Investigating the theory of planned behaviour’s application to binge drinking among university students

Identifying factors affecting willingness to participate in floating population health volunteer services by Chinese volunteers based on the theory of the planned behavior expansion model

China has the world's largest internal migrant population, called the floating population. Compared to local residents, the floating population utilizes different health services and relies heavily on health volunteer services for supplementary services. In this study, the theory of planned behavior model was used to study the willingness of volunteers to participate in floating population health volunteer services. We examined the effects of several factors on willingness to participate and found that attitude and subjective norm, but not perceived behavioral control, have significant predictive effects on willingness to participate in health volunteer services. Furthermore, altruistic values, social incentives, and personality traits not only have significant predictive effects on volunteer participation but also indirectly affect willingness through attitude and subjective norms. These findings help us understand what factors affect volunteers' willingness to provide health services to the floating population and have important implications for mobilizing volunteers for floating population health services.

Motivators of Indiscriminate and Unsafe Supplement Use among Young Australians

BACKGROUND

There is growing concern about the self-administration of supplements, which can often be indiscriminate, counterproductive to health, and serve as a gateway to more harmful drugs and substances. Research suggests that high uptake of performance- and image-enhancing drugs (PIEDs) is correlated with body image to accentuate masculinity. This study provides insights into limiting unhealthy supplement usage. This research identifies reasons for casual unhealthy supplement use among young adult Australians through the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) lens, providing practitioners with insights into developing interventions to deter their use.

METHOD

Semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted with ten participants aged between 18 and 40, using a convenience sample. Leximancer analysis was used to assess word co-occurrence and map to TPB constructs.

RESULTS

Leximancer identified positive attitudes, social norms, and perceived behavioral control towards supplement usage. Key themes that influenced supplement use were weight loss, body image, nutrition, training, education, challenges, need, and time. Furthermore, using TPB constructs, affective and instrumental attitudes and prevailing norms were observed when investigating what would cause an individual to use supplements in an unhealthy manner.

CONCLUSION

Through understanding the motivations of indiscriminate supplement use across the Australian population, the study has uncovered several social factors that may reduce or limit the practice of unsafe supplement usage.

Patterns of drinking alcohol and intentions to binge drink among medical students in Vietnam

Alcohol use is common among Vietnamese students. Previous qualitative findings showed Vietnamese medical students believed they were not binge drinkers while reporting many binge drinking occasions they participated in or witnessed. This dichotomy warrants examination. This study aims to establish drinking patterns and examine the factors underlying Vietnamese medical students' binge drinking intention and behaviour. This study used a prospective-correlational design, with two waves of data collection, drawing from established health behaviour models. At Time 1, 206 students completed the Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test, the standard Theory of Planned Behaviour measures (attitude, subjective norm and perceived behavioural control) and their underlying beliefs, as well as group norm, role identity, drinking culture and past binge drinking behaviour. At Time 2, 156 medical students reported their binge drinking behaviour 2 weeks later. Only 6.8% of participants were classified as problematic drinkers and few participants reported binge drinking occasions at the 2-week follow-up. Perceived behavioural control, friends' group norms, role identity as future doctors, and past behaviour significantly predicted binge drinking intentions and key beliefs were identified. This study indicated Vietnamese medical students' limited engagement with binge drinking and identified key factors to address for those with risky drinking behaviour intentions.

Influencing the Binge-Drinking Culture on a College Campus

BACKGROUND

The college years are a time of transition in which students experiment with behaviors including use of alcohol. Nursing students can be instrumental in supporting positive health behaviors and influencing the drinking culture.

PURPOSE

This article describes the findings of a collaborative nursing student-faculty research project about alcohol use with a focus on binge drinking.

METHODS

Using a nursing student-faculty collaborative model, a longitudinal design was used to evaluate a mass media campaign with social norming messages and education to influence the drinking culture on a college campus.

RESULTS

Students in Greek life and athletics engaged in binge drinking significantly more than other students. Students observed the mass media messages, with 81.9% viewing posters. A significant decrease in binge drinking was reported.

CONCLUSIONS

The nursing student-faculty team implemented a mass media campaign, which was effective at influencing the drinking culture on a college campus.