The cheaper the beer, the drunker students will get. That’s what recent research at the University of Florida has proven with college bars.

At the bar scene, offering specials on beer is directly tied to increased rowdiness among college students. But as long as they’re making money, bars have no intentions on cutting back the deals.

Ryan J. O’Mara, University of Florida graduate and corresponding author for the study, commented:

‘Drink specials’ and other alcohol discounts and promotions remain a common feature of college bars in campus communities in the United States. This study’s results challenge assertions sometimes made by the management of these establishments that drink discounts are innocuous marketing practices intended only to attract customers to better bargains than those provided elsewhere.

Part of the research involved a survey of several hundred college students at the University of Florida. The surveys were conducted as students left seven different bars on four consecutive nights in April 2008. They included anonymous interviews, breath alcohol concentration (BrAC) readings, and the number and price of drinks consumed.

The study authors found that for each $1.40 increase in the average price paid for a standard drink, the study participant was 30 percent less likely to leave the bar with a BrAC above 0.08. In other words, higher drink prices were associated with a decreased risk of patrons being inebriated when leaving the bar, the researchers concluded.

Now being an idiot is rationalized with research. Can this also be the reason behind the mass consumption of Natty and Keystone here at Penn State? We hope so.

[Photo courtesy of flickr.com]