Drinking Among Young Adults: Screening, Brief Intervention, and Outcome

Both college and noncollege populations face a high risk of becoming heavy drinkers and experiencing negative consequences of alcohol use. Because young people in these populations do not tend to identify themselves as having alcohol problems, they may be more readily identified through proactive screening in locations where they are likely to seek treatment related to alcohol problems, such as hospital emergency rooms, their college campuses, or workplaces. This article summarizes research on screening and brief interventions for alcohol use among young adults, particularly brief motivational interventions (BMIs).