereas marijuana decreases risk. Still, marijuana use is the only routine that increases risk of repeat rape for both women and men. Implications of findings for student safety and strategies for reducing recurrent victimization within a party context are discussed.