Gender Differences in the Relationship Between Drinking Motives and Drinking Behaviors Among Korean College Students

ABSTRACT

College drinking is an important public health issue in many countries, especially in South Korea. This study aims to explore drinking motives and their relationship with drinking behaviors and drinking outcomes among Korean college students (N = 553). Utilizing a Web-based survey, this study found some similarities and differences relative to studies conducted in Western cultures. As previously observed, social and enhancement motives were the primary reasons for drinking, and enhancement motives were associated with drinking-related problems among Korean students. However, results differing from those of previous studies were revealed by comparing males and females: Korean male college students who drink to cope with stress tend to experience more alcohol-related problems, whereas Korean female college students tend to experience alcohol-related problems when drinking for enhancement motives. Implications for future research are discussed.

KEYWORDS:

• college drinking
• drinking motives
• gender difference

Funding

This work was supported by the Ministry of Education of the Republic of Korea and the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF-2015S1A3A2046760) and Hallym University (HRF-201602-006).