CollEgE studEnts and bingE drinking: Exploring thE rElationship bEtWEEn Control and intEntion on bEhavior

The present study draws on Ajzen’s (1985, 1991) theory of planned behavior (TPB) to explore the relationships between students’ intentions to drink responsibly, students’ perceptions of control over their behavior, and their reported levels of drinking. We relied on a randomly selected and surveyed sample of 149 students at a Midwestern university. We hypothesized students who reported stronger intentions and greater perceived control would report reduced levels of drinking. Our findings indicated that respondents who intended to drink responsibly and scored higher on two measures of perceptions of control consumed less alcohol 10 days prior to the survey and binged less frequently in the past month. The findings further support the TPB and provide implications for prevention and control strategies.