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  Press Coverage (2000)

November 28, 2000
New Method Tried to Reduce Drinking Among College Students
By Lynn Franey, The Kansas City Star
Discusses the successful implementation of the social norms approach at the University of Missouri-Columbia that began in September, 1998. Mentions the support of the Kansas Health Foundation for a similar intervention at four state universities in Kansas.

November 2, 2000
"Uneasy Alliance: On Many Campuses Big Brewers Play a Role In New Alcohol Policies"
by Shailagh Murray and Bryan Gruley
from the November 2, 2000 issue of the Wall Street Journal.
Provides extensive background information regarding the recent interest of the alcohol beverage industry in the use of the social norms approach on a number of college and university campuses.
An on-line version of this story is no longer available.

October 3, 2000
Colleges Shift Emphasis on Drinking
By Kate Zernike, The New York Times
An excellent summary of the reasons for the growing interest in the social norms approach. "The premises of the new strategy," the author notes, "are that binge drinking has been exaggerated, and that by harping on it, colleges have pushed students into thinking that heavy drinking fits the model of the American college student."

September 8, 2000
The Latest War on "Binge Drinking" is Against the Term Itself
By Scott Street, The Chronicle of Higher Education
Regards the recent decision of the Inter-Association Task Force on Alcohol and Other Substance Abuse Issues (IATF) to limit the use of the term 'binge drinking' to describe "a period of prolonged intoxication."
Note: The IATF Proclamation is available at http://www.iatf.org/proc1a.htm

July 28, 2000
Colleges Use Peer Pressure to Encourage Health Behavior
By Leo Reisberg, The Chronicle of Higher Education
A comprehensive look at the wide-ranging use being made of the social norms approach at a growing number of institutions throughout the country. Notes its application to issues such as high-risk drinking, tobacco use, sexual behavior, sexual assault prevention, and social justice issues.


Press Coverage (1997)

Colleges Try to Curb Excessive Drinking by Saying Moderation is Okay
By Ben Gose, The Chronicle of Higher Education
"The vast majority of students," Michael Haines is quoted as saying, "don't harm themselves or others as part of their drinking behavior, and that's the best-kept secret in the country." The article explores the success of the social norms approach at Northern Illinois University and its subsequent use at other institutions such as California State Polytechnic University (Pomona), Montana State University, and the University of Arizona.