Parties on campus tend to involve less drinking than those held off campus, according to the Dept. of Public Safety and “Drinking at College Parties: Examining the Influence of Student Host-Status and Party-Location,” a recent study from Ohio State University.

Partying · Dept. of Public Safety said it rarely receives complaints about on-campus parties because of the supervision of residential advisors and coordinators in on-campus housing, according to DPS Capt. David Carlisle. - Jaspreet Singh | Daily Trojan

The two sources found that hosts of parties on campus consume an average of 4.5 drinks while hosts of off-campus parties average 7.5 drinks.

The study also found that off-campus party hosts tend to engage in alcohol-related behavior, such as verbal arguments, physical assault, public urination and spontaneous rioting. Researchers interviewed 3,796 students over the course of two academic years.

DPS Capt. David Carlisle said residential advisers keep things under control at on-campus residences and other drinking on campus is in a controlled environment, like Traditions Bar & Grill, where security is provided by DPS.

USC owns or manages several student housing properties located off-campus and a majority of the university’s students are 21 years old or older.

“We seldom have party complaints on campus. On-campus residential halls have supervision in the form of residential advisors and residential coordinators who usually handle any disruption,” Carlisle said. “Alcohol possession by minors in the residential halls is prohibited and, for those over 21, kegs or other large amounts of alcohol are also discouraged, though rarely a problem.”

Carlisle said DPS observations seem to support the study’s results.

“Overindulgence in alcohol is often encountered on party calls,” Carlisle said.

Justin Waring-Crane, a sophomore majoring in occupational therapy, said he thinks students are more likely to drink more off campus.

“Because [students] are off campus, they don’t really feel like there would be as serious consequences because [students partying off campus] don’t have RAs leaning over their shoulders,” Waring-Crane said.

Some students, however, said the hosts drink less than the attendees for parties both on-campus and off-campus.

“The hosts feel responsible for the safety of the party and choose to be more responsible,” said Ben Badower, a freshman majoring in business administration living on campus.

Silken Weinberg, a freshman majoring in communications said the threat of residential advisers appears to be more of a concern when choosing how much one drinks and where to attend parties.

“If you’re off campus … it just doesn’t feel like it’s as much of an issue or a reason for you to get in trouble as [it is] in the dorms,” Weinberg said.