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Liquor Is Quicker : Gender and Social Learning Among College Students

Lonn Lanza-Kaduce, Michael Capece and Helena Alden Criminal Justice Policy Review 2006 17: 127 DOI: 10.1177/0887403405279934 The online version of this article can be found at: http://cjp.sagepub.com/content/17/2/127

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Criminal Justice 10.1177/0887403405279934 Lanza-Kaduce etPolicy al. / Gender Review and Social Learning

Liquor Is Quicker
Gender and Social Learning Among College Students
Lonn Lanza-Kaduce
University of Florida

Criminal Justice Policy Review Volume 17 Number 2 June 2006 127-143 2006 Sage Publications 10.1177/0887403405279934 http://cjp.sagepub.com hosted at http://online.sagepub.com

Michael Capece
Valdosta State University

Helena Alden
University of WisconsinStevens Point

Akerss Social StructureSocial Learning Theory (SS-SL) has recently been criticized for dealing with social structural factors as exogenous variables rather than integrating them into propositions that specify the learning processes better. For example, Morash has argued that SS-SL has largely ignored the ways in which gender structures institutions, interactions, and behaviors and takes Akers to task for ignoring feminist theories. This research uses Core Alcohol and Drug Survey data from a subsample of White unmarried college students from eight diverse campuses throughout the United States to examine how conflict structured by gender affects differences in the use of alcohol before sex. The research specifically examines Akerss claim that social learning variables (in this case, anticipated reward and risk of harm) will substantially mediate the effects of structural variables rather than modulate or moderate them. The policy implications of the research are discussed. Keywords: Social StructureSocial Learning Theory; feminism; drinking and sex

Candy Is dandy But liquor Is quicker Ogden Nash (1931/1992)

Social StructureSocial Learning Theory and Feminism

Social StructureSocial Learning Theory (SS-SL) represents Akerss (1998) recent effort to integrate social structural elements with the social learning process that

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128 Criminal Justice Policy Review

he has specified during the past three decades (Akers, 1973, 1977, 1985, 1994; Akers, Krohn, Lanza-Kaduce, & Radosevich, 1979; Burgess & Akers, 1966). His new general theory of crime and deviance was the subject of a symposium in which several critics raised questions about the integration. Krohn (1999), for example, argued that Akers seemed content to add social structural dimensions as exogenous variables (p. 473) rather than provide propositions relating social structure to the social learning process. Morash (1999) more specifically faulted SS-SL for failing to give adequate attention to gender and for ignoring theories and research on gender and crime or deviance. Akers (1999) responded to Morashs criticism by explicitly including gender in his position that the social learning process . . . mediate[s] a substantial portion of the relationship between most structural variables and behavior (Akers, 1998, p. 340; also cited in Akers, 1999, p. 485). His position is that variables representing the social learning process (differential association, personal definitions, differential reinforcement and punishment contingencies, and imitation and modeling) will mediate rather than moderate or modulate the effects of social structure. Evidence of a moderating or modulating effect could be discerned by statistical interactions between structural variables, such as gender, and social learning variables (Baron & Kenny, 1986). The expectation of mediation rather than statistical interaction is one he and his colleagues have long held (Krohn, Lanza-Kaduce, & Akers, 1984). Akerss response, however, is unlikely to silence those who insist that researchers must begin to do more than consider gender as a variable. . . . We must theorize gender (Chesney-Lind & Faith, 2001, p. 290). One of the specific foci of Chesney-Lind and Faiths (2001) argument is how sexual expression is sanctioned to regulate sexuality. Part of the challenge includes taking feminist insights about gender and applying them to male behavior (p. 294).

Gender and Alcohol Use and Sex

This research examines Akerss mediation hypothesis in a context that incorporates structural variables that are suggested by feminist theory. The dependent variable drinking before sexual intercourse among unmarried White heterosexual college studentsis unusual in that it is neither clearly criminal nor deviant. It does, however, intersect two behaviors that implicate how people do gender or behave in gendered ways (Miller, 2000, p. 28). Inasmuch as Akerss general theory, in the tradition of Sutherlands (1947) exposition of differential association, purports to explain all behaviors (i.e., conforming and nonconforming ones), the choice of the dependent variable does not detract from scrutinizing the theoretical linkages between social structure and social learning. Although Akers (1997, 1998, chap. 4) has insisted that social learning theory is not a theory of cultural deviance (which can only explain group differences), he readily accepts that culture is important to the learning process.

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Lanza-Kaduce et al. / Gender and Social Learning 129

Since the general conventional culture in modern society is not uniform and there are conflicts and variations among subgroups . . ., the individual is likely to be exposed to different and perhaps conflicting cultural definitions of specific acts as good or bad. The theory does not assume that ones own attitudes are a perfect replication of those cultural patterns. (Akers, 1998, p. 102)

In other words, the structural patterns that exist in society are incorporated into SSSLthey are expected to provide the contexts within which the learning processes operate. However, SS-SL does not provide a priori information about those larger structural arrangements. Both alcohol, especially more frequent and heavier consumption, and its use in courtship and seduction are gendered (Boswell & Spade, 1996; Martin & Hummer, 1989). The adage candy is dandy but liquor is quicker may be dated but probably is not outdated. The subjective reasons for combining sex with alcohol are not the immediate concerns of behaviorist theories or of efforts to integrate behavior processes with structural patterns. What is important is that the intersection between alcohol and sex offers a strategic site for studying masculinist patterns within a given context or situation. In this sense, gender has import that transcends Akerss (1998) characterization of it as a sociodemographic correlate that represents differential location in social structure (p. 333). Patterned use of alcohol in courtship reflects the kind of masculinity that is a common concern across feminist theories (Daly & Chesney-Lind, 1988). A feminist focus on structured masculinity leads to an expectation (one that would not surprise Akers but one that SS-SL does not generate): Males will report more use of alcohol before sex than females will even if only some of their efforts to seduce through alcohol are successful and even if some females employ a similar method. Because most students are assumed to be heterosexual, the difference probably will not be large. Akers (1999) anticipated this possibility; he insists that the
question is the same whether there is a greater (as in the case of most crime and deviance) or smaller (as in the case of smoking, some other drug use, and some minor offenses) gender difference in the dependent variable. (p. 484)

His position, however, is clear: Gender differences will be mediated by social learning processes. SS-SL is helpful in sensitizing scholars to the various levels of social structure through which factors such as gender can operate. It urges a consideration of institutional and other macrolevel social organizations as well as mesolevel primary, secondary, and reference groups (as distinguished from intimate family and friendship groups with which individuals are in differential association). The immediate challenge is to identify additional structured factors related to gender that would help explain male-female differences in alcohol use before sex. One such structural variable in college contexts that comes immediately to mind is an affiliation with fraternities. Whether in popular renditions such as Animal House

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130 Criminal Justice Policy Review

(Reitman, Simmons, & Landis, 1978) or in systematic research (Boswell & Spade, 1996; Martin & Hummer, 1989; Sanday, 1990), fraternity involvement is linked to alcohol consumption often in combination with sexual pursuit. The brothers use the fraternity at least as a reference group if not as a substitute primary group. The prediction that male campus Greeks will be more likely to drink alcohol before sex than will others can be more easily derived from feminist theorizing than from SS-SL. The theorizing, however, may be double edged. Although fraternities are genderlinked social contexts that order the social life of their members, they are also linked to sororities in ways that help order gender relations for both fraternity men and sorority women. Fraternity men may be using alcohol in courtship, but they are probably drinking with and courting sorority womena prediction that is easily derived from the differential association construct in social learning theory. Feminist theorists may be correct when they argue that gender ordering is a more important variable than gender, but the structural gender-ordered patterns that emerge may also be mediated by social learning processes, much as Akers posits. Another school condition which may differentiate males from females is success or, perhaps more specifically, how the genders define success and deal with the lack of success. Feminist theorists have weighed in on this issue in a way that counters the position of SS-SL. For White males (privileged by gender and race), the accomplishment of gender in school means either doing well . . . or if unsuccessful in the classroom, achievement elsewhere (Simpson & Elis, 1995, p. 71). Simpson and Elis (1995) hypothesized that adverse educational experiences . . . will increase delinquency among all youth, but effects will be more pronounced among females than among males (p. 55). Although their focus was on students in secondary school and on violent and property crime, their hypothesis may extend to college students and sex and alcohol behavior. They found some gendered differences (the relationships were also affected by race and class). This interaction between gender and school success is not predicted by Akers.

Research Hypotheses
To this juncture, the Krohn (1999) and Morash (1999) criticisms of SS-SL have been used to go beyond Akerss integrative theorybeyond a mere absorption of structural variables by social learning processes. Feminist theory can be used to advance more precise predictions about differences between males and females in drinking before sex and to consider how gender orders the college context to explain that difference. Feminist theorys focus on masculinist patterns suggests the following hypotheses (Akerss arguments are used to present positions on the respective hypotheses):
1. Male students will be more likely than female students to drink before sex. (Akers would entertain the hypothesis to the extent that it reflects dominant cultural patterns but would argue that the impact of gender on conforming or deviant behaviors would be mediated by social learning processes.)

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2. Male campus Greeks will be more likely to drink before sex than will male independents or female campus Greeks and independents. (Akers would entertain the hypothesis because it reflects general cultural patterns but would issue an important caveat: Fraternity men are likely to differentially associate with sorority women, so drinking before sex will also be high for sorority women.) 3. Adverse educational experiences, as indicated by low grades, will affect drinking and sex for both males and females but will affect females more. (Akers predicts no interaction by gender because the impact of school success should be mediated by social learning processes similarly for males and females.)

SS-SL theory does not generate or challenge any of these hypotheses. Akers does not provide a propositional integration between social learning and structural theories. Rather, he posits that the hypothesized relationships will be mediated to a large extent by social learning variables such as personal definitions and anticipated rewards or punishments. His assertion contains several implications that are amenable to empirical examination. First, the statistical significance and magnitude of relationships between the social structural variables (gender, Greek-system involvement, and academic success) and drinking before sex will be reduced substantially when social learning variables are entered with the structural ones in a multivariate analysis. That is, if the effects of the structural variables are mediated, then their relationships with the dependent variable should be attenuated when the social learning variables are entered into the analysis. Second, the social learning variables will relate to drinking before sex similarly for males and females, for Greek-system participants and independents and for those who earn high grades and those who earn low grades. If the effects of the structural variables are largely mediated by social learning variables, the structural variables should not interact statistically with the learning variables to explain the dependent variable. A caveat is in order before proceeding. These issues are explored via secondary analysis. Consequently, the operationalizations for both the social structural and social learning variables are neither as extensive nor as exacting as would be desired. In particular, neither the definitions nor the differential association construct in social learning theory can be operationalized adequately. As such, this research represents a weak test of the hypotheses, especially Akerss mediation hypothesis. If this research has merit, it lies in the effort to show how other theories can be integrated via propositions into the SS-SL framework and to show how gender helps structure the learning process.

Method
Sample, Data, and the Dependent Variable
The data used in this analysis were obtained from eight colleges where the long form of the Core Alcohol and Drug Survey was administered to students in the mid1990s. Each of the colleges gave permission for the researchers to obtain its data from the Core Institute at Southern Illinois University, provided they did not identify any of

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132 Criminal Justice Policy Review

the colleges. The Core survey consists of four pages of self-report questions that focus primarily on alcohol and drug use on campus. Unfortunately, many of the items contain double-barreled wording in that they ask about both alcohol and drugs in the same question. This practice limited the items that could be used. The colleges varied markedly. They were spread throughout the United States from the Northeast to the Southeast to the Midwest and West. They included public and private institutions that varied in size. The majority of the student body in one school was African American, the plurality in another school was Asian American, and a third school had a mix of Hispanic, White, and Asian American students. Although no claims can be made that either the students in the study were representative of their respective colleges or the Core samples were representative of U.S. college students generally, the schools and the students were diverse enough to permit examining the theoretical linkages between social structural variables and social learning ones. Because of the focus on gender, alcohol, and sex, additional sources of diversity could have complicated the effort to examine theoretical linkages. For example, feminist theorists note that gender plays out differently by race (Christian, 1985; Collins, 2000). Alcohol use (Goode, 2001) and sex patterns (Laumann, Gagnon, Michael, & Michaels, 1994) vary by race as well. Rather than trying to examine everything at once (including whether race interacts with gender; with other structural variables, such as Greek-system involvement; with social learning variables; and in various combinations), we simplified the research by using the subsample of White students. Subsequent analysis can be performed to see how different the findings are for students from other ethnic or racial backgrounds. Subsample selection was also used to control for other potential confounding effects, including marital status, age, prior alcohol use, and sexual activity. This analysis focused on White, single adult (18 years of age or older) students who reported both alcohol use and sexual activity in the preceding year. The important issue of how race and gender intersect (see Chesney-Lind & Faith, 2001) warrants separate treatment and can be joined later. The dependent variable was whether students reported having drunk alcohol the last time they had sexual intercourse. This alcsex variable was coded 1 for yes and 0 for no. More than 75% of those in the original subsample indicated that they had not drunk before their last sexual encounter. The dichotomous dependent variable suggested the use of logistic regression, including its classification of cases, as the appropriate statistical analysis for such data. Unfortunately, classification analysis is altered by skewed distributions. If one predicted every case involved no alcohol use before sex, one would be right more than 75% of the time, leaving little room for the structural and learning variables to improve the accuracy of classifications. To obtain a more even split between students who recently had drunk before sex and those who had not, a 33% subsample, taken at random, of the cases in which drinking had not occurred before sex was pulled. These cases (n = 349) were joined with the total population of cases in which drinking had preceded sex (n = 339) to form the subsample used in the analyses.

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Operationalization of Independent Variables

The integration of SS-SL and feminist theory identified three structural variables that were hypothesized to relate to whether drinking occurred before sex: gender, campus Greek-system involvement, and grades. Gender was dummy coded (0 for female and 1 for male). According to Akers, these variables locate individuals in social environments. Thus, they serve as rough indicators of social structural contexts. Greek-system involvement (Greek) was also dummy coded. Students who reported being actively involved with or in a leadership position in social fraternities or sororities were coded as 1. All other students were coded as 0. Nearly as many female respondents in the subsamples were actively involved in campus Greek activities as were male respondents. The survey also asked respondents to report their approximate cumulative grade average (ranging from A+ to F). A and B grades were coded together to indicate academic success (coded 1); lower grades were collapsed (coded 0) to indicate less success. Academic success locates students in the educational structure. The Core survey contained only a few items that operationalized social learning constructs. One survey item asked students to anticipate the risk of harm (risk) involved when individuals consume alcohol prior to being sexually active. The responses were categorized into great risk (4), moderate risk (3), slight risk (2), and no risk (1). Males were less likely to anticipate as much harm as females. Several items asked students to consider the anticipated positive consequences (rewards) of mixing alcohol and sex. Again, an index was constructed. One item asked whether (coded 1 or 0) alcohol facilitates sexual opportunities. Another item asked whether (coded 1 or 0) alcohol makes me sexier. A third item used in the index was whether alcohol made the opposite sex sexier. The survey did not distinguish heterosexuals from homosexuals or bisexuals, so for males, the response to whether alcohol makes females sexier was used, and for females, the response to whether alcohol makes males sexier was used. The rewards index ranged from 0 (no anticipated positive consequences) to 3 (yes to all indexed items).

Data Analysis Strategy

The data analyses are driven by the respective hypotheses. For the first hypothesis, cross-tabular analysis is used to examine whether gender is related to using alcohol before sex (alcsex). Logistic regression is used to examine whether any gender effect (gender as a structural location) is mediated by social learning variables (risk and rewards). The second hypothesis is examined via cross-tabular analysis. To see whether fraternity men are most likely to have drunk alcohol before having sex, we elaborate the cross-tabular relationship between Greek and alcsex by including gender. The differential association feature of SS-SL suggests that sorority women will also frequently use alcohol before sex. Unfortunately, no differential association measure is available in this data set to examine whether gender differences are mediated by differential association.

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134 Criminal Justice Policy Review

Table 1 Cross-Tabulation of Gender With Drinking Before Sex

Female Drank Before Sex? No Yes Total n 182 135 317 % 57.4 42.6 n 147 182 329 Male % 44.7 55.3 n 329 317 646 Total % 50.9 49.1 9.97 .001 .13
2

The third hypothesis looks for an interaction between gender and academic success. Feminist theorizing predicts that grades will relate to other behaviors more for females than for males; Akers does not expect an interaction. The analysis begins with elaborating the cross-tabulation between grades and alcsex by gender. If an interaction is found, a new variable will be constructed (with coding reversed so that females are coded 1) and incorporated into a logistic regression model to see whether its impact is mediated by social learning variables (risk and reward). Finally, the relationships that emerged in the previous steps are incorporated into an overall model and logistic regression analysis is performed. This permits us to examine which variables (or interactions) relate to and help account for drinking before having sex.

RESULTS
Hypothesis 1
The bivariate relationship between gender and drinking before sex (alcsex) is presented in Table 1. As feminist theory suggests, a masculinist pattern emerges. Males are somewhat more likely to report drinking before having sex (55.3%) than are females (42.6 %). The percentage difference is statistically significant (corrected 2 = 9.97, df = 1, p < .01). The relationship is not strong (F = .13). Next, gender is entered into the first block of a logistic regression analysis. The social learning variables (risk and rewards) are then entered on the second block. Gender is significantly related to having sex after drinking in Block 1 (B = 0.50, SE = 0.16, Wald = 9.83; df = 1, p < .01). The odds ratio is 1.65 (i.e., males are more than 1.5 times more likely to use alcohol before having sex). When the social learning variables are entered in the second block, the gender relationship is no longer statistically significant (B = 0.15, SE = 0.18, Wald = 0.36, df = 1, p < .56). Its odds ratio is reduced to 1.11. The masculinist pattern is mediated by social learning variables, consistent with Akerss position. If gender is considered to be a mere locator in the larger social structure, its effects may operate almost entirely through social learning processes.

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Table 2 Cross-Tabulation of Greek Involvement With Drinking Before Sex, Controlling for Gender
Non-Greek Drank Before Sex? Female No Yes Total Male No Yes Total n % n Greek % n Total %
2

147 87 234 114 114 228

62.8 37.2

35 48 83 33 68 101

42.2 57.8

182 135 317 147 182 329

57.4 42.6 9.86 44.7 55.3 7.82 .004 .16 .001 .18

50 50

32.7 67.3

Hypothesis 2
The second hypothesis reflects feminist theorizing that gender is more than a variableit comes into play in how social settings are structured or ordered. One structured context within which gender orders interactions and behaviors is the social Greek system on college campuses. The masculinist pattern that is expected is that fraternity men will be most likely to engage in drinking before having sex. The countervailing consideration derived from social learning theorys differential association construct is that fraternity men will be associating with sorority women, so sorority women will also be likely to drink before engaging in sex. Table 2 presents the relevant results from a cross-tabulation between Greek participation and alcsex, controlling for gender. Table 2 presents the results. Consistent with masculinist patterns, fraternity men are most likely to report using alcohol before having sex (67.3%). But consistent with the differential association expectation, sorority women are next most likely to use alcohol before having sex (57.8%). Half of the independent males report drinking before sex, but only 37.2% of independent females do. The relationship between Greek and alcsex is significant for both females (corrected 2 = 9.86, df = 1, p < .01) 2 1 and males (corrected = 7.82, df = 1, p < .01).

Hypothesis 3
The third hypothesis is derived from feminist research that expected and found that academic success related to crime differently by gender. Less academic success among females had a bigger impact than for males. This interaction is not predicted by Akers. Table 3 presents the cross-tabulation between grades and alcsex, controlling for gender. The results show that females with low grades (61.5%) are most likely to use alcohol before having sex. Females with high grades are least likely (38.5%). Males fall in between (about 55% of men drink before sex regardless of their grades).

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Table 3 Cross-Tabulation of Grades With Drinking Before Sex, Controlling for Gender
Grades C, D, and F Drank Before Sex? Female No Yes Total Male No Yes Total n % A and B n % n Total %
2

20 32 52 52 64 116

38.5 61.5

153 90 243 89 111 200

63.0 37.0

173 122 295 141 175 316

58.6 41.4 9.62 44.6 55.4 .000 1.00 .003 .001 .19

44.8 55.2

44.5 55.5

The chi-square tests of independence confirm the interaction. For females, grades are 2 related to alcsex (corrected = 9.62, df = 1, p < .01); for males, they are not (corrected 2 = 0, df = 1, p = 1). An interaction term is computed (females with low grades and all males are coded 0, and females with high grades are coded 1). This interaction between two structural variables is entered in the first block of a logistic regression analysis. It is significant (B = 0.77, SE = 0.17, Wald = 20.44, df = 1, p < .01); the odds ratio is 0.46. When the social learning variables are entered in the second block of the logistic regression analysis, the interaction term remains significant at the .01 level (B = 0.46, SE = 0.18, Wald = 6.35, df = 1). The odds ratio changes a little (to a 0.63). Clearly, this gendered interaction is not mediated by the social learning variables that are available in this data set.

An Overall Model
To this point, the respective hypotheses have been dealt with individually. The variables that are implicated, however, can be used to advance a multivariate model that allows us to see what helps account for having sex after drinking. The complete model is examined via logistic regression with the significant structural variables that were identified previously entered in the first block (Greek and Grade Gender interaction). The two social learning variables (risk and rewards) are entered in the second block. The relevant results are reported in Table 4. In Block 1, both Greek involvement and the Grade Gender interaction (females with high grades = 1 and all others = 0) are significantly related to alcsex. The unstandardized coefficient for Greek is 0.87 with a standard error of 0.19 (Wald = 21, df = 1, p < .01). Its odds ratio is 2.40. In other words, fraternity men and sorority women drink before engaging in sex 2.5 times more often than do independent students. The unstandardized coefficient for the Grade Gender interaction is 0.75 with a standard error

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TABLE 4 Having Sex After Drinking (Alcsex) Regressed on the Block of Social Structural (SS) Variables and the Block of Social Learning (SL) Variables
Block 1 B SS variables Greek Grade Gender SL variables Rewards Risk Correct classifications No alcsex (%) Yes alcsex (%) Overall (%) SE p Wald Exp(B) B SE Block 2 p Wald Exp(B)

.87 .75

.19 .17

.00 .00

21.00 18.64

2.40 0.47

.86 .44 .26 .31

.19 .19 .09 .08

.00 .02 .00 .00 65.1 62.7 63.9

19.77 5.59 8.73 13.38

2.40 0.64 1.30 0.74

38.5 80.0 58.9

of 0.17 (Wald = 18.64, df = 1, p < .01). Its odds ratio is 0.47. In other words, females with high grades are less likely to report using alcohol before having sex. These two structural variables correctly predict 58.9% of the casesan improvement over the 50-50 split between those who had reported drinking before sex and those who did not report drinking before sex. The results for Block 2 show little change in the structural variables when the social learning variables are entered into the logistic regression analysis. The Greek variable continues to account for drinking before sex; students with Greek-system involvement use alcohol before sex more often than other students. Greek showed virtually no change (it remained statistically significant and its odds ratio remained high at 2.40). The Grade Gender interaction changed slightly. It is no longer significant at the .01 level but is significant at a .05 level. Its odds ratio moved to 0.64 (from 0.47). Block 2 shows that both learning variables also relate to drinking before sex. The unstandardized coefficient for risk (which had four ordinal categories) is 0.31 with a standard error of 0.08 (Wald = 13.38, df = 1, p < .01). The odds ratio is 0.74. The unstandardized coefficient for rewards (which had four interval categories) is 2.60 with a standard error of 0.09 (Wald = 8.73, df = 1, p < .01). The odds ratio is 1.30. The percentage of correctly classified cases increased to 63.9% (from 58.9%).

Discussion and Conclusion

This research used feminist theory to advance three hypotheses relating structural variables to individual behaviors regarding the combination of alcohol and sex by unmarried White college students. These variables were used to determine if there are structural variables that work independently of Akerss social learning process. The feminist perspective would not expect all group dynamics to be mediated by social

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psychological processes. Akers and his associates argue that such relationships will be substantially mediated by social learning variables, and they do not expect to find significant interactions. In this research, the Akers position and feminist theory both received partial support. A masculinist effect was found for the structural variable gender. When gender was entered into a logistic regression with the social learning variables risk and reward, its effect was mediated by those social learning variables, as Akers predicts. Greek-system males were most likely to use alcohol before having sexa finding that would not surprise feminist theorists. We used Akerss arguments about differential association to predict that Greek-system females would also frequently drink before having sex. Greek-system males and females were more likely to drink before having sex than were independents, male or female. Unfortunately, there were no adequate measures of differential association in these data to examine whether differential association would mediate the Greek effect. The logistic regression that was performed included two other social learning variables (risk and reward). Their inclusion did not reduce the effect of Greek-system involvement. Given that Akers et al. (1979) expect differential association to be correlated with the other leading variables, some mediation would have been expected. Without a differential association measure, conclusions about mediation need to remain tentative. The analysis of the interactions produced the most interesting conclusions. Akers would predict no interactions because the effects of the structural variables would be mediated by the social learning process. Gender reemerged as an important theoretical consideration because it interacted with academic success as measured by grades. The logistic regression, which included Greek-system involvement, the Gender Grade interaction, and the social learning variables risk and reward, indicate that Greeksystem involvement and the Gender Grade interaction were not mediated by the social learning variables. The inclusion of the social learning variables, however, did improve the percentage of cases correctly classified. The results indicate that structural variables can act independently of the mediating effects of the social learning process and that interactions may complicate our efforts to understand outcomes. Gender in particular may interact with other variables in ways that social learning processes do not mediate. Finding structural effects that are not mediated by learning processes raises a basic philosophy of science issue: To what extent are group phenomena reducible? SS-SL assumes that group dynamics translate into social psychological processes to account for individual behavior. Durkheim (1893/1964) would have us believe that there are social factsentities out therethat control and shape human behavior; these social facts would not be reduced or mediated by a social psychological process. The discontinuity between the group and the individual will not be completely bridged, and the search for additional processes or better measurements will be futile. Some groups may have higher rates of behavior, and we may not be able to predict which members engage in the behavior or why they do so using social psychological principles.

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Lanza-Kaduce et al. / Gender and Social Learning 139

Akers deserves credit for staking out a clear position that is applicable to a broad array of structural arrangements and individual behaviors. His mediation hypothesis is one that can be empirically examined. His position was confirmed when gender was considered to be nothing more than a structural location; its effects were mediated. Hypotheses were advanced regarding how gender orders social relations (e.g., campus Greek life) and how it interacts with other social conditions (e.g., academic performance). The effects of Greek-system involvement and grades on drinking before having sex were not mediated by learning processes. Akerss theory can help us understand why sorority women also frequently engage in drinking before sex; they differentially associate with fraternity men, who are doing the same thing. The effect of Greek-system involvement may have been mediated had there been adequate measures of this theoretical construct. The interaction between gender and academic success (as measured by grades) is not anticipated by SS-SL. The finding points to the need to explicate ways in which we need to theorize gender. Why does academic performance operate differently for females than it does for males? Suffice it to say that this research among unmarried, White college students found that there could be structural variables that are not mediated by the social learning process. Additional research is needed to identify which structural relationships are substantially mediated, which are not mediated, which interact, and which are population specific. The conclusions in this research are to be viewed as tentative, given the limited measures of the social learning variables in this data set. The structural indicators are also not precise gauges of social contexts. Our findings need to be corroborated. To do that, data need to be collected that have adequate measures of both structural and social learning variables. The research also needs to go beyond the White college student sample we used. Future research should include race as a structural variable. Race has been shown to be a significant predictor of drinking behavior among college students (Capece, Schantz, & Wakeman, 2002) and has been linked to other problem behaviors of students (Simpson & Elis, 1995).

Policy Implications
The problem with alcohol use, abuse, and associated problems on college campuses is well documented (Baer, Kiviahan, & Marlatt, 1995; Berkowitz & Perkins, 1986; Engs & Hanson, 1985). In the 1980s and 1990s, alcohol use increased among college women (Engs & Hanson, 1985, 1990; Harrington, Brigham, & Clayton, 1997), although college men generally still drink more frequently and more heavily than college women (Berkowitz & Perkins, 1987; Engs & Hanson, 1990; Perkins, 1999). Racial patterns of alcohol use are less clear. Some earlier investigations reported that Black students drink more than (or at least as much as) White students (Blane & Hewitt, 1977; Maddox & Williams, 1968). In contrast, the recent studies report that Whites have higher rates of consumption than Blacks (Engs & Hanson, 1985; Haworth-Hoeppner, Globetti, Stern, & Morasco, 1989; Wechsler, 1996). Haworth-

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140 Criminal Justice Policy Review

Hoeppner et al. (1989) account for lower consumption among Blacks because Black students, for the most part, do not participate in the White campus culture that encourages drinking. Fraternity and sorority members, especially house residents, are more prone to heavy alcohol use. Wechsler, Kuh, and Davenport (1996) report from a national study that virtually all resident fraternity and sorority members drink: Ninety-nine percent of men and 98% of women, and 86% of fraternity house residents and 71% of fraternity nonresident members, engaged in binge drinking. This compares to 45% of nonfraternity men. In this same study, 80% of resident sorority members engaged in binge drinking at least once in the previous 2 weeks, compared to 35% of nonsorority members. Furthermore, nonmembers are most likely to abstain from alcohol: 16% of nonmember men and 17% of nonmember women. Additionally, even those without a history of binge drinking or heavy alcohol use became more likely to engage in it after joining a fraternity or sorority. Sorority members were the most likely to acquire heavy drinking behaviors when entering college and were more likely to experience alcohol-related problems. Lack of prior experience with drinking tends to place sorority members at greater risk to develop alcohol-related problems (Wechsler et al., 1996; Wechsler & Wuethrich, 2002). Studies also examine problems related to drinking, including negative physical effects such as hangovers, vomiting, and injuries to self or others. Nonphysical effects include delinquent and/or criminal behavior (e.g., date rape, damage to property, fighting, drinking and driving), relationship troubles, and academic difficulties (Baer et al, 1995; Harrington et al., 1997). Akerss (1998) SS-SL and the results of our research provide insight into how to change drinking behavior and related problems on college campuses; the drinking culture needs to be changed by altering the drinking climate, addressing drinking practices among both male and female Greek-system members, changing interaction and associational patterns, and encouraging administration, faculty, and staff to model appropriate drinking behavior. The expression change the drinking culture is now part of the college administrators language when discussing the problem of alcohol use, abuse, and related problems on college campuses. The emphasis on changing the culture has prompted meetings between campus administration and political leaders, bar owners, and others in the community to discuss ways to work together to deal with student alcohol use and abuse (Local Officials Discuss Alcohol Abuse, 2005). Consistent with Akers, there seems to be agreement that to change the drinking culture, change needs to take place on the structural and associational and interactional levels. On the structural level, advertising of alcohol could be reduced significantly or eliminated from college campuses and college sporting events. This could also include advertising of drink specials by local bars on campus. We understand that there are significant economic considerations involved in this type of change. This effort would be an ongoing effort that would take place across a period of time. Additionally, the university could deemphasize the use of alcohol at official university events. On the associational and interactional level, alcohol use and abuse among those in Greek-system organizations needs to be addressed. As past research seems to indicate,

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Lanza-Kaduce et al. / Gender and Social Learning 141

and as our research further substantiates, heavy drinking in Greek-system organizations may no longer be a male thing. Our results show that Greek-system women and men are both using alcohol before sex. It may no longer be an issue of men preying on women as much as it is a mutually reinforcing interaction between fraternity men and sorority women. Changing the Greek-system drinking culture can also be addressed by the national Greek-system offices directly responsible for their respective members across the country. Responsibility could be shared between the national and regional Greeksystem offices to implement drinking guidelines and consequences for underage drinking and/or drinking violations by their membership. Additionally, Greek-system members and the general student population might include group responsibility for drinking in addition to individual responsibility. Social controls could come from those around the drinker, much like friends dont let friends drink and drive has spread the responsibility for drinking and driving among bartenders, those hosting parties, and the friends of the drinker. Bartenders and those who own and operate package stores could also help with the social controls by doing what they can to combat underage purchasing of alcohol. The drinking problem on college campuses would not be eliminated if we just address the Greek-system issue. Our research found that there was a relationship between females with low grades and drinking before sex. We assume that there are other subgroups of college students who are prone to inappropriate drinking. As these student subgroups are identified, interventions can be designed to address their particular needs. The problem of excessive drinking on college campuses can be addressed by looking at the cultural context in which alcohol is used. Akerss theory and our research provide some valuable insight into how the problem can be viewed and confronted. The difficulty, of course, is that the college campus operates in a larger cultural context. If the larger cultural context is not willing to address this issue, it will be more difficult to affect change on campus.

Note
1. Social learning theory led us to expect that many sorority women would report drinking before sex because of their differential association with fraternity men. A measure of differential association is not available in these data. Consequently, we can only begin to examine whether the impact of Greek would be mediated by social learning processes. A logistic regression was performed to see whether other social learning variables (risk and rewards) mediated the impact of Greek. They did not.

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Lonn Lanza-Kaduce, JD, PhD (University of Iowa), is a professor and chair of the Department of Criminology, Law, and Society at the University of Florida. He has been researching problems associated with substance use among youth for many years. His research has examined drug use among adolescents, drinking and driving, the impact of changing the minimum drinking age, and binge drinking. He is also engaged in research in juvenile justice, particularly dealing with the effect of transferring youth to criminal court. Another recent line of research has focused on policing, including field encounters, police training, and community-oriented policing. Michael Capece, PhD (University of Florida), is an associate professor in the nationally accredited applied and clinical sociology programs in the Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Criminal Justice at Valdosta State University, Valdosta, Georgia. He holds licenses as a professional counselor in Georgia and as a marriage and family therapist and mental health counselor in Florida. Dr. Capece has published in the areas of employee assistance programs, community development, substance abuse, and family. His areas of interest are sociological practice, program evaluation, deviance and criminology, mental health and substance abuse, and family. Helena Alden is a PhD candidate at the University of Florida. Her dissertation examines the framing of homosexuality as deviant within a specific social movement. More broadly, her research interests include gender, sexuality, and deviance. She is currently teaching part-time in the sociology department at the University of WisconsinStevens Point.

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