Implications for College Students Posting Pictures of Themselves Drinking Alcohol on Facebook

Introduction: Annually, an estimated 1,825 college students die from alcohol related tragedies while an additional 599,000 suffer from unintentional injuries (Hingson, Zha, & Weitzman, 2009). It is well documented that drinking behaviors are influenced by norms (Perkins, 2003). However, less is known about the impact social networking sites such as Facebook have on alcohol consumption patterns among college students. Methods: Researchers employed a cross sectional research design, to determine the relationship between Facebook usage and high-risk drinking at a large university in the Midwest. Data were collected utilizing an electronic survey which was e-mailed to 2,000 randomly selected students. Results: Participants included 445 individuals (60% female) with an average age of 23.1 (SD=12.32), yielding a 22% response rate. Approximately, 88% (n=282) of the sample indicated they had an active Facebook account while 33% engaged in high-risk drinking. High-risk drinking was correlated with the following: posting alcohol consumption pictures on Facebook, posting pictures of friends drinking alcohol , and believing that it is appropriate to post pictures of yourself drinking alcohol on your Facebook page at moderate and fair degrees, respectively: r =0.55, p = <0.001, r =0.31, p = <0.001, r =0.30, p = <0.001. Conclusions: Facebook facilitates peer interactions, with members publicizing comments and images of their daily experiences including alcohol use/abuse. The results of this study demonstrate a significant association exists between high-risk drinking and posting alcohol consumption photos. Social scientists need conduct more research to better understand the extent to which social networking sites influence behavior.