millerboycott.com

Researchers at Duke University have identified the two primary drivers for stress-related college student drinking. According to a study published in the journal Biology of Mood & Anxiety Disorders in which 200 students participated, a strong need for a reward and the lack of fear of negative consequences heavily influence heavy campus drinking.

“Imagine the push and pull of opposing drives when a mouse confronts a hunk of cheese in a trap. Too much drive for the cheese and too little fear of the trap leads to one dead mouse,” study researcher Ahmad Hariri, professor of psychology and neuroscience at Duke University, said in a statement.

In the study, fMRI scans were conducted on participants, and researchers looked for activity in the reward and fear centers of the brain. According to the Huffington Post,

Scientists found that students who reported stress-related alcohol abuse also had high reactivity in the amygdala brain region’s threat circuitry and the ventral striatum brain region’s reward circuitry.

This ground-breaking study presents ample opportunity for pre-screening students who may be at risk for stress-related consumption.

Choose Responsibility Blog

We extend our condolences to the Washington State University community and the family of Kenneth Hummel, who died this weekend from alcohol poisoning.

The 18-year old Hummel had a blood alcohol reading of 0.40 when he died early Saturday morning. Police found him unconscious in his dorm room, after his peers had called the police.

In the wake of campus alcohol courses, peer intervention groups, extended campus counseling, and more, it is sometimes difficult to understand how nearly 2,000 students die annually from alcohol related injuries. Within the next week, we will begin posting testimonials from college students that answer the questions, “What is the single largest determinant in your drinking? And what most deters you from drinking to excess?”

Choose Responsibility Blog

Students are still using the library and other services at Brandon University as their professors strike.
Manitoba stories

The only silver lining that can come out of a tragedy is the commitment to make sure that others avoid that same fate. After the events of 9/11/2001, ‘never again’ was the attitude towards domestic terrorism. University of Wyoming said ‘never again’ to a different terror: drunk driving.

On September 16, 2001, eight members of the University of Wyoming cross-country team were killed when their SUV was hit by a drunk driver, also a student. No matter how large, colleges and universities always feel small when a member of the community is taken away. The entire campus came together and mourned.

But afterward, University of Wyoming declared that they would do whatever it takes to ensure that such a tragedy would never again occur. UW has aggressively promoted initiatives to combat underage drinking and drunk driving on their campus, to ensure that students fully know the consequences of each. They’ve partnered with the surrounding town of Laramie with a focus on alcohol issues, and joined 35 other colleges and universities in addressing dangerous binge drinking.

As a result, binge drinking at the university has fallen 12% over the past two years. More students report using designated drivers. However, both in Laramie and around the country, work remains to be done. Until we can finally say that tragedies like the one in Laramie will never again occur, we will continue our work.

[Washington Post]

Century Council Blog