Drinking game behaviors, motivations to play, contextual factors, and perceived risks among university students in New Zealand.

University students from different countries report regular drinking game (DG) participation, a risky social activity known to encourage heavy consumption. Theory and research suggest that general drinking motives are proximal correlates of alcohol use. Motives specific to DGs are also associated with DG behaviors. Students can play DGs in different social contexts (e.g., house parties, with friends/roommates), and many recognize the associated health risks. However, the influence of motives to play DGs, perceived risk, and the social context on DG behaviors is unknown among New Zealand (NZ) university students. The present study addresses these research gaps among university students in NZ who reported past year DG participation (N = 217; Mage = 20.38, SD = 2.94, range = 18 to 35; female = 65%). Findings indicated that higher endorsement of the DG motive of sexual pursuit was associated with more frequent DG participation and more frequent DG intoxication. Additionally, 23.9% of participants who indicated there were risks associated with DG participation identified intoxication/rapid intoxication as a risk of DGs. Moreover, 73.3% of these participants reported becoming inebriated while playing at least once in the past 30 days, compared with 77.3% of those who did not identify this risk. Thus, students' perceived risk of getting drunk from playing DGs does not seem to deter some students from experiencing DG intoxication. Finally, most students played DGs with their friends (95.4%) and/or at residential settings (81.1%). When working with students who play frequently, practitioners could assess specific DG motives to help students understand their reasons for playing and identify less risky ways of achieving those motives.