College students’ binge drinking has been considered one of the most serious problems for colleges in the United States. A 2002 study, comparing college students between 1993 and 2001, found that even though the percentage of abstainers had increased, the percentage of binge drinkers remains the same. Binge drinking for an individual is defined as having five or more drinks in a sitting. This study explored predictors of college student binge-drinking utilizing a southwestern urban university. The CORE Alcohol and Drug Survey questionnaire was administered to a final study sample of 872 students. Thirteen independent variables were selected and included: gender, age, ethnic origin, living arrangements, family history of alcohol or drug use, marital status, pre-college history of alcohol use, close friends’ disapproval, perception of alcohol positive effects, perception of risks of binge drinking, experience of peer pressure, perception of drinking as a central part in the social life on campus, and perception of average student use of alcohol. The dependent variable was binge drinking or not. Variables which resulted in not being significant included: gender and perceptions of campus drinking levels (social norm). Those variables which resulted in being significant included: pre-college drinking history, with whom they are living, belief of close friends’ disapproval of binge drinking, belief of alcohol’s positive effects, beliefs of binge-drinking risk effects, and marital status. The overall findings suggest that prevention and intervention of college student binge-drinking should target several areas, beginning with pre-college with more effort made to develop strategies delaying youthful alcohol use. References