The relevance of network prominence and reciprocity of relationships for alcohol use and alcohol-related problems in a college residence hall network

Abstract

Peer associations are influential for substance use among college students, but relatively few investigations have been conducted on the social network characteristics that are associated with problematic alcohol use in college. This study investigated the association between network characteristics of prestige, expansiveness, and reciprocity and alcohol use variables in a college residence hall network. Undergraduate students in 1 residence hall (N = 129; 51.9% female; 48.1% non-Hispanic White; 84.5% first-year) reported on their alcohol use and alcohol-related problems in the past semester and nominated up to 10 residence hall peers who were important to them. Network autocorrelation modeling evaluated the association between 5 network variables reflecting prestige (indegree and betweenness centrality), expansiveness (outdegree), and relationship agreement (indegree reciprocity and outdegree reciprocity) and 3 indicators of alcohol use (drinks per week, number of heavy drinking days, number of alcohol problems). Moderation by gender of the associations between network characteristics and alcohol variables was also investigated. Models controlled for demographics and network autocorrelation. A higher outdegree and higher betweenness centrality within the residence hall network were significantly related to the number of heavy drinking days and number of alcohol problems, respectively. Higher indegree and higher betweenness centrality were associated with more alcohol problems for women when alcohol use was controlled. Having higher prestige and indicating oneself as having more friends in a college residential network may convey alcohol-related risks, with some risks higher for women.