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Article
Alcohol Abuse by University Students and its Relationship to Sociomoral Reasoning
Journal of Alcohol and Drug Education
  • Frances H. Montgomery, Missouri University of Science and Technology
  • Robert Montgomery, Missouri University of Science and Technology
  • Sheri L. Cowell
Abstract

The domain approach to sociomoral reasoning is concerned with how individuals view decisions about the use of alcohol. This investigation examined the relationship between episodes of binge drinking by undergraduates (N=592) and the extent to which students saw decisions about alcohol-use as involving five domains of sociomoral reasoning: personal choice, morality, social convention, prudentially acceptable, and prudentially unacceptable concerns. Overall, the results showed that the undergraduates who abused alcohol the most used their thinking skills in an immature manner which emphasized personal choice and the lack of rules against drinking and denied possible personal and interpersonal harm from alcohol-use and abuse. Implications of these findings for college alcohol education programs are discussed regarding the importance of taking into account the values that students possess with regard to the decisions they make about alcohol-use.

Department(s)
Psychological Science
Comments
Frances M. Montgomery published as Frances M. Haemmerlie
Keywords and Phrases
  • Compulsive behavior,
  • Drinking behavior
Document Type
Article - Journal
Document Version
Citation
File Type
text
Language(s)
English
Rights
© 1999 American Alcohol and Drug Information Foundation, All rights reserved.
Publication Date
12-1-1999
Publication Date
01 Dec 1999
Disciplines
Citation Information
Frances H. Montgomery, Robert Montgomery and Sheri L. Cowell. "Alcohol Abuse by University Students and its Relationship to Sociomoral Reasoning" Journal of Alcohol and Drug Education Vol. 44 Iss. 2 (1999) p. 29 - 43
Available at: http://works.bepress.com/frances-montgomery/1/