Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Socialization With Alcohol Or Alcohol As Socialization: An Actor-Network Theory Approach To Understanding College Student Alcohol Use, Sean B. Hoops

Sociology Honors Projects

Many studies of college student drinking focus on understanding the problematic consequences of alcohol use. This research, however, does less to illuminate the cultural meanings of the use of alcohol. To address this gap, I examine how students relate to drinking alcohol socially, paying particular attention to how drinking and non-drinking emerge as meaningful behaviors in particular social settings. I analyze drinking qualitatively, focusing on the student perception of the significance of alcohol consumption as part of social interaction to understand the impact that alcohol itself has on the social setting. By employing an Actor-Network Theory framework I conclude that …