The results presented here centred on the motivations underlying men and women’s consumption of alcohol and the use of alcohol to (de)construct gender identities. Related to these findings are the use of particular brands of alcohol to do gender, and men’s reactions towards women’s use of alcohol. Key themes informing these findings pertain to the ways in which women contest stereotypes associated with femininity and drinking practices. Specifically, five themes are considered: (1) women’s motivations: drinking for pleasure and sociability; (2) men’s motivations: courage and machismo; (3) alcohol as markers of masculine identity; (4) alcohol does not discriminate according to gender, and (5) gendering of alcoholic beverages.
It is noteworthy that all the participants were current users of alcohol but their drinking patterns, frequency of consumption and motivations for drinking varied, often in ways that related to the meaning of alcohol to each participant. Among the participants, “drinking stories” were constructed around who should drink, what kinds of alcohol should be consumed and why. Males’ drinking stories related alcohol use with the acquisition of social capital. They described two sources of social capital related to drinking: most popular was the importance of consuming a large quantity of alcohol without showing signs of intoxication, and the second was becoming the “fastest drinker”. Motivations for drinking described by females were largely social.
Women’s motivations: drinking for pleasure and sociability
Among the women who use alcohol for social reasons, alcohol is mainly consumed only occasionally, such as parties and in small quantities. Not only is alcohol use in such occasions considered to be ‘normal’ [6], female social drinkers suggest that drinking alcohol gives pleasure and make these occasions:
When you go to parties, you don’t expect them to give you juice or soft drink. What you need is alcohol and when you take alcohol, it will make you feel the groove, it will make you be in the spirit of the party so you can dance…you just end up being happy. (Genny, female)
Following on this, another female participant confirms that alcohol consumption at parties is primarily for pleasure, to brighten people’s moods, and to enhance their sociability:
If people in a party are consuming only juice, everywhere will be dull and some people will not misbehave; so it will not be fun. You know that some people are shy but when they take alcohol they tend to dance…(Chioma, female)
Men’s motivations: courage and machismo
All the male participants (n = 22) agreed that they drink for social reasons, but they equally have other reasons for using alcohol in parties. While the majority corroborated what the female participants said about the importance of alcohol being present at a party, their drinking motivations in a party environment varied significantly and differed from that of females. Here, alcohol does not just facilitate the opportunity to let down their guard; rather, alcohol seems to provide them with courage to engage in sexual negotiations:
Alcohol gives you the boldness and enhances the spirit. You might see a lady and maybe you might have been eyeing her for a long time and you don’t have that gut to walk up to her… But with a bottle of beer or two, you will feel as if the world is under your feet. It drives away fear…you will be able to walk up to the girl and tell her what you want. (Okezie, male)
Additionally, over 80 percent of the male participants stressed that alcohol in parties does not only facilitate sexual negotiations, but it also provides an opportunity to show off masculinity and gain social capital. This is because men believe that alcohol is supposed to be used by only males because they are strong, while women, whom they consider to be fragile, should not drink. Contrary to Peralta’s [63] assertion that men’s reaction toward women’s heavy drinking would not be the same had women engaged in light or moderate drinking, the majority of the men in the context of this current study did not consider women fit to use alcohol in the first instance. The perception that alcohol is inappropriate for women to consume is further supported by the absence of women’s participation in drinking games, a ritualistic sport used by men to demonstrate their masculinity. In this male-dominated context, drinking games are played largely by heavy and fast drinkers who are almost always men. Popular games involve contests to determine the fastest drinker, or who is able to drink the most without vomiting or giving up:
In parties, you will see guys who will come out and show themselves (as real men)…Actually I have witnessed stuffs like that where guys would normally volunteer themselves to drink beer (provided by the host)…the highest drinker or the fastest actually wins it…It’s just getting that bragging rights over others that ‘I drank and you couldn’t’ that makes boys do it…(Boniface, male)
Additionally, Boniface’s words shed light on the way in which men are admired by both male and female party attendees when they perform this male gender appropriate behaviour (i.e., by publicly displaying their superior masculinity in game playing). The resultant fame or popularity achieved facilitates flirtation and sexual encounters, and as such, appears to be a strong motivation for participating in drinking games.
Another participant, Buchi, makes a statement that supports the idea that boys use game-playing to demonstrate their superior masculinity and gain more social capital:
What they get is that they make people know that when it comes to drinking, you’re the boss. People grade you by the level of drink you can take. I mean the number of bottles you can consume. So people know that when it comes to drinking, ‘this guy is the boss’…(Buchi, male)
Further evidence that demonstrates that drinking games in mixed-sex parties are exclusively for males was provided by the females. In fact, all female participants stressed that they have never participated and indicated that they perceive such participation to not be normative for females. Although three (33%) out of the nine female participants argued that they can even drink more than many males, drinking beer or competing in such parties would be seen as unfeminine and a ‘failure to do gender appropriately’ p.375 [64]:
The society sees Star, Gulder, Legend (popular beers in Nigeria)…as masculine. So seeing a female take it, even I myself sees that person as indecent. (Pretty, female)
These findings shed light on some of the reasons for participating in (or for women, reasons for refraining from participating in) drinking games. Although the results of drinking games provide social capital for sexual negotiation and manipulation, they also contribute to the popularity of hazardous drinking among students. In turn, this supports the claim that practices of HM do not always result in what is in one’s best interest in terms of one’s health. Thus, it suggests that health is a secondary concern to HM, in that the very notions of HM impede men’s interests in caring for their health, (i.e., masculinity and health-promoting behaviours are in tension) [11].
Strong men and fragile women: alcohol as markers of masculine identity
A second finding of interest was the way in which students expressed their beliefs in who should or should not drink, and what type of drink is appropriate for whom. Just as a study conducted among students in the USA [63] reveal that race and gender influenced perception as to who should use alcohol (and how it should be used), men in this current study drew on their socio-cultural beliefs (based on Igbo culture) about gender relations to support their reasons for who they felt it was appropriate or acceptable to drink alcohol. In answer to the question about attitudes towards males’ and female friends’ use of alcohol, the majority (68%) of men stated that alcohol should be consumed by men only. Examples of phrases employed include: “alcohol is for the guys”, “it is men’s world”, “Nwoke-adi-njo” (translation: “nothing a man does is really bad”), and “it is not in our culture for a woman to get drunk”. When asked about why he thought only men should drink, an undergraduate law student argued:
It has to do with culture, Igbos generally have the belief that women are restricted, so they don’t take alcohol…People normally have the perception that only men should take alcohol. Women are restricted from taking alcohol because once a woman starts taking it, the society will start having the impression that ‘look you are getting out of your bound’. (Kelly, male)
From this excerpt, it is clear that this student drew upon socio-cultural beliefs about the role of women and their place in the Nigerian society to explain his reasoning behind his ideas about women’s consumption of alcohol. In general, representatives of the formal social structure in contemporary Nigeria (such as the police) would not respond negatively to women’s consumption of alcohol, provided that they did not violate any laws related to alcohol such as the legal drinking age. However, the informal responses to their drinking strongly discourage women from using alcohol [63]. These different reactions to women’s use of alcohol work to position women who do drink as those who engage in ‘non-traditional gender practices’ p.377 [64]. As such, these contradictory reactions can exacerbate social inequality by expanding gender hierarchies, which further disadvantage women.
While some want women not to drink due to prominent socio-cultural beliefs about women’s place in the society, a substantial number of men argued that women’s inherent characteristics (e.g., women are weaker and more fragile than men, they are at risk of physical and moral harm) preclude them from drinking. Here, they stressed that alcohol is meant for the ‘strong’, making it inappropriate for women whom they characterized as ‘fragile’ or ‘people with light brain’ to drink:
I know that if males take alcohol, it is good because they can control themselves because they are guys. For females, if they take alcohol, they might end up getting drunk and might easily derail. (Diogor, male)
Similarly, some men justified this notion by drawing on ideas of ‘respectable femininity’ [65] to argue that it is unfeminine for a woman to get drunk. For women who do drink, there is an imperative that they avoid intoxication, or at minimum, avoid ‘obvious intoxication’. While consuming alcohol is generally not considered appropriate for women, intoxication is regarded as a form of ‘female-specific deviance’ (p394) [63]. This is further illustrated in the following statement:
First of all, it is kind of pathetic to see a woman that is drunk…For the male to be drunk, it is not too heard off (not always publicised)…but for a woman to be drunk, it is not morally good…(Larry, male)
Not only do men view alcohol as good for men only, they also view alcohol consumption as a way of determining amongst themselves “who is a real man”. For example, the amount of alcohol a man can consumed will determine his rank amongst his male peers. On the other hand, those who abstain from drinking are not considered to be “real men” [18,24]. An interesting part of this display of masculinity is the emphasis on the quantity of alcohol consumed as measured by the number of bottles. Thus, a male participant described his tactic of changing his brand of drink from a stout that had 7.5% alcohol by volume (ABV) to one with 5% ABV. This heightened his status amongst his peers by allowing him to consume larger quantities of alcohol. Because among his friends, drinking the same brand helps in sharing camaraderie [42], while the number of bottles one consumes is used to display badges of honour:
There is this masculine ego that comes into play even before we head to the bar. Like, how many bottles do you think you can finish? Do you think you can do four or five? Hey I’ve drunk seven bottles…So you don’t expect after making such brags, you go there and you just take only two bottles…Instead of…drinking only two bottles and feeling less than a man in the presence of your colleagues, which means that they will make jest of you for a while, it’s better you go for Star beer that has less alcohol content, so that I can drink more bottles and feel manlier…(Edulim, male)
In the excerpts above, it can be inferred that male participants believe that alcohol should be consumed by men. Further, they justify their beliefs using moral arguments and advance the idea of ‘being strong’ to support their acquisition of patriarchal dividend in the form of alcohol consumption.
Alcohol does not discriminate according to gender
As mentioned above, six of the females participants believe that it is acceptable for men to drink alcohol but not for women. Further, it appears that their beliefs are mediated by cultural notions that women who drink are ‘wild girls’ and ‘unfeminine’. Three other female participants expressed beliefs that suggest that alcohol does not discriminate according to gender, and so it does not matter if it is a woman or a man consuming it. To them, it only matters if someone is ‘strong enough’ to take it. For example, Patience emphasized that the issue is not gender, but strength or capacity to consume that is relevant to the appropriate consumption of alcohol (i.e., appropriate consumption is limited to a level at which one does not become inebriated).
In addition, these female participants expressed several reasons as to why women should be able to drink. The reasons given include gender equality and pleasure. They argued that gender equality implies that women have (or should have) the right to drink what they want, a right that is bestowed socially rather than ‘by alcohol’. For example, one of them argues that she drinks to display her badges of honour [4] among peers by showing them that she can hold much alcohol:
I can take more than three bottles and still feel okay…I’ve always known myself to be a strong person and when I’m determined to do something I don’t look back…So I don’t let myself get down before my friends. I don’t like them seeing my weak point; so I try in order not to get tipsy in their presence. (Pretty, female)
Indeed, Pretty sheds light on how she developed a capacity to “hold her drink”, by revealing that she has always challenged men in diverse activities even before she gained admission into the university. Interestingly, although she uses heavy drinking to do gender and to challenge gender norms and expand categories of what is acceptable behaviour for women, she also strives to maintain her personal respect and integrity among peers in order to avoid being categorised among ‘bad women’ (p396) [63]. To accomplish this precarious position, she must strategically manager her consumption so that she does not become intoxicated, or at least not display signs of intoxication.
In fact, from her account, it appears that this ability to hold her drink increases her rank among her peers, whom she described as those who often show signs of intoxication after consuming fewer bottles than she does.
Additionally, another female participant stressed that the quantity of alcohol consumption between males and females should be comparable because men and women are both human beings. As such, what men can handle, women should too:
I believe the quantity should be the same. Why can’t ladies drink alcohol the way guys are taking it? Because funny enough, you see some guys that cannot even take more than two bottles but some ladies can take 10. There are some ladies that when it comes to drinking, you cannot even defeat them…(Chichi, female)
Similarly, when asked what she thinks about cultural beliefs that restrict women from drinking alcohol, Chichi noted that she was aware of these beliefs and argued that such beliefs create the circumstances that force women to engage in secret or hidden drinking. Thus, she argues that men should not restrict alcohol consumption to themselves because not only are women moving into similar rates and types of employment as men, some women are achieving the same or higher status than some men [46]. The excerpts below show Chichi’s feminist view as well as that of another female participant, Ada:
Why can’t a woman do what a man is doing? …Come to this contemporary world, I don’t believe there is anything a man can do that a woman cannot do. Men are ministers and women are ministers;…in some countries women are president. Men and women now work in the same company, doing the same kind of work…In some houses, women are making more money than the guys… So why should you come and tell me that a man should drink alcohol and the woman should not drink even if she likes to drink alcohol?…(Chichi, female)
When I see (Nigerian) girls going for that…(alcohol and other risky events), they are like telling the people in the world that what a man can do, a woman can do better. (Ada, female)
As HM is often contested as children grow up, individuals have the ‘capacity to deconstruct gender binaries and criticise HM’ (p853) [10]. As these excerpts reveal, this can be said to be what young people, especially the females, are doing with alcohol consumption in contemporary Nigeria. Despite that, unlike what was found among American female students who use heavy drinking as an opportunity to violate the boundaries of traditional gender norms and excuse their behaviour by blaming alcohol [64], Chichi and other women who use heavy drinking to do gender do not want to lose control as a result of alcohol; thus they continued to discourage being “out of control”.
Gendering of alcoholic beverages
The previous section addresses the ways in which alcohol use is gendered and how its use has different implications and opportunities for the construction of gender identities. This section drives this point further by demonstrating how alcohol has itself been gendered (that is the substance, not just its use). The majority of the male participants differentiated between “males’ or guys’ alcohol” (such as beer, spirit, gin) and beverages that are more appropriate for females. Again, cultural beliefs about males’ and females’ roles were employed to support their reasoning behind their categorization of alcoholic beverages as either appropriate (or not) for men and women:
In this eastern region, and in (name of city) to be precise, when you see a girl drinking Gulder (beer)…, people will say ah, what is this girl doing? It’s abnormal, it does not make sense, it’s not good; she supposed to be taking something like malt (non-alcoholic) and leave Gulder for men to take…So they see it as totally abnormal that a young girl should be taking beer (Ejike, male)
A different picture was painted by a few males who believed that it is acceptable for women to drink. However, although they felt it was okay for women to consume alcohol, they stressed that there are only certain types of alcoholic beverages that are appropriate for women. In general, beer was not considered to be appropriate for women, except for when taken medicinally (e.g., stout that is thought to ease menstrual pain in Nigeria). Beer was described as causing men’s stomachs to protrude, a side effect that would be unbecoming for women, thereby making beer inappropriate for women to drink. Although spirits were not considered to be a woman’s drink, one of the male participants argued that they were preferable to beer because spirits would help women maintain their “twiggy” figure. By and large, the alcoholic beverages deemed appropriate for women were those perceived as sweetened or “light” such as wine or Smirnoff Ice. In fact, the men added that such beverages shouldn’t even be considered as alcohol due to their sweet tastes and presumed very low ABV.
Although women expressed a greater diversity of opinions than men, many did support the assertion that bitter alcoholic beverages or those with a high ABV should be left for the men. For example, Chisalum believed males should drink beer:
Chisalum: …It is bitter and it is for guys. In this campus, I have never seen a female drinking beer. Rather, they drink red labels like Night Train (flavoured wine with 17.5% ABV)…but to open bottles of beer…girls don’t drink it. They drink wines and drinks like Smirnoff, not beer.
Interviewer: Why do you think girls go for wine and Smirnoff while boys drink beer?
Chisalum: …Like I said earlier, the culture (determines what to drink); the trend is that males drink beer. If you are a female and you are drinking beer, people feel you are irresponsible and you lack home training…
All the female participants primarily consumed sweetened alcoholic beverages (due to the taste and or the fear of people’s reactions if they were to drink beer). However, one participant said that in addition to drinking sweetened beverages, she also consumes spirits. For example, Chimanda stated a preference for spirits because she felt that spirits make her ‘‘get high quicker” and were better for maintaining her figure because they do not cause her stomach to bloat. Similarly, Pretty (a self-described “female alcohol macho”) drinks Smirnoff Ice, but of interest is that, unlike most other participants, she is aware of the risks related to consuming sweetened alcoholic drinks. For example, she argues that although society is most accepting of women drinking sweetened alcohol, most of these types of beverages contain more ABV than many beers that men drink:
…Like Smirnoff ice which is the…most popular alcohol for ladies…is about 5.5%…The taste is a little bit mild but the alcohol percentage is equivalent to or higher compared with most of the beers that taste bitter…The truth is that most people don’t know the alcohol percentage in Smirnoff Ice… So when adults see you taking it, they think you are just taking a soft drink because of the appearance, but we know it has high alcohol percentage…(Pretty, female)
She added that she does not support the dominant view that females should only drink sweetened alcohol. Instead, she expressed her opinion that women should be allowed to drink whatever they want, whether it is bitter or sweetened.
As these accounts suggest, some women consume beverages that are gendered as women's drinks, however some of them (and other men) are unaware that these drinks tend to have a high ABV. The extracts also show that females are beginning to contest these patriarchal drinking practices, and there is a growing consciousness that irrespective of one’s gender, individuals should be allowed to choose the type of alcoholic beverages they want to drink. Again, as it has been exemplified above, alcohol consumption may appear to be lower among women, especially in societies where their drinking is restrained or totally stigmatized [66], but such restriction may open doors for different types of alcohol-related problems. In the Nigerian case, females may be drinking more potent alcohol with high sugar content than men presume and this they have no control over because the society sees sweetened alcoholic drinks as a woman’s beverage.