El cofán en la escuela

This section addresses themes that relate to the interviewees’ perceptions of the students’ use of alcohol. It includes views on the drinking habits of the students and the influences that affect student drinking. A common underlying theme is that of culture and diversity, reflected both in terms of the nature of the student population and the approaches to alcohol use. The university has a considerable mix of students both from home and abroad, international as well as European students. In addition, it is a relatively closed society with specific cultural expectations that centre around learning, personal development and a particular type of social life which, traditionally, has involved expectations about alcohol use. Interviewees viewed students’ use of alcohol within the higher educational establishments in a number of ways that reflected all of these aspects - the particular nature of HE, society in general and the diversity of cultures or social norms relating to alcohol use that students brought with them.

4.2.1.1 The student drinking culture

On the whole, the predominant view of the interviewees was that students drank alcohol and often drank it immoderately. Interviewees considered that students had cultural expectations about drinking at university and that alcohol use was part of their youth or student culture. The university was viewed as a context in which drinking alcohol, and often excessive levels of alcohol, was expected. One interviewee spoke for many, when he said ‘I just think it‟s

part of the culture of being at uni‟. In addition they also noted the particular sub-culture

associated with sports activities and sports teams, where excessive drinking was often assumed to be mandatory.

A common view of those academic and support staff who worked directly with students was that first years or ‘freshers’, particularly those who arrive directly from school and are living away from home for the first time, seemed to enter university with expectations about a social culture involving high levels of alcohol use and that their experiences in the first few weeks appeared to confirm this. Those students who did not share this view were seen to come under considerable pressure to develop this alcohol intensive form of sociability and this was especially the case for those living in halls who were considered particularly vulnerable to peer pressure to drink. ‘We have noticed with first years, coming into halls they sort of seem

under a lot of pressure to, you know, take part in that culture of very regular heavy drinking. It seems expected really and this is what, this is what we hear from the students‟. Often this

view was expressed in a somewhat resigned or accepting way - that the student drinking culture was something that was not new, that there was a long tradition of student socialisation involving alcohol and that this was a temporary phase that would change once they graduated. Many drew similarities with their own experiences whilst students, although some pointed to the higher levels of alcohol that students now consumed compared to the amount drunk when they were studying at university. However, some HE institutional interviewees such as the counsellors or college nurses, who were more likely to interact with students experiencing alcohol related problems, tended to view this culture less sanguinely. They pointed to changes in the type of student drinking behaviour in more recent years such as the greater emphasis on drinking to get drunk, rather than alcohol as an adjunct to social life, and the broader social changes involving greater acceptability of excessive alcohol use. They were less likely to view it as a relatively harmless phase of life. These more concerned views were also held by many of the interviewees drawn from the external agencies, especially those involved in the provision of alcohol or health services, who were also more directly aware of the adverse consequences of excessive drinking.

There were occasional challenges to this predominant view of a culture of alcohol excess. Interviewees from the student union executive and some of the academic staff, considered that the transition to fees and the emphasis on graduate level jobs had shifted the student culture to a more responsible one, as the following extract illustrates „but with the rising tuition fees …

the culture has changed quite a bit as well‟. Positive comparisons over disorder in the town

centre were made by the police, the nightclubs and members of the student union. The club nights at the weekend were seen to be more problematic than the student nights. As one interviewee said „it‟s a lot crazier and hectic than on the student nights‟. Domestic and support staff referred to the reduction in alcohol related incidents on campus in recent years. Some other interviewees also questioned whether student drinking could be differentiated from that of other groups in society. They perceived an increase in alcohol consumption, and especially in binge drinking, within young people generally and considered that student patterns of drinking were representative of trends within the wider society. Reference was also made to young people entering university having already developed a pattern of excessive alcohol consumption during their time at school. Thus this was not so much a university culture but a young peoples’ culture of alcohol consumption that was played out in the university environment. Interviewees’ views on the factors that were supportive of such a culture are considered in the following section.

4.2.1.2 The social context

Interviewees discussed student drinking within the context of the wider society which seemed to encourage alcohol use and be more tolerant of alcohol misuse and excessive drinking. Students were not differentiated from other young people and were assumed to be influenced by those factors that were affecting the drinking behaviour of all young people. The increased use of alcohol in the media, in sport, etc. was seen to support the acceptability of drinking in social and celebratory settings as well as its therapeutic use in coping and dealing with stressful events. The generational changes whereby children are exposed to alcohol at an early age through being allowed in pubs and clubs were noted and considered to contribute to a situation in which young people drank alcohol more readily. As one external interviewee said ‘we‟ve had toddlers running about in the bar for the last 20 years and they‟re now 18

year olds running around in the bar and culturally that‟s been an OK thing to do‟. The effect

of increased parental drinking in the home was also noted whereby young people were more exposed to alcohol, often drinking it at an earlier age, and parents were less able to guide youngsters in to drinking sensibly when their own behaviour was not always sensible. As one interviewee put it - „I don‟t see how you can drink at home and say to people “don‟t go out

and get drunk” if the kids have seen you drunk the night before‟ .

The majority of interviewees drew attention to perceived changes in the public’s view of drunkenness and excessive drinking typified by the following observation that getting drunk is ‘more socially acceptable to some extent‟. In addition, changes to legislation governing licensing and the types of alcohol promotion such as ‘happy hours’ were also viewed as contributory factors to the increase in excessive drinking. Such changes were set against a background of general social change in terms of attitudes and acceptability of behaviours, especially in relation to intoxication in public, which would not have been accepted several decades previously. However, some interviewees considered that the UK had „always been a

binge drinking culture‟ and didn’t think that the amount of excessive drinking had increased

young people revolved around changes in the way in which the city centres were used and the increased visibility of young peoples’ drinking as a consequence of the increased dominance of youth and students and the reduced presence of older adults in the town centres. However, there was some contradiction here, with references also being made to young people having more money available to spend and reduced prices for alcohol, especially in the supermarkets, that contributed to increased consumption, often at home.

4.2.1.3 Student diversity

Whilst interviewees referred to the prevailing culture of alcohol consumption within the University, they also pointed to exceptions from that culture arising from the changing nature of the student body. The increasingly diverse nature of undergraduates was noted and the alcohol related issues arising in consequence were raised. Such issues related to contrasts arising from differences in nationality, religion, ethnicity, age and place of residence. We examine each of those aspects in greater depth in the later section on problems where we explore interviewees’ views of the difficulties inherent in reconciling the needs of the various groups. Here the point is raised that, within the university and its partner colleges, there are those students who, for a variety of reasons, abstain from drinking alcohol, or drink alcohol rarely.

Not all of this difference in consumption arises from personal choice on the part of the students. Some reflected differences in the institutions in which they were based. In the colleges, interviewees reported that the majority of students are not legally able to drink alcohol and those 18 year olds in HE are in the minority. The younger age of the main student body affects the institution’s approach to alcohol, so the majority of the partner colleges ban alcohol consumption except in the bars or restaurant during specific times. Thus HE students living on-campus are not able to consume alcohol in their residences. Interviewees within the colleges therefore did not perceive the predominant culture to be a drinking culture. However, they did note that the students increasingly pressed for greater access to alcohol on site and were not immune from the pressures of the general youth culture of excessive drinking as this extract shows ‘they want to sit in their rooms and have a drink

before they go to town’.

Interviewees noted the increasing variety in students attending university and its relevance to alcohol consumption. They noted that the proportion of mature students to traditional school leavers was rising and many younger students now chose to stay at home, rather than move away to attend university. Such differences were seen to affect the students’ approach to alcohol and their patterns of consumption, and challenged the assumption of a unified drinking culture. Patterns of socialising for those living at home were less likely to change on entry to university and more likely to resemble those of young people in the community. Mature students, many with family responsibilities, were also likely to have patterns of socialisation and alcohol consumption that differed from those of the younger student. Interviewees also referred to international students and students coming from different cultural and ethnic backgrounds who often had attitudes to alcohol that differed from the mainstream students and thus were more likely to abstain from drinking. Similarly they commented that different religious affiliations, whether to Christianity or other religions, also influenced the students’ approach to alcohol and drinking behaviour and was associated with abstention or very moderate forms of consumption.