Pregaming

{{Short description|Process of getting drunk prior to going out socializing}} {{Use dmy dates|date=September 2023}} {{for|the radio or TV broadcast preceding a sporting event|Pre-game show}} '''Pregaming''' (also known as '''pre-booze''', '''pre-drinking'''<ref name=VanderVen /> or '''pre-loading'''<ref name=BBC />) is the process of getting drunk prior to going out socializing, typically done by college students and young adults in a manner as cost-efficient as possible, with hard liquor and cheap beer consumed while in group.<ref name=VanderVen /><ref name=Holland /><ref name=Hughes /><ref name=Rubin /><ref name=Gold /><ref name=Koutsoudakis /><ref name=Grazian />

Although pregaming is typically done before a night out, it can also precede other activities, like attending a college football game, large party, social function, or another activity where possession of alcohol may be limited or prohibited.<ref name=VanderVen /><ref name=Cimarusti /><ref name=Munzenrieder /><ref name=Plaza /> The name "pregaming" spread from the drinking that took place during tailgating before football games to encompass similar drinking periods.<ref name=Grazian />

Other terms for the practice are '''pre-partying''' and '''prefunking'''.<ref name=Morin />

==Background==

===Origins=== Pregaming first became popular in the United States in the 1990s, becoming a common practice after Mothers Against Drunk Driving pressured the federal government to coerce states into increasing the legal drinking age in the United States to 21.<ref name=Seaman /> It is also an unintended consequence of alcohol laws that prohibit happy hours and other discounts on alcohol,<ref name=Wells /> as well as rising tuition and other costs for students.<ref name=Gillespie /> Pregaming minimizes the cost of purchasing alcohol at local bars and clubs and can reduce the problems associated with obtaining and using fake identification listing an age permitting legal consumption of alcohol.<ref name=Rubin /><ref name=Koutsoudakis /><ref name=Grazian /> The high cost of bar tabs in nightlife and the difficult financial situations often faced by students and young adults has been a major factor increasing the rate of pregaming.<ref name=Holland /><ref name=Grazian />

Pregaming appeals to persons under 21 years of age who may not otherwise legally enter bars or purchase alcohol in the United States.<ref name=Rubin /><ref name=Grazian /> Pregaming also ensures that the drinker is drunk before going out in public, lessens inhibitions, and can stall the going-on process so that the group enters the local nightlife scene at a more exciting hour.<ref name=Holland /><ref name=Grazian /> Pregaming is also often motivated by the higher cost of alcohol in licensed venues, and many people also choose to pre-drink to achieve rapid intoxication, or to facilitate socializing with friends.<ref name="academic.oup.com">{{Cite journal |journal=Alcohol and Alcoholism |url=http://infoscience.epfl.ch/record/265777 |access-date=2023-09-11 |title= The Role of Sex and Age on Pre-drinking: An Exploratory International Comparison of 27 Countries |date=2019 |doi=10.1093/alcalc/agz040 |doi-access=|url-access= |last1=Ferris |first1=Jason |last2=Puljević |first2=Cheneal |last3=Labhart |first3=Florian |last4=Winstock |first4=Adam |last5=Kuntsche |first5=Emmanuel |volume=54 |issue=4 |pages=378–385 |pmid=31062843 }}</ref> Pregaming may also increase in probability after the age of 30 among people in Brazil, Canada, England, Ireland, New Zealand and the United States.<ref name="academic.oup.com"/>

===Activities=== right|thumb|Friends pregame at an apartment before going to a bar (2024) Drinking games associated with pregaming include Power Hour, Quarters, Kings, and Asshole.<ref name=VanderVen /><ref name=Grazian /> One function of the pregaming games is to increase camaraderie, while offering competition and social interplay.<ref name=VanderVen />

Pregaming sessions are often single sex, and can feature playing heavy drinking games or video games.<ref name=VanderVen /><ref name=Rubin /><ref name=Grazian /> Other activities that can accompany pregaming, especially for women, are primping and trying on different outfits.<ref name="VanderVen" /><ref name="Holland" /><ref name="Rubin" /> Another element of pregaming is texting friends to find out about social opportunities for the night, flirting, and trying to locate a sexual partner for later that night.<ref name="Rubin" /><ref name="Gold" /><ref name="Neighbors" /> Having a "shower beer" while getting ready to go out is also a form of pregaming.<ref name="dailydot1">Fleishman, Cooper (11 December 2013). [https://www.dailydot.com/irl/showerbeer-internet-history/ The Internet history of the showerbeer], ''The Daily Dot''</ref>

Pregaming and the games that go with it can also build solidarity among the drinking group, mentally preparing them with the confidence needed to handle the experience of nightlife.<ref name=VanderVen /><ref name=Grazian /> Pregaming is also often more conducive to socializing with friends than the loud nightclubs and bars where the group will eventually arrive.<ref name=Gillespie />

===Pervasiveness=== Experts believe that 65 to 75 percent of college-age youths predrink,<ref name=Morin /> while in the UK, a study reported that 55 percent of men and 60 percent of women acknowledged pre-drinking.{{citation needed|date=May 2013}} Researchers believe that the practice is becoming more widespread due to changing cultural mores, alcohol laws, and economics.<ref name=Gillespie />

==Effects==

===Local business=== Local bars and clubs lose business from pregaming both because students purchase alcohol elsewhere and because pregaming can delay students' arrival, pushing these businesses toward failure.<ref name=Rubin /> Young adults often don't arrive until 11:30 pm or midnight, relatively near the time bars are required to close in many U.S. states.<ref name= Holland />

Local bars might sell only one or two drinks to students who have consumed alcohol heavily earlier in the night.<ref name=Gillespie /> In addition, nightlife establishments may become liable for fines and civil and criminal penalties under local laws prohibiting the serving of alcohol to an intoxicated person or permitting a person to be intoxicated in the bar, even when that person pregamed elsewhere and entered the bar before the alcohol caused intoxication.<ref name=Gillespie />

===Health=== Pregaming has been associated with binge drinking and other dangerous activities, leading some universities to attempt to crack down on the practice.<ref name=McMahon /><ref name=Grazian /><ref name=Seaman /> Government agencies at both the state and federal level have studied the problems created by pregaming.<ref name=Koutsoudakis />

The furtive nature of pregaming and bingeing can lead to massive quick consumption, acute alcohol poisoning, hospitalization, and death.<ref name=Seaman />

A 2012 study of more 250 Swiss students indicated that those who "pre-loaded" ended up consuming more total alcohol over the night (seven drinks rather than four) and engaged in riskier behavior.<ref name=Morin /> They had a 24% chance of reporting negative consequences for drinking (such as injury, unprotected sex, and unplanned drug use), compared to 18% chance for those who did not pre-drink.<ref name=Morin />

== References == <references> <ref name=Holland> {{cite news | title =On the L.A. club scene, it's all in the dress rehearsal | first =Gale | last =Holland | url =https://www.latimes.com/local/la-xpm-2012-aug-31-la-me-holland-latesters-20120831-story.html | newspaper =Los Angeles Times | date =August 31, 2012 | archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20120921044040/http://articles.latimes.com/2012/aug/31/local/la-me-holland-latesters-20120831 | url-status =live | archive-date =September 21, 2012 }}</ref> <ref name=Rubin> {{cite news | title =Last Call for College Bars | first =Courtney | last =Rubin | url =https://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/27/fashion/for-college-students-social-media-tops-the-bar-scene.html?smid=pl-share&pagewanted=all | newspaper =New York Times | date =September 26, 2012 | archive-url =https://archive.today/20130131190726/http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/27/fashion/for-college-students-social-media-tops-the-bar-scene.html?smid=pl-share&pagewanted=all&_r=0 | url-status =live | archive-date =January 31, 2013 }}</ref> <ref name=McMahon>{{cite news | title =Gentry warns of alcohol dangers | first =Madeline | last =McMahon | url =http://www.yaledailynews.com/news/2012/sep/07/gentry-warns-alcohol-dangers/?cross-campus | newspaper =Yale Daily News | date =September 7, 2012 | archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20120908174256/http://www.yaledailynews.com/news/2012/sep/07/gentry-warns-alcohol-dangers/?cross-campus | url-status =dead | archive-date =September 8, 2012 }}</ref> <ref name=Munzenrieder> {{cite news | title =Are We Excited About Miami Hurricanes Football Season? Can We Pretend to Get Excited? | first =Kyle | last =Munzenrieder | url =http://blogs.miaminewtimes.com/riptide/2012/08/are_we_excited_about_miami_hur.php | newspaper =Miami New Times | date =August 31, 2012 | archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20120902194919/http://blogs.miaminewtimes.com/riptide/2012/08/are_we_excited_about_miami_hur.php | url-status =dead | archive-date =September 2, 2012 }}</ref> <ref name=Cimarusti> {{cite news | title =Game day etiquette extends into fall season | first =Nick | last =Cimarusti | url =http://dailytrojan.com/2012/08/29/game-day-etiquette-extends-into-fall-season/ | newspaper =Daily Trojan | date =August 29, 2012 | archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20120920051638/http://dailytrojan.com/2012/08/29/game-day-etiquette-extends-into-fall-season/ | url-status =live | archive-date =September 20, 2012 }}</ref> <ref name=Plaza> {{cite news | title =Pre-gaming causes issues for students | first =Ray | last =Plaza | url =http://www.collegiatetimes.com/stories/17914/pre-gaming-causes-issues-for-students/print | newspaper =Collegiate Times | date =August 10, 2011 | archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20111210141619/http://www.collegiatetimes.com/stories/17914/pre-gaming-causes-issues-for-students/print | url-status =live | archive-date =December 10, 2011 }}</ref> <ref name=Gold> {{cite news | title =The art of pregaming before Houseparties | first =Jacob | last =Gold | url =http://www.dailyprincetonian.com/2004/04/29/10463/ | newspaper =Daily Princetonian | date =April 29, 2004 | archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20120825153742/http://www.dailyprincetonian.com/2004/04/29/10463/print/ | url-status =dead | archive-date =August 25, 2012 }}</ref> <ref name=Koutsoudakis> {{cite news | title =Pre-gaming: A college pastime under attack | first =Mike | last =Koutsoudakis | url =http://www.gwhatchet.com/2006/11/02/pre-gaming-a-college-pastime-under-attack/ | newspaper =GW Hatchet | date =November 2, 2006 | archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20121108224351/http://www.gwhatchet.com/2006/11/02/pre-gaming-a-college-pastime-under-attack/ | url-status =live | archive-date =November 8, 2012 }}</ref> <ref name=Seaman> {{cite magazine | last1 =Seaman | first1 =Barrett | date =August 21, 2005 | title =How Bingeing Became the New College Sport | magazine =Time | url =https://content.time.com/time/printout/0,8816,1096516,00.html | url-status =live | archive-url =https://archive.today/20130204212334/http://www.time.com/time/printout/0,8816,1096516,00.html | archive-date =February 4, 2013 }}</ref> <ref name=Neighbors> {{cite book | last1 =Neighbors | first1 =Clayton | last2 =Foster | first2 =Dawn W. | last3 =Fossos | first3 =Nicole | last4 =Lewis | first4 =Melissa A. | editor-last =Correia | editor-first =Christopher J. | editor2-last =Murphy | editor2-first =James G. | editor3-last =Barnett | editor3-first =Nancy P. | title =College Student Alcohol Abuse: A Guide to Assessment, Intervention, and Prevention | chapter-url =https://books.google.com/books?id=N_Irk7IUKR8C&q=pregaming&pg=PA71 | year =2012 | publisher =John Wiley & Sons, Inc. | isbn =9781118222331 | pages =71–72 | chapter =Windows of Risk }}</ref> --> <ref name=VanderVen> {{cite book | last =Vander Ven | first =Thomas | title =Getting Wasted: Why College Students Drink Too Much and Party So Hard | url =https://archive.org/details/gettingwastedwhy00thom | url-access =registration | quote =pregaming. | year =2011 | publisher =NYU Press | isbn =9780814744413 | pages =[https://archive.org/details/gettingwastedwhy00thom/page/37 37]–44, 193 }}</ref> <ref name=Grazian> {{cite book | last =Grazian | first =David | title =On the Make: The Hustle of Urban Nightlife | url =https://books.google.com/books?id=IhocQGsq2BsC&q=pregaming&pg=PA109 | year =2008 | publisher =University of Chicago Press | isbn =9780226305677 | pages =22, 109–112, 146–147 }}</ref> <ref name=Morin> {{cite news |title="Pre-drinking" or "pre-funking" common among young alcohol users |first=Monte |last=Morin |url=http://www.latimes.com/health/boostershots/la-heb-pre-drinking-20121108,0,4254195.story |newspaper=Los Angeles Times |date=November 8, 2012 |quote=They call it "pre-drinking," "pre-partying" or "pre-funking," and it usually involves chugging cheap alcoholic drinks before heading out to a bar, club or sporting event. While addiction experts estimate that 65% to 75% of college-age youths engage in such boozy behavior, a Swiss study concludes that such "pre-loaded" evenings are far more likely to end in blackouts, unprotected sex, unplanned drug use or injury. |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121119211619/http://www.latimes.com/health/boostershots/la-heb-pre-drinking-20121108,0,4254195.story |url-status=live |archive-date=November 19, 2012 }}</ref> <ref name=BBC> {{cite news | url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/uk-17485951 | work=BBC | title =Government tries to curb alcohol 'pre-loading' | date = March 23, 2012}}</ref> <ref name=Hughes> {{cite journal | title= Drinking behaviours and blood alcohol concentration in four European drinking environments: a cross-sectional study |journal = BMC Public Health |year=2011 |volume=11 |issue=918 |url= |first1 =Karen |last1 = Hughes | first2 =Zara |last2 = Quigg| first3= Mark |last3 = Bellis |first4= Ninette |last4 = van Hasselt | first5= Amador |last5 = Calafat | first6= Matej |last6 = Kosir | first7= Montse |last7 = Juan | first8= Mariangels |last8 = Duch | first9= Lotte |last9 = Voorham |page = 918 |doi = 10.1186/1471-2458-11-918 |pmid = 22151744 |pmc = 3252292 |doi-access = free }}</ref> <ref name=Wells> {{cite journal |last1=Wells |first1=S. |last2=Graham |first2=K. |last3=Purcell |first3=J. |date= January 2009 |title=Policy implications of the widespread practice of 'pre-drinking' or 'pre-gaming' before going to public drinking establishments—are current prevention strategies backfiring? |journal=Addiction |volume=104 |issue=1 |pages=4–9 |pmid= 19133882|doi=10.1111/j.1360-0443.2008.02393.x}} *{{cite press release |date=December 15, 2008 |title=Alcohol and licensing policy could be changing the habits of young drinkers |website=(e) Science News |url=http://esciencenews.com/articles/2008/12/15/alcohol.and.licensing.policy.could.be.changing.habits.young.drinkers}}</ref> <ref name=Gillespie> {{cite news |title=Pre-drinking a precursor to problems |first=Ian |last=Gillespie |url=https://lfpress.com/news/columnists/ian_gillespie/2012/02/21/19406671.html |newspaper=London Free Press |date=February 21, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120826180136/http://www.lfpress.com/news/columnists/ian_gillespie/2012/02/21/19406671.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=August 26, 2012 }}</ref> </references>

{{Alcohol and health}}

Category:Drinking culture Category:Alcohol abuse Category:Sports culture Category:Student culture Category:Culture of the United States