History

• Binge drinking has gotten more attention in recent years.Image by Flickr.com, courtesy of woodley wonderworks
  
  Worried about the health and safety implications of hosting a nonstop party, culture administrators first looked toward tougher state laws to control it. The first steps occurred during the 1980s, when a newly conservative political mood emboldened many states to raise their minimum drinking ages from 18 to 21. Fraternity and sorority culture also became a major focus of crackdowns, with chapters pushed to ban alcohol, or even move off campus altogether. Critics warned that this approach merely shifted the spotlight away from other dangerous trends, such as an upsurge in binge drinking.
  
  

Types

• High-risk behavior peaks at public events.Image by Flickr.com, courtesy of Darin Barry
  
  The phenomenon of binges--or, essentially, consuming four or more drinks per hour--has provided an especially difficult challenge. Starting in the 1990s, colleges began implementing many tough measures, such as banning events known for displays of high-risk behavior like tailgate parties. A December 2003 study from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation suggested that while these efforts reduced the overall problem, they had little or no impact on binge drinking. A review of student surveys filled out between 1993 and 1997 suggested that binge-drinking rates hovered around 40 percent.
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Effects

• On closer analysis, the foundation's study suggested that binge drinkers are a small but isolated group whose behavior poses special challenges for college outreach programs. Essentially, students who fell into this category got more drunk more often, and were more likely to experience problems from their risky behavior, such as alcohol-related accidents, the study suggested. Unmarried white males 23 and under who had never joined fraternities were deemed at greatest risk.
  
  

Applications

• Applying the environmental management approach begins with a recognition of which groups need to be targeted, according to the center's website, higheredcenter.org. By one estimate cited from a 2002 study, 31 percent of college students met the criteria for alcohol abuse, and 6 percent for dependency, the site stated. Yet the same study noted that non-dependent, high-risk drinkers accounted for most of the problems. Based on those results, the center proposes that colleges should not overlook students who drink heavily, or misuse occasionally.
  
  

Prevention/Solution

• Reaching students in isolation is considered increasingly unviable.Image by Flickr.com, courtesy of doll damned
  
  Taking the "high" out of higher education requires an equally multifaceted approach, in the center's eyes. Traditional college outreach programs for drug abuse have been aimed at students in isolation, but not reduced high-risk behaviors. Instead, colleges might be better off tailoring such programs to specific times of year, such as freshmen orientations, or traditional high-risk times like Halloween, the center's site argues. Many colleges have begun incorporating prevention and safety messages into their courses, too. Known as "curriculum infusion," the center considers this process an effective way to reinforce whatever steps are already being taken to reduce risky behaviors.