Health Education Research Advance Access published online on August 4, 2007
Health Education Research, doi:10.1093/her/cym034
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© The Author 2007. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oxfordjournals.org
Binge drinking? It's good, it's harmless fun: a discourse analysis of accounts of female undergraduate drinking in Scotland
1 Tayside Institute of Health Studies, University of Abertay Dundee, Dudhope Castle, Dundee DD3 6HF, UK
2 Subject Area of Nursing, Queen Margaret University College, Edinburgh, UK
Correspondence to: * Correspondence to: J. M. F. Guise. E-mail: j513135@abertay.ac.uk
| The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below. |
Binge drinking in young people, particularly females and students, is a source of some concern to those engaged in health education. The concept is usually defined in terms of quantities of alcohol consumed within a relatively short space of time. Research suggests that reasons for drinking are varied, and are likely to be influenced by culture and context. This study aimed to explore issues important to female undergraduate students in Scotland. Semi-structured interviews were carried out with 19 participants who were asked to describe what they understand by the term binge drinking, why they drink and what might trigger excessive consumption. Discourse analysis was used to explore the possible functions of what was said, as well as the content. Participants showed sensitivity to how others might interpret their responses. They described binge drinking in terms of its behavioural effects rather than quantities consumed. Crucially, they positioned themselves outside the categories
| Introduction |
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| Methods |
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| Results |
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What is binge drinking?
Why do these participants drink alcohol?
What kinds of things trigger more excessive drinking than normal?
| Discussion |
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| Conflict of interest statement |
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| Appendix |
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Interview Schedule: Binge Drinking Paper
PART A Questionnaire (ie relates to written questionnaire previously completed by participants)
PART B Pattern of consumption
PART C Triggers to drinking
PART D Drinking and Behaviour