Provides an overview of alcohol use and abuse on the college campus. Discusses theory behind alcohol abuse prevention contracts. Presents an example of how to use contracts to address alcohol abuse in a commuter university Greek system. Concludes solving the problems associated with college students' drinking is now more critical than ever.…

A federal district judge ruled that a state university may not discipline students by infringing on their right to freedom of speech based on an activity's perceived offensive content. The case involved a George Mason University (Virginia) fraternity contest that the administration felt was racist. (MSE)

Used qualitative methods to discover role of fraternity culture and pledgeship experiences in shaping alcohol use of new members. Used culture audits at fraternities at two different institutions. Concluded that regulating alcohol use is a key element in complicated system of rewards and sanctions administered by active members designed to…

Analyses of data from a survey of undergraduate students at a research institution were completed to determine whether self-reported experiences with sexual violence varied by gender and Greek affiliation. Significant differences were found by both gender and Greek affiliation for sexual victimization, sexual victimization with alcohol, and sexual…

Discusses the perceived lack of readiness among sorority and fraternity members to reduce their drinking. Reports on a survey of 106 at-risk Greek students in which 25% report moving into stages that involve thinking about change or action to reduce their alcohol consumption. Proposes that research should assess the extent to which high-risk…

The National Study of Student Learning indicated that membership in Greek organizations can have negative effects on students' cognitive development, particularly during freshman year. In contrast, this study at a midwestern research university found Greek students had higher levels of involvement and gains in general abilities than non-Greek…

From a historical perspective, it's interesting to note that at their 100-year mark Black fraternities and sororities are facing some of the very same political criticisms encountered half a century ago. The Black Greeks' ability to be a greater force for social change is also constrained by the basic internal structures of the organizations…

Three focus group interviews with multiple men from every fraternity at a small to midsized public university were conducted to study the fraternal culture with regard to alcohol and consent in sexually intimate encounters. Specifically, fraternity men were asked to share their experiences with asking for consent after one or both parties have…

The gifted education community has called for more research examining gifted students during their collegiate experience. The study described in this article examined gifted university males involved in a Greek fraternity. Through a qualitative case study research design, the investigation examined the collegiate careers of 5 gifted,…

College students have been shown to consistently overestimate the drinking of their peers. As a result, social norms approaches are effective in correcting these misperceived norms to reduce alcohol consumption and alcohol-related problems. In this review of literature, the authors critically evaluated the effectiveness of personalized normative…

This document presents 2 separate publications under 1 cover. The first publication, entitled American Fraternities: An Agenda of Needed Research, suggests possible topics for research into fraternities. Among the areas indicated are: (1) the history and development of the fraternity system; (2) the history of student organizations as a whole; (3)…

This article addresses the issue of the stereotypes surrounding fraternities and sororities at a small private college in Oregon. The hypothesis that students who pledge have a higher affiliation need than "independent" students is not supported. (Author)

Fraternities and sororities on commuter campuses challenge our traditional views in terms of size, number of chapters represented, housing, recruitment, and achievement of a team feeling to build brotherhood or sisterhood. Alternative models need to be developed to address the commuter-related issues. (KS)

The evidence on social fraternities on two campuses suggests two major problems confronting the system. The first is that of cultural implosiveness or socioeconomic inbreeding. The second involves the heavy emphasis placed upon personality factors in the rushing and pledging processes. (Author)