First-Semester College Students' Perceptions of and Expectations for Involvement in the College Drinking Culture

The transition to college includes exposure to new cultures, such as the college drinking culture, which is likely to be encountered within the first few weeks. We conducted a qualitative content analysis of 242 firstsemester undergraduate students' written comments to openended questions about their perceptions of and expectations for involvement in the college drinking culture. Four groups emerged from our analyses: NonEndorsers, Autonomous Drinkers, Have Bought In, and Law Abiders. A greater proportion of men than women were in the Have Bought In group. Groups were found to vary in their selfreported bingedrinking experiences, which was greater for the Have Bought In group compared to all other groups. In addition, the Autonomous Drinkers group had more bingedrinking experiences than the NonEndorsers and Law Abiders groups. Findings are discussed in terms of implications for alcohol-related intervention for transitioning students.