An exploration of binge drinking and coping behaviour during covid-19 among students in a major tertiary institution in KwaZulu-Natal.

Abstract

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has profoundly impacted human lives. At the emergence of the novel disease, several restrictive measures, including lockdowns, were implemented to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. These measures created stressful challenges that affected people’s mental wellbeing, including that of tertiary students. There is a dearth of information on the strategies students use to cope with COVID-19-related stress. This study aimed to understand how students experienced and coped with changes attributed to the lockdowns in South Africa, including factors that influenced alcohol use among students at a major tertiary institution in KwaZulu Natal during the COVID-19 lockdown. Method: A qualitative approach was used. Twenty students were recruited from two campuses at the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN), Durban, South Africa, using purposive sampling. Individual indepth interviews were conducted using a semi-structured interview guide comprising open-ended questions. The NVivo software program was used for analysis. Results: The majority (60%) of participants were male and ranged from 20 to 36 years old. The results of this study indicate drinking patterns among the study sample. Results indicate that despite implementing an alcohol sale ban during the COVID-19 lockdowns, alcohol use was not eliminated, but there was some reduction in the intake of alcohol. Apart from alcohol restrictions, some factors influencing drinking included drinking location and people with whom participants consumed alcohol. Many participants also indicated that they preferred to consume alcohol with friends because it helped them to bond with their friends and improved their social interactions. In addition, over 50% of the students stated that they drank alcohol because they felt happy, socialized with others, had fun, and that they enjoyed the taste. In contrast, only a few (four) reported drinking as a coping mechanism. Respondents were also aware of the negative consequences of drinking alcohol, especially when it is in large quantities. Results also indicate that half of the participants felt stressed, depressed, anxious and sad during the lock down. In addition, they also experienced problems related to eating and sleeping. The study highlighted the various coping mechanisms participants used to deal with stress. These included emotion-based coping strategies such as social support, sleeping, exercise, reading, watching television, listening to music, and maintaining a positive attitude, problem-based coping strategies (e.g., positive thinking and planning), as well as avoidance forms of coping (such as ignoring the situation). Conclusion: This study found that alcohol misuse was common in this sample of university students prior to the onset of COVID-19, and they experienced some distress during the COVID-19 lockdown. Factors that influenced alcohol use were also identified in this study sample which provided insight into how they experienced and coped with changes directly caused by the lockdowns in South Africa. 11 Despite these findings, sampling students from only one tertiary institution in KwaZulu Natal and being unable to interview students in their home language or the language of fluency if this was not English are identified as limitations. This study recommends that health promotion and education on alcohol use and coping strategies should be encouraged at tertiary institutions to curb alcohol misuse and improve students’ wellbeing.