Urban University Students' Knowledge of Alcohol and Drinking‪.‬

Abstract: Empirical data suggest that alcohol is still the number one drug of choice on college campuses and that a large proportion of college students drink. Drinking among college students has traditionally been a part of the college experience. This research project examined the drinking patterns and problems of university students and specifically focused on the knowledge of urban university students related to alcohol use and drinking patterns. A cross-sectional survey research design was utilized. Twelve hundred and nines-six (1,296) students completed and returned the survey. The survey tool was a modified version of the Student Alcohol Questionnaire (SAQ) and The Alcohol Attitude Scale developed by Engs (1977) and Hanson (1972). Cronbach's alpha was .88. The instrument was modified to include a section of questions related to the urban experience. A socio-demographic profile also was included to collect information about gender, race, age, level of education, professional program, health status, employment status, and distance students resided from the university. Descriptive analysis was used to profile the socio-demographic variables. Data was tested by Chisquare analysis, using the cross-tabulation method. Multivariate analyses of variance and covariance were used to examine the effect of background characteristics. SPSS statistical procedures were used to analyze the data. Results indicated that urban university students overall knowledge of alcohol and alcohol effects were generally low. **********