The Relationship Between Motives and Peer Drinking Norms in Undergraduates - Kim Ongaro (2014)

This study investigated the relationship between motives for drinking (i.e., enhancement, social, coping-anxiety, coping-depression, and conformity) and perceived peer drinking norms (i.e., descriptive and injunctive) in undergraduate students. It was hypothesized that social, enhancement, and coping-anxiety motives would have a significant positive relationship with both descriptive and injunctive norms, while conformity would have a significant positive relationship with descriptive norms, but not injunctive norms. The sample consisted of 196 undergraduate students (84% female, mean age = 21.6 years) from Lakehead University. Social and enhancement motives were found to have a significant positive relationship with both descriptive and injunctive norms. Coping-anxiety was significantly related to descriptive and injunctive norms. Conformity and coping-depression did not have a significant relationship with either type of norm. These findings suggest that peer-drinking norms are differentially related to motives for alcohol use and may provide an area for exploration of intervention strategies.