More Abusers, More Abstainers

The ranks of Harvard students who get drunk are growing, but so are the numbers of those who don't touch alcohol.

That's one conclusion in a recent survey by The Medical Foundation, which polled 400 Harvard students between 1977 and 1981 for a 16-college study. The Boston health-research firm released the study and a similar one it conducted in 1977 to The Crimson, which published them last month. The Harvard data was about 11 percent of the 3377-student poll. Officials found few differences between results for Harvard and for the other 15 New England colleges.

Fewer than 90 percent of Harvard students in the 1981 survey said they ever drink beer, wine and liquor, down from more than 96 percent in the 1977 survey.

And when asked to describe their drinking habits, nearly 18 percent called themselves "abstainers"--up from 13 percent in 1977.

But officials said other statistics revealed that increasing numbers were consuming more alcohol with less concern. They said these results tempered hopes that nationwide efforts to stem drinking among college students was working:

* The percentage of male self-described heavy drinkers rose from 2.6 to 6.5 from 1977 to 1981, and the percentage of women heavy drinkers jumped from zero to 3.1.

* The percentage of males getting drunk more than once a month soared from 4 percent in 1977 to 8.7 percent in 1981, and the percentage of women getting drunk rose from 7 percent to 2.3 percent in the same time period.

Experts worry about the rate of heavy drinking among students because of evidence suggesting a strong link between drinking habits established during college with those evident among the adult population.

A further source of concern some doctors and officials cited was the apparent lack of concern about drinking.

The survey of Harvard students found

* Among men, 77 percent said they were "not at all" concerned about drinking and its consequences, up from 58.1 percent, and 85.3 percent of women were concerned "not at all," up from 74 percent.

* Among men, 40.5 percent drink "to get drunk," up from 18.5 percent, and 25 percent of women consume alcohol "to get drunk," a marked jump from 6.2 percent in the 1977 poll.

These trends, administrators said, justify continued attempts to reduce student drinking, especially through peer-counseling. For the most part, officials said, such efforts prove more successful than programs such as campus drinking-awareness fairs, sponsored at numerous colleges in recent years.

"We know that in general large-scale alcohol educational programs are of limited value," Dean of Students Archie C. Epps III said recently.

"We are concerned about serious alcoholism, but ... we need to be more specific about how we address it, because it's difficult to affect behavior purely through programs of intervention," he added.

Epps said the College plans to redistribute a pamphlet describing the adverse effects with information about specific rates of consumption.

In addition to the booklet, Epps said the College will develop a network of "informal lay people" among House and Yard administrators who could advise students on alcohol use and its potential drawbacks. Harvard Students and Alcohol (Each response is on a 100% scale.) Frequency of Alcohol Use   Males  Females   '77  '81  '77  '81 Never  1.3  4.8  2.9  5.9 Less than once a month  5.2  14.3  12.5  15.5 1-2 times a week  38.1  34.1  38.1  32.0 Nearly every day  4.5  4.0  1.8  1.5

Harvard Students and Alcohol (Each response is on a 100% scale.) Self-Description   Males  Females   '77  '81  '77  '81 Abstainer  5.8  7.2  7.1  10.7 Light  29.0  26.4  31.6  24.4 Heavy  2.6  6.4  0.0  3.1

Harvard Students and Alcohol (Each response is on a 100% scale.) Reasons for Drinking   Males  Females   '77  '81  '77  '81 Just to be sociable  56.9  57.9  54.2  49.2 Forget problems  11.5  13.5  11.7  11.0 Relax, relieve tension  58.5  54.0  52.4  48.1 Colebrats occasions  87.1  76.2  86.4  78.1 Cheer up  12.9  23.0  16.0  21.7 Get drunk  18.5  40.5  6.2  25.0

Harvard Students and Alcohol (Each response is on a 100% scale.) Frequency of Getting Drunk   Males  Females   '77  '81  '77  '81 Never  19.5  29.0  43.8  32.6 Not in previous year  9.4  4.0  12.3  13.6 Less than once a month  45.0  32.5  34.9  29.6 Once a month  13.4  12.7  4.1  14.4 2-3 times a month  8.7  15.1  4.1  7.6 1-2 times a month  4.0  7.1  0.7  1.5 3-4 times a week  0.0  1.6  0.0  0.8

Harvard Students and Alcohol (Each response is on a 100% scale) Concern Over Drinking   Males  Females   '77  '81  '77  '81 A lot  1.4  0.0  0.0  1.6 Some  11.5  4.8  4.1  2.3 A little  27.7  18.3  17.8  10.9 Not at all  58.1  77.0  74.0  85.3

Harvard Students and Alcohol (Each response is on a 100% scale.) Self-Description   Males  Females   '77  '81  '77  '81 Abstainer  5.8  7.2  7.1  10.7 Light  29.0  26.4  31.6  24.4 Heavy  2.6  6.4  0.0  3.1

Harvard Students and Alcohol (Each response is on a 100% scale.) Reasons for Drinking   Males  Females   '77  '81  '77  '81 Just to be sociable  56.9  57.9  54.2  49.2 Forget problems  11.5  13.5  11.7  11.0 Relax, relieve tension  58.5  54.0  52.4  48.1 Colebrats occasions  87.1  76.2  86.4  78.1 Cheer up  12.9  23.0  16.0  21.7 Get drunk  18.5  40.5  6.2  25.0

Harvard Students and Alcohol (Each response is on a 100% scale.) Frequency of Getting Drunk   Males  Females   '77  '81  '77  '81 Never  19.5  29.0  43.8  32.6 Not in previous year  9.4  4.0  12.3  13.6 Less than once a month  45.0  32.5  34.9  29.6 Once a month  13.4  12.7  4.1  14.4 2-3 times a month  8.7  15.1  4.1  7.6 1-2 times a month  4.0  7.1  0.7  1.5 3-4 times a week  0.0  1.6  0.0  0.8

Harvard Students and Alcohol (Each response is on a 100% scale) Concern Over Drinking   Males  Females   '77  '81  '77  '81 A lot  1.4  0.0  0.0  1.6 Some  11.5  4.8  4.1  2.3 A little  27.7  18.3  17.8  10.9 Not at all  58.1  77.0  74.0  85.3

Harvard Students and Alcohol (Each response is on a 100% scale.) Reasons for Drinking   Males  Females   '77  '81  '77  '81 Just to be sociable  56.9  57.9  54.2  49.2 Forget problems  11.5  13.5  11.7  11.0 Relax, relieve tension  58.5  54.0  52.4  48.1 Colebrats occasions  87.1  76.2  86.4  78.1 Cheer up  12.9  23.0  16.0  21.7 Get drunk  18.5  40.5  6.2  25.0

Harvard Students and Alcohol (Each response is on a 100% scale.) Frequency of Getting Drunk   Males  Females   '77  '81  '77  '81 Never  19.5  29.0  43.8  32.6 Not in previous year  9.4  4.0  12.3  13.6 Less than once a month  45.0  32.5  34.9  29.6 Once a month  13.4  12.7  4.1  14.4 2-3 times a month  8.7  15.1  4.1  7.6 1-2 times a month  4.0  7.1  0.7  1.5 3-4 times a week  0.0  1.6  0.0  0.8

Harvard Students and Alcohol (Each response is on a 100% scale) Concern Over Drinking   Males  Females   '77  '81  '77  '81 A lot  1.4  0.0  0.0  1.6 Some  11.5  4.8  4.1  2.3 A little  27.7  18.3  17.8  10.9 Not at all  58.1  77.0  74.0  85.3

Harvard Students and Alcohol (Each response is on a 100% scale.) Frequency of Getting Drunk   Males  Females   '77  '81  '77  '81 Never  19.5  29.0  43.8  32.6 Not in previous year  9.4  4.0  12.3  13.6 Less than once a month  45.0  32.5  34.9  29.6 Once a month  13.4  12.7  4.1  14.4 2-3 times a month  8.7  15.1  4.1  7.6 1-2 times a month  4.0  7.1  0.7  1.5 3-4 times a week  0.0  1.6  0.0  0.8

Harvard Students and Alcohol (Each response is on a 100% scale) Concern Over Drinking   Males  Females   '77  '81  '77  '81 A lot  1.4  0.0  0.0  1.6 Some  11.5  4.8  4.1  2.3 A little  27.7  18.3  17.8  10.9 Not at all  58.1  77.0  74.0  85.3

Harvard Students and Alcohol (Each response is on a 100% scale) Concern Over Drinking   Males  Females   '77  '81  '77  '81 A lot  1.4  0.0  0.0  1.6 Some  11.5  4.8  4.1  2.3 A little  27.7  18.3  17.8  10.9 Not at all  58.1  77.0  74.0  85.3