Website to tackle student drinking

An innovative way to tackle the growing problem of excessive drinking amongst students, a population whose drinking habits traditionally highlighted as indicative of carefree and transient lifestyle, has been launched by the University of Leeds.

As part of its e-UNICAL Project, funded by a grant from the European Advisory Research Board, the University has developed the country’s first interactive website designed specifically for UK students, which aims to help them reduce their consumption of alcohol. If it proves to be successful, then it could be implemented across theUK to other universities, and populations within the same age range.

The project will use tailored online feedback based on reported alcohol consumption in order to raise awareness amongst students, and help them make informed decisions about their drinking. It aims to reduce consumption by 10% in two years, following feedback from the UNIQOLL student experience survey which the University has been running fo rsix years. The findings showed that, in common with all young adults, a proportion of students had a high alcohol intake.

The first phase of the project, now close to completion, involves three hundred student volunteers providing information on their drinking habits via the website; they will then receive tailored feedback in relation to the ‘sensible drinking’ guidelines, but will also receive information on their drinking in relation to fellow students. Indeed, principal investigator and project manager Bridgette Bewick from the Psychological Therapies Research Centre suggests that “students tend to overestimate how much their peers are drinking, and giving students personalised feedback that they’re in a high-risk category can act as a wake-up call.” Feedback will be given on students’ perceptions of how drinking is impacting on their health, their studies, and - a top priority for students - their finances.

The project has received anoverwhelming uptake from the students, and over 1000 students have volunteered to participate, hugely exceeding the original sample of 300. “The fact that the students are willing to engage and participate in such a project shows that they find it relevant, and that they are thinking about their drinking”, says Bridgette.

The website, built by the University’s information systems services department, is currently only available to the volunteers. “If the trial is successful in reducing alcohol consumption and binge drinking it will provide an effective and low-cost tool that could be used not only by the University of Leeds but also by student populations across the UK and Europe,” said Bridgette.

Evidence shows that online surveys can be an effective method of data collection amongst certain populations, and there is an increasing use of the Internet as a tool for social research. “There is a growing interest in the health professions in using online resources to change the way people behave, and the widespread availability of low-cost IT makes the internet a great potential source for instigating change”, claims Bridgette.