IMAGE is theory-driven and research-based, implementing strategies from NIAAA Task Force recommendations1. The program is designed to provide cohorts of students with direct feedback regarding their drinking, their perceptions of their peers’ drinking behavior, and actual campus norms while encouraging them to engage in self-protective behaviors.
Research on IMAGE program effectiveness has shown that students who complete the program drink less, drink less often, and experience fewer negative consequences than their peers who do not participate in the program. Specifically, IMAGE was evaluated utilizing a non-equivalent groups repeated measures quasi-experimental design with Multivariate Logistic Regression Analyses. Results indicated students who attended IMAGE (treatment group) were statistically more likely to drink fewer times per month (OR=1.67) and experience fewer negative consequences (OR=1.86) than those who did not (comparison group). Additionally, underage students who participated in IMAGE were 3.30 times more likely to consume fewer drinks per week (OR=3.30) and 1.53 times more likely to drink 0 drinks in a typical week (OR=1.53) than underage students who did not participate in IMAGE. Finally, at 6-months post-treatment, student alcohol frequency in the comparison group increased while frequency of the treatment group actually decreased, indicating that IMAGE had a significant impact upon student drinking behavior.