Drinking and driving behavior among Korean international college students in the United States

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to analyze drinking and driving behavior among Korean international students attending universities in the U.S. and to identify, if any, changes in the behavior after beginning their academic study in the U.S. across different demographic status and living status (on-campus vs. off-campus). Methods: A cross-sectional sample of 1,201 Korean international students at 52 U.S. universities participated in a survey from March to June 2009. Results: Students living with a person who drinks alcohol and smokes were more likely to experience an increase in drinking and driving (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 2.25, 95% CI = 1.35, 3.74) than those living with a person who neither drinks alcohol nor smokes. Student living off-campus were more likely to experience an increase in drinking and driving (AOR = 1.53, 95% CI = 1.15, 2.03) than those living on-campus. More students living off-campus than those living on-campus engaged in drinking and driving six times or more in the past 30 days at the time of the survey (47% vs. 30%, p < .001). English proficiency, frequency of attendance at a religious service, and levels of acculturative stress, anxiety, depression, and hostility were also significantly associated with binge drinking behavior (p < .05). Conclusions: This study is the first study that investigated drinking and driving behavior among Korean international college students in the U.S. and provides unique and important insights into the risk or protective factors that make the students more or less susceptible to drinking and driving.