THIS year for the first time, Rhodes is running an online alcohol usage survey where students will get immediate electronic feedback on how their personal drinking habits compare with those in their peer group.
This is beneficial to students as research results show that young people often over-estimate the
amount of alcohol their peers consume.
THIS year for the first time, Rhodes is running an online alcohol usage survey where students will get immediate electronic feedback on how their personal drinking habits compare with those in their peer group.
This is beneficial to students as research results show that young people often over-estimate the
amount of alcohol their peers consume.
The Dean of Students, Dr Vivian de Klerk said: “Research has shown that being given immediate feedback can have a positive impact.”
The survey has been posted on the university’s website (http://www.ru.ac.za/studentzone) as part of Anti Alcohol-abuse Week.
The survey used is the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (Audit) which was developed by the World Health Organisation.
“The test has been translated into numerous languages, appears to be cross-culturally valid, is quick to complete and easily scored, and, as a result, is widely used in research and practical settings,” says De Klerk.
There are 10 items on the test to measure the level of alcohol usage. Three items ask questions on alcohol consumption, four on alcohol-related problems and adverse reactions and three on symptoms of alcohol dependence.
“Each item has a score ranging from 0 to 4 and the maximum score is 40, the higher the total score, the more dangerous the drinking,” De Klerk said.
A score of eight or more indicates the possibility of future alcohol-related social or medical problems. Rhodes used online surveys in 2007 and 2008 to determine the level of alcohol consumption of its student body.
“Over 2 000 responded in the first one and around 1 500 in the second which is sufficient to run statistical analysis,” De Klerk said, “there will always be a few people who fool around, and that is expected.”
Rhodes has circulated the results of previous surveys in workshops and campus discussions “to that extent we indicate that the students should take this matter seriously,” De Klerk said. Students can only fill out the survey once and the system will automatically exclude clearly absurd answers.
