If you titled your last photo album on Facebook as “Gettin’ wasted with my girls” or “Soooooo drunk,” then you may have a drinking problem.
That’s according to a recent study published online by the Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine, and supported by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) as well as the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA).
Researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the University of Washington surveyed the public Facebook profiles of over 300 undergraduate students. The researchers then divided the profiles into three categories, “those with no alcohol references, those with alcohol references but no references to intoxication or problem drinking, and those with references to ‘being drunk,’ ‘getting wasted,’ or other terms they deemed suggestive of problem drinking behavior.”
“We found that underage college students who referenced dangerous drinking habits, such as intoxication or blacking out, were more likely to have AUDIT scores that indicate problem drinking or alcohol-related injury,” said author Megan A. Moreno, M.D., assistant professor of adolescent medicine at the University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Medicine and Public Health. “Underage college students and adolescents frequently display references to alcohol on Facebook. Our study suggests that parents and college health care providers who note references to problem drinking on the Facebook profiles of adolescents should consider discussing drinking habits with their children and patients.”
The college students they surveyed were invited to complete an online version of the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT), a screening tool that clinicians use to measure problem drinking. An AUDIT score of 8 or higher indicates an individual is at risk for problem drinking. The three groups in the study had average AUDIT scores of 4.7 (those with no alcohol references), 6.7 (those with alcohol references but none to problem drinking), and 9.5, respectively (those with references to problem drinking).
The researchers determined that college students who post references to dangerous drinking habits on Facebook are more likely to have clinically-significant alcohol problems than students who don’t post such references.
Experts say that since many college students don’t seek preventive health care at their respective health centers, social networking sites are one way of honestly and accurately identifying college students who are at risk for problem drinking.
What do you think, collegiettes™? With Facebook being such a typical outlet for students to post partying pictures and statuses, do you think these findings accurately reflect college students? Share your opinions in the box below!