The Big Impact of Small Groups on College Drinking

Ben Fitzpatrick (), Jason Martinez (), Elizabeth Polidan () and Ekaterini Angelis ()
Additional contact information
Ben Fitzpatrick: http://tempest-tech.com
Elizabeth Polidan: http://www.tempest-tech.com
Ekaterini Angelis: http://tempest-tech.com

Journal of Artificial Societies and Social Simulation, 2015, vol. 18, issue 3, 4

Abstract: College drinking is a problem with severe academic, health, and safety consequences. The underlying social processes that lead to increased drinking activity are not well understood. Social Norms Theory is an approach to analysis and intervention based on the notion that students’ misperceptions about the drinking culture on campus lead to increases in alcohol use. In this paper we develop an agent-based simulation model, implemented in MATLAB, to examine college drinking. Students’ drinking behaviors are governed by their identity (and how others perceive it) as well as peer influences, as they interact in small groups over the course of a drinking event. Our simulation results provide some insight into the potential effectiveness of interventions such as social norms marketing campaigns.

Keywords: Group Formation; Peer Influence; Identity Control Theory; Social Norms; College Drinking (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2015-06-30
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:jas:jasssj:2014-48-4

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