Solved by verified expert:The article to be reviewed is the first attachmentcomprehensive examples and instructions are in the second attachment please follow them allFrom the second attachment:Assignment: Article Summary OneIn your completed literature review, you will describe the research and make connections
(synthesize) among the research studies. Before you can do this, you need to
Under well-organized headings and sub-headings you should address the following
questions:
What are the findings/results from the research article?
What major themes emerge from within the articles? Are there any key exposures
that are interesting or meaningful in any way?
What were some of the major discussion points of the article?
Based on the article you reviewed, what are the most significant issues related to college
students and your chosen health topic? thank you
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Western University
Scholarship@Western
Undergraduate Honors Theses
Psychology
2014
The Effects of Drinking on University Grades:
Does Academic Motivation Play a Role?
Jennifer Gilbert
University of Western Ontario, jgilbe3@uwo.ca
Follow this and additional works at: http://ir.lib.uwo.ca/psychd_uht
Recommended Citation
Gilbert, Jennifer, “The Effects of Drinking on University Grades: Does Academic Motivation Play a Role?” (2014). Undergraduate
Honors Theses. Paper 7.
This Dissertation/Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Psychology at Scholarship@Western. It has been accepted for inclusion in
Undergraduate Honors Theses by an authorized administrator of Scholarship@Western. For more information, please contact kmarsha1@uwo.ca.
Drinking and Academic Motivation
1
The Effects of Drinking on University Grades: Does Academic Motivation Play a
Role?
Jennifer Gilbert
Honours Psychology Thesis
Department of Psychology
University of Western Ontario
London, Ontario, CANADA
April, 2014
Thesis Advisor: Paul Tremblay, Ph.D.
Drinking and Academic Motivation
2
Abstract
Past research has shown that heavy episodic drinking by college students is associated with
decreased academic achievement. The purpose of this study was to test academic motivation as a
mediator for the relationship between drinking and academic achievement. It was hypothesized
that heavy episodic drinking decreases academic motivation, which subsequently decreases
academic achievement. Four hundred and fifteen first-year students (255 female, 160 male)
completed 26 weekly online questionnaires about their drinking behaviours and academic
motivation. Academic motivation was found to mediate the drinking – achievement relationship
for mean number of drinks and heavy episodic drinking, but only for females. Also, students in
different faculties differed in their levels of drinking and academic motivation.
Drinking and Academic Motivation
Acknowledgment and Dedication
I would like to thank Dr. Tremblay for all of the patience, guidance, and time he
dedicated to me during this project. It was a pleasure to work with him!
3
Drinking and Academic Motivation
4
The Effects of Drinking on University Grades: Does Academic Motivation Play a Role?
Post-undergraduate success is becoming increasingly difficult for college students, as
competition in the workforce is fierce (Miller & Slocombe, 2012). Now more than ever,
academic achievement is important to a student’s success in many facets of post-undergraduate
life: acceptance to graduate and professional programs, career opportunities, and future earning
potential. Academic achievement can be influenced by a number of factors, and the effect of
alcohol consumption on achievement has been of particular interest to researchers. Researchers
have found an association between heavy episodic student drinking and decreased academic
achievement (Pascarella et al., 2007; Singleton, 2007; DeBerard, Spielmans, & Julka, 2004;
Porter & Pryor, 2007), with current research focused on empirically determining variables that
mediate this relationship.
A high frequency of college and university students drink regularly. In Canada, over
6000 full-time students were surveyed in 2005 using the World Health Organization’s Alcohol
Use Disorders Identification Test screener, and 32% of respondents (37.6% males, 27.5%
females) reported harmful or hazardous drinking (Adlaf, Demers, & Gliksman, 2005). In
addition, almost one-third of respondents reported heavy drinking, which, in this study, consisted
of weekly drinking, and/or consumption of six or more drinks on each occasion of drinking
(Adlaf et al., 2005). Negative consequences were reported by the students who drank: 31.6%
reported being unable to perform daily activities, 18.8% reported missing class, and 32.9%
reported study interruptions (Adlaf et al., 2005). Empirical evidence has shown a link between
heavy episodic drinking (HED) and academic achievement. In particular, students who engage
in HED tend to have decreased grades.
Drinking and Academic Motivation
5
Singleton and Wolfson (2009) tested whether sleeping patterns and daytime sleepiness
are mediating factors in the high drinking – low achievement relationship. They wanted to test
unhealthy behaviours, like unhealthy sleep patterns, because they may be linked to behavioural
consequences (Buboltz et al., 2006). They found that students who regularly drink have
interrupted sleep cycles: they go to bed late, wake up late, and experience increased daytime
sleepiness, all factors of which were found to be associated with decreased academic
performance.
Other researchers have found associations between HED in students and decreased class
attendance (Wechsler, Dowdall, Maenner, Gledhill-Hoyt, & Lee, 1998), falling behind on
readings and assignments (Wechsler et al., 1998), decreased time spent studying (Wechsler,
Dowdall, Davenport, & Castillo, 1995), and decreased interest in school (Bryant, Schulenberg,
O’Malley, Bachman, & Johnston, 2003). These variables may also contribute as mediators in the
drinking – achievement relationship because they may explain why drinking is associated with
decreased achievement.
Drinking Patterns in College Students Throughout the Academic Year
When measuring student drinking patterns, researchers generally survey students on the
volume of drinks consumed over a certain time period (e.g., one week). However, other drinking
patterns can also be assessed by the following measures: looking at the largest number of drinks
consumed at one time point in the past 30 days, or looking at HED. HED is defined as
consuming five or more drinks in a row for men, and four or more drinks in a row for women in
one time period. Researchers can also measure problem drinking by asking participants about
negative consequences experienced as a function of drinking. The present study will analyze the
mean number of drinks consumed and the prevalence of HED each week.
Drinking and Academic Motivation
6
Most research has measured student drinking patterns at one time only in the academic
year. Data collected only once may not represent the average, or normal, drinking behaviours of
students. Perhaps during the data collection period students had a celebratory event, or were
sick, and their levels of drinking were higher or lower than their typical levels on a week-toweek basis. Tremblay et al. (2010) conducted a longitudinal study and measured student
drinking patterns throughout the academic year to obtain a more precise measure of student
drinking behaviours. Additionally, this longitudinal study offered insight into gender differences
and similarities, HED, and patterns of daily and weekly drinking behaviour throughout the year.
A weekly online survey was administered to first-year students and 26 weeks of data were
obtained regarding their drinking behaviours.
In general, males and females had similar drinking behaviours, but males always drank
more than females. Similar patterns were found for HED behaviours. During a typical week,
drinking was minimal on Monday, and increased from Tuesday through Saturday, peaking on
Saturday, and declining back to Monday’s levels on Sunday. So, when examining weekly
drinking habits, a spike in drinking occurred each weekend. Tremblay et al. (2010) also found
specific times throughout the year in which drinking was high or low. High instances of
drinking occurred at the beginning of each semester (early September and January), Halloween
weekend, Halloween Day, New Year’s Eve, and St. Patrick’s Day. Low instances of drinking
occurred during December exams, but not during April exams (perhaps because of end-of-year
parties during the April exam period). This study, conducted in Canada, found similar results to
the American longitudinal student drinking patterns study by Del Boca, Darkes, Greenbaum, and
Goldman (2004). To summarize, Tremblay et al. (2010) expanded current knowledge of college
Drinking and Academic Motivation
7
student drinking behaviours by determining that the amount of student drinking differs
throughout the academic year.
Knowing that drinking behaviours increase or decrease at specific times during the
academic year is beneficial when implementing prevention programs to decrease overall
drinking in college students. Thus, longitudinal studies that test weekly behaviours are valuable
to determine the best time to implement a prevention program. These programs can be
especially helpful for students to maximize their academic potential because of the established
relationship between drinking and academic achievement.
Drinking and Academic Achievement
Researchers have consistently found that college students engaged in HED likely have
decreased grades. Pascarella et al. (2007) administered a survey to college students, measuring
engagement in HED over a period of two weeks and cumulative GPA scores. They found that
students who engaged in HED two or more times had lower GPA scores compared to those who
did not engage in HED. The magnitude of the effect increased with each additional occasion of
heavy drinking during the two weeks. This negative relation between HED and grades was
similar for males and females.
Singleton (2007) interviewed college students and measured their HED over a two-week
period and their academic achievement (average grades during the semester of testing and
cumulative GPA scores). He found an association between HED and decreased academic
achievement in both the short and long-term and also reported that academic achievement
decreased even more when students participated in partying activities.
DeBerard, Spielmans, and Julka (2004) questioned college students about their drinking
behaviours (whether they had five or more drinks in one day during the past month) and
Drinking and Academic Motivation
8
academic achievement (cumulative GPA scores) and found HED to be associated with poor
academic achievement.
Porter and Pryor (2007) found undergraduate students who engaged in HED to have
lower GPA scores. They found that the greater number of occasions of HED during the
measurement period, the higher the likelihood of lower academic achievement. One reason
Porter et al. (2007) provided to explain the occurrence of this association considers the
relationship between students and university faculty. They explained how engagement with
faculty could predict student achievement, but it is unclear whether high engagement protects
students from HED, or whether HED prevents students from engaging with faculty members.
Porter et al. (2007) also wrote that heavy episodic drinkers spend less time studying and more
time taking part in recreational activities and sports.
Drinking and Academic Motivation
Given the evidence for an existing relationship between engagement in HED and
decreased academic achievement, an important next step in current research would be to
investigate the mechanisms and identify variables that explain the high drinking – low
achievement relation. It is possible that academic motivation, as defined by the effort students
apply to their studies, may serve as a mediator between drinking and academic achievement.
Research has clearly shown that academic motivation is related to academic achievement
(Svanum & Bigatti, 2006; Rau & Durand, 2000). As will be reviewed below, drinking is also
related to academic motivation, and therefore it seems reasonable to hypothesize that HED leads
to decreased academic motivation, subsequently leading to decreased grades.
Multiple researchers have found an association between drinking and academic
motivation. Rhoades and Maggs (2006) administered a questionnaire to incoming first-year
Drinking and Academic Motivation
9
college students asking about their planned drinking behaviours and academic goals in their first
year of college. Results showed that students who were academically motivated planned to drink
less alcohol. Wechsler, Dowdall, Davenport, and Castillo (1995) surveyed students from 140
colleges and found that college students were more likely to engage in HED when they rated
their schoolwork as not important and when they spent less than four hours studying each day.
Simons, Christopher, and Mclaury (2004) administered two questionnaires 30 days apart, and
asked students about their drinking in the past 30 days, as well as their achievement goals. In
their study, having achievement goals meant that participants would be concerned with their
accomplishment, effort, and success related to achieving those goals. College students who had
achievement goals engaged in HED less than students with no achievement goals. Wolaver
(2002) surveyed college students and found that, regardless of their frequency of drinking,
students who drink study less and are likely to have lower GPA scores than non-drinkers.
Gender as a moderator of the drinking – motivation relationship. As previously
discussed, men and women have similar drinking behaviours, but men consistently drink more
than women. When assessing drinking and academic motivation between each gender,
differences have been found. Vaughan, Corbin, and Fromme (2009) conducted a longitudinal
study, surveying college students at the end of each semester for two years, and found women
who were academically motivated drank less. For these women, academic motivation served as
a protective factor against drinking. This did not occur for men: academically motivated men
still drank. So, the possibility exists that drinking may affect academic motivation for men only.
Webb, Moore, Rhatigan, Stewart, and Getz (2007) asked high-school students about their
drinking behaviours in the past month and also found a gender difference. Drinking and
academic motivation were associated for men, but not women. Li, Frieze, Nokes-Malach, and
Drinking and Academic Motivation
10
Cheong (2013) surveyed college students about their drinking behaviours within the past week
and the past 30 days, and also assessed academic motivation by measuring the effort students put
into their studies. A gender difference was found between drinking and academic motivation for
men and women. For men, drinking was associated with decreased academic motivation, but for
women, the level of drinking did not correlate with academic motivation.
Academic Motivation as a Mediator of the Drinking – Achievement Relationship
Further research is necessary to understand the nature of the high drinking – low
achievement relationship and to find an explanation for its occurrence. The goal of this study will
be to examine whether academic motivation serves as a mediator for this existing relationship.
In other words, this study will test the following question: Do students who engage in HED put
less effort into their studies, resulting in decreased academic achievement?
Using the data from the Tremblay et al. (2010) study of 415 first-year university students
at Western, the present study will examine three main variables over a period of 26 consecutive
weeks: drinking, academic motivation, and academic achievement as well as variables for
secondary analyses including gender and faculty program. Two types of drinking variables will
be included: mean number of drinks and HED (engaging in at least one occasion/day with 4+
drinks for women and 5+ drinks for men in the previous week). Also, to measure academic
motivation, each week, students were asked to report how hard they worked on their studies
during the previous week. Academic achievement will be measured by final average grades at
the end of the academic year.
HED is expected to decrease academic achievement, and academic motivation is
expected to mediate that relationship. Also, it is expected that academic motivation will more
strongly affect this relationship in men. Previous research has shown that HED in men has been
Drinking and Academic Motivation
11
associated with decreased academic motivation (Vaughan et al., 2009; Webb et al., 2007; Li et
al., 2013). In women, HED and academic motivation do not seem to have as strong a
relationship (Webb et al, 2007; Li et al, 2013). Furthermore, Pascarella et al. (2007) indicated
that no gender differences exist between drinking and decreased academic achievement.
Previous studies that measured drinking behaviours at one time-point only may not be an
accurate measure of a student’s drinking habits. Surveying students’ drinking behaviours over a
26-week period provides researchers with a more accurate and precise measure of overall
drinking behaviour. The same logic can apply to students’ academic motivation.
The large dataset that will be used for analysis in this study allows for multiple ways of
investigating academic motivation as a mediator to the drinking – achievement relationship. The
relationship can be studied on a week-to-week basis, measures of drinking and academic
motivation can also be aggregated to get overall drinking and motivation scores across the
academic year, or analyses can be conducted to determine whether drinking in a given week
affects motivation in the following week.
Drinking and Faculty Program
Whether drinking behaviours are associated with students’ faculty program is an area of
research that has not received much attention. Some college faculties explicitly promote a “work
hard play hard” mentality, while others do not appear to facilitate any relation between
schoolwork and drinking. Wolaver (2002), the pioneer in this area of research, found heavy
episodic drinkers to be more likely to study social sciences and business, over natural sciences,
education, or engineering. The test between drinking and faculty program is exploratory, as only
this one study has been conducted on the relationship between those variables. If an association
does exist between faculty program and drinking behaviours throughout the academic year,
Drinking and Academic Motivation
12
prevention programs can be tailored to faculty-specific events, rather than the general student
population.
Method
The data used to analyze the present study’s research question will be obtained from a
larger study conducted by Tremblay et al. (2010). In that study, three phases of data were
collected. In Phase 1, students completed an online baseline questionnaire. In Phase 2, students
completed 26 weekly online questionnaires. In Phase 3, students completed up to 24 monthly
online questionnaires. Phases 1 and 2 will be described in greater detail below, but most
attention will be focused on Phase 2, as data analysis for the present study will use data from this
phase only.
Participants
Phase 1. A total of 848 first-year university students at the University of Western
Ontario (UWO) completed the baseline questionnaire at the beginning of the academic year
(September 2006). There were 304 males (35.9%) and 543 females (64.1%), and one participant
did not indicate his or her gender, and was excluded.
Phase 2. A total of 415 students, all of who completed the baseline questionnaire,
participated in Phase 2 (beginning in October 2006). There were 266 females (64.1%) and 149
males (35.9%) in the following age groups: 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, and 21 or older. The mean age
was 18.42 (SD = 2.40). Students of White ethnicity comprised the majority of participants
(72.6%), followed by Chinese (10.3%), South Asian (3.2%), Arab-West Indian (1.7%), and
Korean (1%) students. The remainder of the participants (11.2%) were Multiracial or did not
specify their ethnicity.
Materials
Drinking and Academic Motivation
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Alcohol Consumption Measures. In Phase 2, participants were asked to list the number
of alcoholic drinks (i.e., one 341 ml [12 ounce] bottle or glass of beer [regular strength 5% alc],
one 150 ml [5 ounce] glass of wine, one mixed drink with 45 ml [1.5 ounces] of spirits [e.g.,
vodka, rum, rye, scotch, gin], or one 341 ml [12 ounce] alcohol coole …
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