Safer Campuses and Communities
Evidence of Effectiveness
The Safer Campuses and Communities interventions are based on the findings of a large-scale research project called the Safer California Universities Project, which was designed, implemented, and evaluated by the Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation (PIRE) with funding from the National Institute for Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA). This comprehensive community-based program focused on the first weeks of the academic year and comprised several alcohol control measures (enforcement of underage sales laws; roadside DUI operations; social host party patrols with local ordinances) along with a multi-faceted media advocacy campaign via channels unique to college student audiences. The program was implemented among campuses in the two California public university systems (University of California and California State University) and proved efficacious in reducing the incidence and likelihood of intoxication at off-campus parties and at bars and restaurants for students at the intervention universities. Students at intervention universities also reported a lower likelihood of drinking to intoxication the last time they attended an off-campus party, a bar or restaurant, or other drinking settings.
The Safer Campuses and Communities interventions are based on the findings of a large-scale research project called the Safer California Universities Project, which was designed, implemented, and evaluated by the Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation (PIRE) with funding from the National Institute for Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA). This comprehensive community-based program focused on the first weeks of the academic year and comprised several alcohol control measures (enforcement of underage sales laws; roadside DUI operations; social host party patrols with local ordinances) along with a multi-faceted media advocacy campaign via channels unique to college student audiences. The program was implemented among campuses in the two California public university systems (University of California and California State University) and proved efficacious in reducing the incidence and likelihood of intoxication at off-campus parties and at bars and restaurants for students at the intervention universities. Students at intervention universities also reported a lower likelihood of drinking to intoxication the last time they attended an off-campus party, a bar or restaurant, or other drinking settings.
For Guiding Principles of the Safer California Universities Project, click here.
For a Summary of the Safer California Universities Project, click here.
NIAAA Press Release: Highly visible cooperative projects, in which colleges and their surrounding communities target off-campus drinking settings, can reduce harmful alcohol use among college students, according to a report by researchers supported by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), part of the National Institutes of Health. “This innovative, important study is a valuable contribution to the search for solutions to the alcohol problems that beset colleges and universities throughout the country,” says NIAAA Acting Director Kenneth R. Warren, Ph.D.
Click to access full press release.
Journal article: Alcohol risk management in college settings: the safer California universities randomized trial.
This NIAAA-funded research project found significant reductions in the incidence and likelihood of intoxication at off-campus parties and bars/restaurants at Safer intervention universities compared to controls. A lower likelihood of intoxication was observed also for Safer intervention universities the last time students drank at an off-campus party; a bar or restaurant; or any setting. No increase in intoxication (e.g., displacement) appeared in other settings. Further, stronger intervention effects were achieved at
Safer universities with the highest level of implementation. The research concluded that environmental prevention strategies targeting settings where the majority of heavy drinking events occur appear to be effective in reducing the incidence and likelihood of intoxication among college students.
Link to Final AJPM.