College Men Unimpressed by Female Binge Drinkers

Some college women may drink excessively to gain the attention of men, but new research from Loyola Marymount University suggests that drunk women are not as attractive to men as women believe.

Science Daily reported March 11 that the majority (71 percent) of women surveyed overestimated — by an average of one-and-a-half drinks — the number of alcohol beverages men wanted their female friends, dates, or girlfriends to drink.

Researchers surveyed 3,616 college students (ages 18-25) at Loyola Marymount University and the University of Washington, and asked women questions about their perceptions of what college men want women to drink, as well as the relationship between drinking and sexual attraction. The researchers then compared the women’s answers with men’s actual preferences.

Women who overestimated men’s preferences were more likely to drink excessively, according to the study.

“There is a great, and risky, disconnect here between the sexes,” said lead researcher Joseph LaBrie, who teaches at Loyola Marymount. “While not all women may be drinking simply to get a guy’s attention, this may help explain why more women are drinking at dangerous levels.”

The results were published in the March 2009 journal Psychology of Addictive Behaviors.