Comparisons of gambling and alcohol use among college students and noncollege young people in the United States.

OBJECTIVE Gambling and alcohol use were compared for college and noncollege young adults in the US population. PARTICIPANTS Participants were 1,000 respondents aged 18 to 21. METHODS Data were analyzed from a representative household sample of US young people aged 14 to 21 years old. Telephone interviews were conducted between August 2005 and January 2007. RESULTS After taking into account gender, age, race/ethnicity, and socioeconomic status, college student status did not predict gambling, frequent gambling, or problem gambling. In contrast, being a college student was associated with higher levels of alcohol use and problem drinking. Being male was the strongest predictor of both problem gambling and problem drinking. Blacks were less likely than whites to drink heavily; yet they were more likely than whites to gamble heavily. CONCLUSION Young males should be targeted for prevention and intervention efforts for both problem gambling and problem drinking regardless of college student status.