BINGE DRINKING AMONG COLLEGE-STUDENTS - A COMPARISON OF CALIFORNIA WITH OTHER STATES

California college students (1,864 students from 15 colleges) were com pared with students who participated in the Harvard School of Public H ealth College Alcohol Study, which surveyed 17,592 students in 140 col leges nationwide. California college students, in comparison with the remainder of the nation, were less frequent drinkers; less frequent bi nge drinkers; exhibited fewer personal problems and risks associated w ith heavy episodic drinking, including drinking and driving; and repor ted fewer ''secondhand'' effects of binge drinking, such as being phys ically assaulted or experiencing an unwanted sexual advance. Many of t hese differences appear to be related to the California college studen ts' being older, more likely to be married, and less likely to live on campus than those in the Harvard study. The findings suggest that, in developing programs tailored to local needs, there is significant val ue in augmenting national surveillance of college student health risk behaviors with the development of regional, state, and local surveilla nce systems.