Responds to previous article by Koocher regarding use of experimental drinking procedures with alcoholic participants. Focuses on risk-benefit analysis, safeguarding participants from harm, linking alcoholic participants with treatment, use of monetary incentives, fostering pathology of the alcoholic family, and relationships between alcoholism…

Alcohol abuse is linked strongly with neuropsychological deficits that may resemble deficits seen in head-injured individuals. Heavy daily drinking appears more damaging than episodic abusive consumption. Cognitive deficits associated with alcohol include abstraction, perceptuospatial, and problem-solving skills. For alcoholics younger than 40,…

Briefly examines research on prevention and promotion, then presents extended look at one recent effort to describe the power of promotion for reducing substance use and a wide range of other risk-taking behaviors. Moves away from preoccupation with disease, deficit, and deviance by targeting crucial strengths and assets that must be addressed to…

Proposes that psychosocial needs to participate in rites of passage rituals are normal and necessary as college students move from adolescence to adulthood and that, lacking sanctioned alternatives, college students frequently use alcohol for rites of passage rituals. Suggests that university officials should encourage student groups to design and…

The economic costs of drug and alcohol abuse in the workplace are enormous. A new analysis of an International Labour Organisation (ILO) 5-year transnational program involving management and unions has shown positive results in decreasing drug and alcohol problems. (JOW)

Measures religious proscriptiveness through three types of faith groups-proscriptive, moderate, and nonproscriptive. Reports that a significant difference of religious proscriptiveness was found on alcohol use of high school students. Unlike previous findings, the impact of religious proscriptiveness was not significant on binge drinking. Using…

State and local alcohol policies can minimize opportunities for people to use alcohol, thereby reducing consumption and alcohol-related problems. Little is known, however, about the prevalence of campus policies aimed at reducing college students' alcohol use and related problems. The authors surveyed school administrators in Minnesota and…

A study shows that moderate drinking is associated with 10 percent higher income earnings whereas as heavy drinking is associated with 12 percent higher income. Smoking, however, has reverse trends.

Objective: Given the substantial increase in nonmedical prescription drug use in recent years and a lack of research on the topic, the author analyzed data on nonmedical prescription drug use among college students. Participants and Methods: Using data from the 2001 College Alcohol Study (N = 10,904), the author examined variation in nonmedical…

A survey on campus culture and alcohol use was completed by 1,864 first-year students in their first semester of enrollment at a large public Midwest university. Twenty-four percent of these students agreed that students can do nothing about alcohol abuse as part of campus culture, as opposed to 46% disagreeing with this statement and 24% standing…

The purpose of this study is to examine the problem behavior and self-medication models of alcohol abuse in incarcerated male adolescents. Male adolescents (N = 56) incarcerated in a juvenile correction facility were administered a battery of psychological measures. Approximately 84% of adolescents with clinically significant alcohol-related…

The objective of this study was to describe the predictors of substance use relapse of American Indian (AI) women up to one year following substance abuse treatment. Relapse is defined as any use of alcohol or drugs in the past 30 days at the follow-up points. Data were collected from AI women in a 45-day residential substance abuse treatment…

This study identifies longitudinal psychiatric trajectories of 934 adult individuals entering chemical dependency treatment in a private, managed care health plan and examines the relationship of these trajectories with substance use (SU) outcomes. The authors apply a group-based modeling approach to identify trajectory groups based on repeated…

Approximately 40% of college students reported engaging in heavy episodic or "binge" drinking in the 2 weeks prior to being surveyed. Research indicates that college students suffering from depression are more likely to report experiencing negative consequences related to their drinking than other students are. The reasons for this…

The Center for Collegiate Mental Health (CCMH) represents a collaborative, multi-disciplinary effort combining the expertise of mental health treatment providers, psychological researchers, industry, and information sciences and technology. This report outlines a preliminary effort to describe the range of information on college student mental…