The Influence of Movies on College Students Drinking and Smoking Habits

I studied the effects movies have on influencing college students to drink alcohol or smoke cigarettes and if there was a gender difference in who was influenced more by the movies. There have been many studies conducted on adolescents involving how much movies have influenced them to smoke or drink. However, my study focuses on college students and analyzes the impact films have had on them in their choice to drink or smoke. A total of 113 general psychology students completed a survey that was composed of questions created by students enrolled in Psychology 321, Research Methods, who were working on their own research report for the semester. A total of seven questions were asked by me in the survey involving whether movies influenced the participants to drink alcohol or smoke cigarettes. The end result of the study was that movies do not influence college students to drink alcohol or smoke cigarettes, thus accepting the null hypothesis and stating that movies do not influence college students in anyway. The second hypothesis of whether there is a gender difference also had the null hypothesis accepted. This conclusion suggests that other factors may contribute in the decision of college students to start smoking or drinking, such as peer pressure or living a difficult house environment. It is also recommended to analyze other forms of media as a source of influencing college students to drink alcohol or smoke cigarettes