Conferring Meaning onto Alcohol-Related Violence: An Analysis of Alcohol Use and Gender in a Sample of College Youth.

Abstract: 

Alcohol-related violence among youth remains a significant social problem. This study examines the meanings students attach to alcohol-related violence. Seventy-eight in-depth, face-to-face interviews were conducted with college students at a mid-sized, mid-Atlantic university. The perceptions of these college students are analyzed for social meaning of alcohol-related violence. As to their experiences with alcohol-related violence, respondents overwhelmingly believed alcohol to be causally related to violence, especially for young males whose behavior was viewed as demonstrative of "macho" behavior. The gendered nature of alcohol-related violence on campus, its expectation among students, and its tie to socio-cultural constructs of masculinity are discussed in reference to future research and social policy.