OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to extend the limited research on college student support for alcohol control policies by using a latent class analysis to examine the shared characteristics of drinking students who support or oppose such policies. METHODS: We used data from a sample of 2393 students drawn from a larger study on high risk drinking at a mid-western university. Data was collected between October 2005 and May 2007. We conducted a latent class analysis to identify sub-groups of drinking students based on relevant variables. RESULTS: The results of the latent class analysis yielded a model which could correctly classify 90% of the students taking the survey into one of four "classes" based upon their response to four items on the questionnaire. CONCLUSIONS: Interventions would benefit from approaches that target both student perceptions and specific policies that are most conducive to student support and engagement. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to extend the limited research on college student support for alcohol control policies by using a latent class analysis to examine the shared characteristics of drinking students who support or oppose such policies. METHODS: We used data from a sample of 2393 students drawn from a larger study on high risk drinking at a mid-western university. Data was collected between October 2005 and May 2007. We conducted a latent class analysis to identify sub-groups of drinking students based on relevant variables. RESULTS: The results of the latent class analysis yielded a model which could correctly classify 90% of the students taking the survey into one of four "classes" based upon their response to four items on the questionnaire. CONCLUSIONS: Interventions would benefit from approaches that target both student perceptions and specific policies that are most conducive to student support and engagement. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.