Alcohol intervention programs do not reduce drinking among fraternity brothers, according to a study published by the American Psychological Association in May. The project’s lead researcher, Lori Scott-Sheldon, attributes this to the nature of Greek life on college campuses, and UNCW frats are no exception.

“Alcohol and Greek life go hand in hand,” said one UNCW frat brother. “It’s a social stimulant for us.”

The study shows that binge drinking is common among college students, but is more prominent among fraternities and sororities. However, only 18 percent of the study consisted of women, so the results cannot be “generalizable to all members of Greek organizations,” the study said.

“In my opinion alcohol is a large part of college life in general, specifically social situations,” another brother said. “Greek life is dominated by social interactions of all forms, and because of this alcohol appears very frequently.”

The analysis of 15 different studies conducted over 25 years shows that frat brothers exposed to alcohol intervention programs drank neither smaller amounts nor lower frequency than frat brothers not exposed. The interventions included “education about alcohol, personalized feedback on alcohol use and strategies to reduce drinking,” according to Scott-Sheldon.

Crossroads, UNCW’s alcohol education program, offers programs for the general student body, but they also appear at fraternity chapter meetings to educate the members. However, rather than focusing their efforts on preventing the frat brothers from drinking, they instead focus on managing the risks involved.

“Crossroads knows as college students we are gonna drink, so instead of telling us not to, they tell us how to be smart about it,” the first brother said. “Eat protein, ‘space and pace,’ stay away from party juice, track how many drinks you’ve had, etc. […] all these methods work if they are done properly.”

As for the frats themselves, some of them they take steps of their own to ensure safety at their parties.

“We actually have people at each party who are sober and help moderate what happens to make sure people are always safe,” the second brother said. “Our goal is for everyone to have a good time, and the chief thing to have fun, in my mind, is first being safe.”

The designers of the study say they will have to do more research to find different strategies to reduce drinking among members of Greek life. The UNCW fraternity members interviewed are not sure that any strategies will actually reduce their alcohol consumption.

“People are going to drink because, good or not, alcohol is fun and makes you feel good,” said the second brother.

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Staff Writer Lucy O’Brien can be found on Twitter @lucytalks2much

Editor’s note: anonymity was granted to the fraternity brothers cited in this article in order uphold the integrity of their respective organizations as well as to allow for them to speak candidly on the topic, without fear or censoring themselves.