The objective of this study was to examine alcohol consumption rates and the perception of drinking cultures among college students in the Wonju area. An examination of factors such as frequency of drinking, average quantity consumed, and frequency of heavy drinking suggested that the drinking rates were relatively high. Over 70% of subjects drank at least once a week, 66.2% typically drank more than 5 servings at a time, and 19.2% of males and 13.0% of females were heavy drinkers. It was revealed from an AUDIT (Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test) assessment that 71.3% of the subjects tested had various levels of alcohol-related problems. These problems were more severe in subjects that were male, selfboarding, or overweight. Alcohol related knowledge was not high because the subjects didn't know or incorrectly recognized some contents such as blood alcohol concentration, the energy content of alcohol, and the empty caloric characteristics of alcohol. Generally male, self-boarding, and overweight persons were not critical of the undesirable characteristics associated with drinking culture. Two opinions that were generally considered to be permissible were: 'Men should be able to drink' and 'Drinking is essential for a smooth human relationship'.

• 오혜숙 | Oh, Hae-Sook