Ethical Decisions on Spring Break

Spring Break 2009, Panama City - sun, sand, thousands of college coeds in barely-there bathing suits, clubs, bars, kegs buried on the beach…with all this excitement you are bound to be faced with some ethical decisions. With all the booze and sexy bodies, “hooking up” might be one of those instances where your morals will be questioned. Beyond hooking up, alcohol creates its own set of ethics when it’s mixed with sex. Did you know that if you are under the influence of alcohol or drugs you are absolutely incapable of giving sexual consent? Technically, if you have sex with someone who hasn’t given consent, you can be tried for rape.
Off campus, inhibitions are clearly down on Spring Break. Alcohol simply makes you more outgoing and comfortable with your surroundings; you can’t cognitively make ethical decisions. A recent study by the American Medical Association reports that approximately 50 percent of students had friends who had sex with more than one partner on Spring Break. The AMA report also stated that approximately three out of five women had friends that had unprotected sex while on Spring Break. Decreased inhibitions mean that students can make more unsafe sexual decisions. Women reported a 74 percent increase in their sexual activity during Spring Break which is less than the 86 percent increase in males.
A student survey conducted at Olivet College revealed that 56 percent of those surveyed have hooked up before. And 52 percent of those students claim they were intoxicated. Every case is different, consent can be neglected in situations of random hookups and one night stands, but consent can also be neglected in relationships. Even if you’re married, consent is needed.
Remember consent means you hear the word “yes,” but it is not simply the absence of the word “no.” Legally, both people involved must agree, making “a voluntary, verbal, positive affirmation that you both want to have sex.” If you’ve ever been under the influence of alcohol you know that this consent issue is a big one. Sometimes after too many drinks you get caught in the moment or things may even be a bit hazy; and binge drinking leads to blackouts.
Not getting consent from you partner can get you in trouble but if you are drinking too that’s no excuse. You cannot use being drunk as defense against assault or rape: the law will hold you accountable for your conduct. Some startling facts found on Carleton Colleges wellness center web page includes, One in 12 college males admitted that they probably committed acts that meet the legal definition of rape. Also, 80 percent of college students say their first sexual encounter was under the influence of alcohol.
When travelling this Spring Break there could many ethical situations - should you drink, should you hook up…you have to know your limits. You must step back and examine your morals and values. Going home with someone could have severe consequences if you don’t know who they are, their ethical value system. Unfortunately, college-age students use alcohol and drugs as a means to enhance sexual experiences, and have become comfortable with binge drinking. Drinking is a main Spring Break activity, one Olivet student said, “a drink or two makes me friendlier, chattier, and simply more fun.”
Spring Break is a more intense environment than college campuses, but despite the fun you are trying to have, you can’t forget your morals. The University of Wisconsin conducted a study on Spring Break drinking and found that 75 percent of college males, along with 44 percent of college females, were intoxicated daily while on Spring Break. Half of the males reported they had passed out at least once from intoxication, and 40 percent of the females reported the same. You definitely can’t give consent when you are passed out. If you have sex with someone who is passed out it is sexual assault, no questions asked.
Whether all of the reported sexually activity on Spring Break was a question of consent or not, you must employ safe partying practices. According to many college handbooks, rules for parties and alcohol include watching out for your friends, not accepting drinks from anyone you don’t know, avoiding punch bowls or community style drinks, and remember not to put your drink down. These rules are clearly more important on Spring Break where there are thousands more strangers and places out of your comfort zone.
According to Carleton College once again, it also must be remembered despite the so called benefits of a cocktail, “At least one in five college students abandon safe sex practices when they’re drunk.” It’s also been found that chronic drinking in students can cause destroyed testosterone levels, withering of the testicles, loss of hair, impotence, lack of lubrication or orgasm, and difficulty in maintaining an erection.
Ethically speaking, sex and alcohol don’t mix but in society it has become acceptable. On an individual basis, I urge students to examine their ethics before heading to Spring Break and, while there, maintain the same composure you would if there weren’t thousands of hot bodies surrounding you and an endless supply of booze. Know your limits, maintain respects for college coeds and remember that you want to make memories not regrets. Remember, “Life is the sum of your choices.”

SOURCES

Acquaintance Rape/Non Stranger Rape. (2008, July 1). Retrieved September 22, 2009, from http://sas.gmu.edu/NSR_Consent.htm

Boynton, P. (n.d.). Dr Petra Boynton I Blog . Retrieved September 22, 2009, from http://www.drpetra.co.uk/index.html

Carleton College: Wellness Center: Alcohol and Sex. (n.d.). Retrieved January 27, 2009, from http://apps.carleton.edu/campus/wellness/info/alcohol/sex

Kenyon College. (n.d.). Retrieved January 27, 2009, from http://www.kenyon.edu

Mahoney, K. (n.d.). Spring Break Temptations and Christian Teens - Spring Break - Christian Teens - Sex - Drugs - Crime - Alternatives. Retrieved February 16, 2009, from http://christianteens.about.com/od/christianliving/a/SpringBreakDang.htm

Olivet College Student Handbook. 2008-2009.

Student Sexuality Information Services. (n.d.). Retrieved September 22, 2008, from www.unet.brandeis.edu/~ssis/assault/consent.html