Cross Cultural Alcohol Consumption Promoting Responsibility

Despite EMU's proclaimed stance against alcohol use in the Community lifestyle Committment, students on cross-culturals are doing their fair share of consuming. A new goal of cross-culturals now seems to be to promote responsible use of alcohol, rather than total non-use.

The legal drinking age in many of the cross-cultural destinations is lower than in the states. Many students under 21 are taking advantage of this to experiment with alcohol, even though it is discouraged by EMU. However, according to students and leaders, their use of alcohol is done in a responsible way.

"EMU students under 21 rarely have had problems with alcohol abuse on our four cross-culturals," said Linford Stutzman on the matter. Stutzman, who led the Spring 2006 Middle East cross-cultural, acknowledged the presence of alcohol on the trip, estimating that about 90 percent of his group consumed alcohol. He added that the clear majority was responsible in their usage, and those that were not had likely been abusing alcohol prior to the cross-cultural. Stutzman admitted that he has no idea if these numbers are more or less than the average amount for the standard EMU cross-cultural.

Stutzman went on to say that he believes that EMU students who have been on cross-culturals are more likely to drink than students who have not. He added that he believes these same students will be less likely to abuse alcohol. He also feels that students are more likely to abuse alcohol at school than on cross-cultural.

Stutzman maintains that cross-cultural is still an important part of EMU's curriculum, despite the fact that it affords students new opportunities for alcohol and illegal substance use. He believes that there is an inverse ratio between the amount of alcohol consumed on a cross-cultural, and the quality of the experience that the students have. "I think it is not very realistic or even culturally appropriate to try to prevent all drinking, but it is realistic and appropriate to prevent abuse and the inevitable problems it causes."

One student who has been on cross-cultural also had a few things to say on the matter. This student, from the France/Benin 2005 cross-cultural, said he had consumed alcohol, but felt that he had been responsible. "It is customary to drink wine with a meal in France," he said. "It is something that is done just about every day in responsible manners different than thought of in the U.S." The student said he believed that a number of students on the trip consumed alcohol at some point, but that it was mostly used responsibly.

The student feels that drinking is probably more likely on cross-cultural, mainly because the legal age is lower, but also because of the different cultural perception of alcohol. He added that if he was going to experience the use of alcohol he was glad that it was done responsibly in a proper setting and culture. Being in France, where there is respect for the use of alcohol, gave him more of an appreciation and respect for the consumption of alcohol. He believes that alcohol can be a big issue on cross-culturals, but that it can also be a healthy thing. The different cultures can promote a more responsible type of use than the model he sees in America.

A student from the 2006 Middle East cross-cultural estimated that about 85 percent of the participants consumed alcohol, himself included. He said that abuse only occurred in a few individual cases. One other student, who did admit to abusing alcohol, said he only did it "once or twice" over the course of the semester. In the first student's opinion, students under 21 used the younger drinking ages to "experiment wisely" and learn good alcohol practices.

The student also had this comment, "I think that [alcohol] can be used responsibly, but it's when it becomes a central focus of the trip that it becomes an issue of abuse. If you spend more than 10 percent of your time as a group discussing why drinking should or shouldn't be accepted, then it has become abused to the point that it's taking away from the learning that should be happening."

Since many EMU students try alcohol for the first time while on cross-cultural, this student believes that is also often when they make a decision whether or not to use alcohol when they are of legal age in the United States. He did not believe that students coming back from cross-cultural are more likely to drink alcohol, but that they have experience enough to make responsible choices at home.

Six students from three separate cross-culturals in the 2005-2006 school year were interviewed for this story. Three of the students had abused alcohol, but stressed that it was not common and that it wasn't in the presence of the group. All three had also abused alcohol in the States. The cross-cultural leader with whom we spoke had similar responses-alcohol was used, mostly responsibly, and when it was abused it was by those who had also abused alcohol at home.