Baer J S, Carney M M
Department of Psychology, University of Washington, Seattle 98195.
J Stud Alcohol. 1993 Jan;54(1):54-60. doi: 10.15288/jsa.1993.54.54.
Previous studies have shown that college students' perceptions of the quantity and frequency of peer alcohol consumption are biased. Most students report that their social referents drink more than they themselves do. In the current study members of two fraternities and two sororities (N = 252) were asked to make two types of ratings of alcohol-related consequences across four target individuals. The ratings were: (1) the frequency of occurrence of predefined alcohol-related negative consequences and (2) the degree to which certain alcohol-related consequences are considered "problems." The targets were: themselves, their best friend, a typical member of their fraternity or sorority and a typical student at the university. Estimates of frequency of problem behaviors for typical member of the residence and typical student at the university were significantly higher than ratings for self (p < .001). Data from ratings of behavioral definitions of alcohol problems for the same four targets replicated the bias, although to a lesser degree. Correlational analyses suggest that biased perceptions of problems were unrelated to personal levels of alcohol consumption. Results are discussed in terms of the cognitive and motivational factors that could result in this misrepresentation of peer behavior.
以往的研究表明，大学生对同伴饮酒量和饮酒频率的认知存在偏差。大多数学生报告称，他们的社交对象饮酒量比他们自己多。在当前的研究中，要求两个兄弟会和两个姐妹会的成员（N = 252）对四个目标个体的两类与酒精相关的后果进行评分。评分内容包括：（1）预先定义的与酒精相关的负面后果的发生频率，以及（2）某些与酒精相关的后果被视为“问题”的程度。目标个体包括：他们自己、他们最好的朋友、他们兄弟会或姐妹会的一名普通成员以及该大学的一名普通学生。对宿舍普通成员和大学普通学生问题行为发生频率的估计显著高于对自己的评分（p < .001）。对相同四个目标个体的酒精问题行为定义评分数据也重现了这种偏差，尽管程度较小。相关分析表明，对问题的偏差认知与个人饮酒量无关。将根据可能导致这种对同伴行为错误描述的认知和动机因素来讨论研究结果。
