Black Men in College provides vital information about how to effectively support, retain, and graduate Black male undergraduates. This edited collection centers on the notion that Black male collegians are not a homogenous group; rather, they are representative of rarely acknowledged differences that exist among them. This valuable text suggests that understanding these differences is critical to making true in-roads in serving Black men. Chapter contributors describe the diverse challenges Black men in HBCUs face and discuss how to support and retain high-achieving men, gay men, academically unprepared men, low-income men, men in STEM, American immigrants, millennials, collegiate fathers, those affiliated with Greek organizations, and athletes. Recommendations for policy and practice to encourage retention and persistence to degree completion are grounded in extant theory and research. This text is a must-read for all higher education faculty, researchers, and student affairs practitioners interested in addressing the contemporary college experiences of Black men in postsecondary institutions.

It has been well researched that college student alcohol use is a public health concern and that college students as a general population are at risk for excessive alcohol use and binge drinking. Within the wide population of college students, student-athletes are at a particularly high risk for excessive alcohol consumption. Collegiate student-athletes have been found to be more likely than their peers to report alcohol-related negative consequences. In studying why athletes drink more than their peers, collegiate student-athlete alcohol research purports that motives for alcohol use stem from both general and sport-related motives. Social norms research, particularly descriptive and injunctive norms, has also been used to explain alcohol use habits in college students and student-athletes. Alcohol use is also strongly influenced by cultural norms and beliefs that one may develop in their country of origin. No research currently exists that studies how domestic and international student-athletes differ in alcohol use trends. The current study intends to bridge gaps in the literature by investigating alcohol use among international and domestic student-athletes and the resulting relationship between factors such as alcohol consumption, drinking motives, negative consequences of alcohol use, and a student-athlete's country of origin. It was hypothesized that student-athletes from the United States would report significantly different alcohol use behaviors than their International counterparts. NCAA student-athletes (n = 1330) completed an online questionnaire that included a demographics survey, country of origin questions, social norms perceptions questions, alcohol use questions, Athlete Drinking Scale, Drinking Motives Questionnaire-Revised, and Rutger's Alcohol Problem Index. Multiple MANCOVA analyses were run to examine differences in alcohol use behaviors between the three pairs of independent variables while controlling for gender and age. Analyses revealed significant effects for country of origin on student-athletes perceived injunctive norms and sport-related drinking motives. Specifically, international student-athletes perceived that friends from their country of origin approve of binge drinking more than United States student-athletes perceived their friends approve of binge drinking. Also, United States student-athletes endorsed all sport-related drinking motives more than international student-athletes endorsed the same motives, meaning that American student-athletes are more motivated to drink alcohol due to sport-related drinking motives than in international student-athletes are motivated to drink due to sport-related drinking motives.

Collegiate student-athletes have been identified as an especially at-risk subgroup for heavy alcohol use as compared to the general college student population. Despite the intense physical demands required for athletic participation, national studies have found that intercollegiate athletes consumed more alcohol, engaged in more frequent heavy episodic drinking, and experienced more negative alcohol-related consequences as compared with non-athletes. A combination of structured open-ended and closed-ended questions was used in the current study. Data was collected from student-athletes across the United States through semi-structured, individual interviews informed by the theory of planned behavior (Ajzen, 1991) and its constructs (attitudes, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control). Open coding was the chosen method for data analysis for the study. Codes, accompanied by descriptives, were organized into themes as they related to the research questions and the theory of planned behavior. Results show that nearly half (49%) of student-athletes report drinking five or more drinks in one-sitting, with the majority of student-athletes consuming alcohol only 1-2 times per week at parties. Student-athletes' attitudes towards heavy drinking and alcohol outcome expectancies are apparent in two themes: sexual risk taking and athletic training justification. Many respondents expressed alcohol-drinking relationships with other student-athletes at their institution. The NCAA has recognized the importance of addressing alcohol related issues among collegiate athletes. However, the type of educational programming being assigned by the NCAA has been generally ineffective in reducing alcohol use of student-athletes. In fact, of the student-athletes surveyed in this study, the majority struggled with recalling NCAA alcohol prevention programs that they are familiar with--only 13% of student-athletes use alcohol prevention skills and tools taught by the NCAA or their athletic department to reduce alcohol consumption. Similarly, there is a belief among student-athletes that the NCAA is not doing enough to reduce alcohol use among student-athletes is exemplified by the fact that the majority (57%) gave the NCAA an F letter-grade for their current alcohol intervention and prevention strategies that are being taught to student-athletes. Although the NCAA requires student-athletes to participate in alcohol, tobacco and other drug education programming, only approximately 25% of student-athletes surveyed recalled viewing a NCAA drug and alcohol educational video or reading a brochure detailing the effect alcohol has on athletic performance at the beginning of the academic year. Furthermore, 85% of student-athletes reported that they were not informed of the counseling or alcohol treatment options that the NCAA provides.

The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) subscribes to the principle of intercollegiate athlete well-being (Article 2.2) which includes health and safety (Article 2.2.3). However, intercollegiate athletes, particularly those competing in arguably the most competitive level of intercollegiate athletics (i.e., NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision [FBS]), are exposed to unique stressors which may compromise their well-being. One dimension which has been received less frequent investigation in the context of athlete welfare is that of spirituality. In lieu of the unique intercollegiate athletic environment and stressors, it is critical to investigate the relationships between the spiritually-related characteristics, specifically religiosity, resiliency, and perceived stress to gain a holistic understanding of athlete wellness. This study employed survey methodology by emailing intercollegiate athletes competing in the Southeastern Conference (SEC) (N = 6,950). Athletes' emails were gathered from their respective university's online public directory. Each intercollegiate athlete was individually emailed inviting him/her to participate in the study. Religiosity was measured using the Duke Religion Index, resiliency was measured with the Brief Resilience Scale, and perceived stress was measured using the Perceived Stress Scale. Additional independent variables social support, athletic identity, and resiliency were measured to provide context to the results. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was utilized to analyze the relationships between religiosity, resiliency, social support, athletic identity, and perceived stress among SEC athletes based on the theoretical frameworks proposed by Williams and Andersen (1998) and Wiese-Bjornstal, Smith, Shaffer, and Morrey (1998). Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) and SEM techniques revealed good model fit among respondents (n = 646; CMin = 1474.34 at 724 df; CFI = 0.949, RMSEA = 0.040, pclose = 1.00). Specific relationships comprising the model are discussed in the manuscript. Results from this study provide context for offering resources intended to meet the holistic needs of intercollegiate athletes and help them effectively manage life stress and life transitions. Athletic administrators and coaches are encouraged to incorporate a spiritual health advisor, such as a sport chaplain, within their athlete well-being model.

Alcohol and Sport is an essential reference for the entire support team, who help athletes perform and cope with life's problems.