Support networks may be the missing link for college students who seek help for excessive drinking

College students who want help overcoming high-risk drinking could benefit from a two-pronged approach that combines an individual-focused psychological theory with social network analysis.

That’s according to a new study from Texas A&M University School of Public Health Assistant Professor Benjamin Montemayor, PhD, and former doctoral student Sara Flores, both in the Department of Health Behavior.

High-risk drinking is defined as drinking resulting in a blood alcohol concentration of 0.08% or higher, the legal threshold for intoxication in the United States.

For more than three decades, between 30% and 40% of college students in the United States have engaged in this behavior, and today, about 16% meet the criteria for alcohol use disorder, informally known as alcoholism.

“Still, less than 10% seek help, even when they know they have a problem and even though many colleges and universities have significantly expanded their mental health and substance use resources in recent years,” Montemayor said. “We wanted to understand what psychological and social factors might help bridge this gap.”

The research, published in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, combines the Reasoned Action Approach with social network analysis to provide a more comprehensive understanding of help-seeking intentions.

“The Reasoned Action Approach examines how our beliefs about a behavior, what we think others would expect, and our perceived control over the situation influence our intentions to go through with a behavior,” Flores said. “Integrating social network analysis lets us also explore how these students are influenced by the people closest to them regarding their intention to seek help.”

For the study, Flores analyzed data collected from 1,447 full-time college students aged 18 to 24 who reported consuming alcohol within the past year. Participants completed surveys about their alcohol use, attitudes toward seeking help, and perceptions of alcohol use disorder stigma.

The students also identified up to five individuals to whom they felt closest, which Flores said provided insight into the social networks that may influence students’ decisions to seek support.

Statistical analyses revealed that the Reasoned Action Approach variables were important in shaping students’ intentions to seek help for alcohol use, accounting for nearly 40% of the variance in these intentions. The addition of social network characteristics increased the variance by a statistically significant 2.8%.

“This combination revealed something important that neither framework alone would have captured,” Flores said. “Students who believed that their closest connections strongly supported them in seeking help reported greater intentions to do so.”

This finding suggests that campus health services should leverage both frameworks, she said.

“Campus-based programs might consider not only addressing students’ perceptions about help-seeking but also identify and engage supportive friends and family members who may positively reinforce help-seeking intentions,” she said.

Flores noted that the research did not test the interventions directly.

“Still, it provides a theoretical foundation for creating more effective approaches to help students move from recognizing a drinking problem to seeking the help they need,” she said.