A Deeper Look Into College Drinking Culture: The Differences Between Authoritative and Authoritarian Campuses

WEST PALM BEACH, FL-  When it comes to imagining the college experience, drinking alcohol is usually somewhere on that list. Based on the 2022 National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), the Nation Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism concluded that 49.0% of full-time college students, ages 18 to 22, drink alcohol. 

CBS Reports takes a deeper look at issues surrounding binge drinking culture

(Video discussing the prevalence of binge drinking culture. Video courtesy: Youtube)

What many do not know is that college drinking seems to be a larger problem on private university campuses rather than on public state colleges. When examining different private and public college campuses, research has found that a majority of liquor law violations occur on private campuses, as opposed to public campuses. 

Using data provided by the U.S. Department of Education's Campus Safety and Security, researchers compared the number of alcohol violations per 1,000 students across four college campuses in the South Florida area. With the lowest number of violations, the University of Florida had 0.5 violations per 1,000 students. After the University of Florida, Florida Atlantic University was second to lowest, with 2.35 violations per 1,000 students. Next, Saint Leo University had a total of 9.77 alcohol violations per 1,000 students. Lastly, Palm Beach Atlantic University acquired, per 1,000 students, 11.39 violations. 

Among the four universities mentioned, the University of Florida and Florida Atlantic University are both public universities. Saint Leo University and Palm Beach Atlantic University are both private, religiously- affiliated schools. Palm Beach Atlantic University aligns with interdenominational Christian values, and Saint Leo University is rooted in Catholic beliefs. 

Could the traditional mentality and policies adopted by most religiously affiliated schools be outdated for the modern-day drinking culture? 

Adolescent psychologist Dr. Alyssa Ramos-Chavez describes the dynamic between authoritarian and authoritative parents and how schools have a similar approach to their student body. She explains how authoritarian parents tend to have higher expectations, are stricter ,and more extreme when it comes to policy. On the other hand, authoritative parents still have rules and expectations, but they allow the person to learn and grow on their own after educating them on the bigger picture.  

“You want the strict parent, but you trust them enough to apply those concepts on their own, same with universities,” says Dr. Ramos-Chaves. 

As Dr. Ramos-Chaves mentioned, authoritarian and authoritative mentalities can be adopted by universities and incorporated into their policies. Could there be a correlation between these two approaches to governing private and public campuses? Reporters then interviewed students at both private and public schools to determine whether they thought their schools leaned more towards authoritarian or authoritative policies.

Rachel Kanagy, a a sophomore at Palm Beach Atlantic University, described her school’s policy as generally strict; however, she mentioned that she understands the reason behind it. 

“We are a Christian school; of course, our rules are going to be more strict than others. It just 

makes sense,” said Kanagy in an interview. 

Kanagy expressed how she and her peers understood the policies of Palm Beach Atlantic prior to attending, yet, even respecting the religious aspect, they still found grievances with the rules. She explained how it can be limiting, at times, as a young adult. 

“Even though I understand the reasoning behind the rules, it can still be irritating to not feel as though I have the freedoms as other young adults. Some people do well at schools like this, and some don’t,” Kanagy said. 

When asked if she thought her school was more authoritarian or more authoritative, she said: 

“I would say that PBA is more authoritarian with their rules. After going to school here for two years, I can see how PBA, along with other private schools, could fall in that category.”  

Keira Arimenta, an 18-year-old freshman at Florida Atlantic University, expressed in an interview that she believes FAU’s rules and policies are fair for college students. Arimenta explained how the balance the school has achieved in its guidelines offers a lot of room for growth as a young adult.  

“They follow state guidelines as all colleges in the state do. I wouldn’t say FAU is extreme in any way when it comes to their policies,” Arimenta said. 

 Arimenta went on to highlight that college is a time for self-discovery, and having rules that allow for that kind of growth is essential to adolescent development. For most college students, it is their first chance to truly be on their own. In agreement with Dr. Ramos-Chazes, Arimenta believes that having the ability to act independently with a community behind her has been highly beneficial. 

“I would say the FAU is more authoritative. While they expect obedience from all of their students, they want them to succeed. They do a great job of helping students find solutions instead of handing out harsh punishments. From all of the policies I’ve read through, I would say they have logical consequences to help students learn from their mistakes,” said Arimenta.    

There is a difference between the authoritative and authoritarian approaches these schools have demonstrated.  About the number of alcohol violations each school has received, could the difference between authoritative and authoritarian campuses be correlated with the number of alcohol violations for each respective school? The following article in this investigation will look into the administrative point of view in order to further understand the substantial differences in alcohol violations on private and public campuses.