An exploratory study into university women’s drinking habits

Objective: This project aims to study alcohol consumption patterns of female University students at Rhodes University in South Africa. Method: Online survey completed by 503 first-year female and male students in 2015; the survey had demographic questions, AUDIT, and 9 item Drinking Context Scale. Quantitative analysis using independent t-test and chi-square test was used to find statistical significance in gender differences. Results: There are more women alcohol abstainers than men. Of the women who drink, a higher proportion of them drink more hazardously than men. The main consequence of Heavy Episodic Drinking (HED) in women is negative emotions after drinking, however, the overall consequence score of drinking for women and men is not the same. Additionally, men are statistically more likely to drink beer more than women and there is a low significant association between more women drinking wine than males. There is a low significant correlation between higher pocket money women get and high AUDIT Consumption score. Women are most likely going to drink excessively in social events with people they trust but are least likely to drink like that with their intimate partners or using alcohol to cope with negative emotions. Conclusions: Women engage in a lot of binge drinking at social gatherings with close friends and then regret the event after the festivities, thus healthier convivial drinking habits must be encouraged