Students can have fun without booze

Research indicates students in college can have as good a time at a party if they don't drink, U.S. researchers suggest. Lori Scott-Sheldon of the Miriam Hospital in Providence, R.I., analyzed data on 19 studies involving more than 1,400 U.S. college students. The study, published in the journal Psychology of Addictive Behavior, found students were less likely to drink alcohol when their beliefs about the positive effects of drinking were challenged. "Being aware that it isn't the alcohol that causes the outcomes, but the positive expectancies associated with alcohol, triggered by the social setting, may help you limit or avoid drinking," Scott-Sheldon said in a statement. Scott-Sheldon suggested young people list what they expected from alcohol and create arguments against the expectancies.