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Transgender students exhibit higher-risk drinking patterns

Recent findings indicated transgender college students may engage in more problematic drinking patterns and experience more negative alcohol-related consequences, compared with cisgender students.

“The stressors surrounding stigma vs. social acceptance are likely to affect transgender college students in particular. College students in emerging adulthood must navigate the developmental tasks of transitioning from parental dependence to becoming functional, independent adults who establish intimate relationships and sustain employment. Transgender students must additionally brave the uncertainties of identifying themselves as a minority in a heteronormative society,” Larry A. Tupler, PhD, of Duke University, and colleagues wrote.

To assess whether transgender college students use drinking as a coping mechanism, researchers evaluated alcohol consumption, frequency of alcohol-related blackouts and alcohol-related consequences and motivations for drinking among a sample of transgender college students. Students completed an online survey that examined drinking over a 14-day period. The sample included 422,906 students, of whom 989 identified as transgender.

Transgender students were more likely to consume alcohol over more days, more total drinks and a greater number of maximum drinks on a single day, compared with cisgender students.

Alcohol-related blackouts were more common among transgender students (36% vs. 25%), as were negative academic, confrontational, social and sexual alcohol-related consequences.

Transgender students were more likely to report stress reduction, social anxiety, self-esteem issues and inherent properties of alcohol as motivation for drinking.

Most measures had higher values for male-to-female transgender students, compared with female-to-male students.

“Clinical significance that clearly follows from our findings includes the importance of attending to negative motivations for drinking that can fuel hazardous consumption. For example, addressing the needs of transgender students through educational offerings may serve to promote their mental health and diminish the impulse to drink to bolster self-esteem or address social anxiety. Imparting protective drinking strategies may be particularly useful,” the researchers wrote. – by Amanda Oldt

Disclosure: Tupler reports no relevant financial disclosures. Please see the study for a full list of relevant financial disclosures.