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Heavy Episodic Drinking Is a Trait-State: A Cautionary Note
Abstract
Background:
Heavy episodic (binge) drinking is common in and problematic for undergraduates. Researchers often assume that an individual's heavy episodic drinking is stable and trait-like. However, this fails to consider fluctuating, state-like variation in heavy episodic drinking. This study proposes and tests a novel conceptualization of heavy episodic drinking as a trait-state wherein the contribution of both trait-like stability and state-like fluctuations are quantified. It was hypothesized that heavy episodic drinking is a trait-state such that individuals have trait-like tendencies to engage in heavy episodic drinking, and state-like differences in the expression of this tendency over time.
Methods:
A sample of 114 first-year undergraduates from a Canadian university completed self-report measures of heavy episodic drinking at 3 time points across 130 days. Hypotheses were tested with repeated-measures analysis of variance (ANOVA), test-retest correlations, and generalizability theory analyses.
Results:
A substantial proportion of the variance in heavy episodic drinking is attributable to trait-like stability, with a smaller proportion attributable to state-like fluctuations.
Conclusions:
The heavy episodic drinker seems characterized by a stable, trait-like tendency to drink in a risky manner, and this trait-like tendency seems to fluctuate in degree of expression over time. Findings complement research suggesting that people have trait-like predispositions that increase their risk for heavy episodic drinking. However, despite this stable tendency to drink heavily, the frequency of heavy episodic drinking appears to be at least partly sporadic or situation dependent. These findings serve as a caution to alcohol researchers and clinicians who often assume that a single assessment of heavy episodic drinking captures a person's usual drinking behavior.
... binge drinking as a means of sensation-seeking), binge drinking can be used for negative reinforcement, i.e. to alleviate or forget about problems and worries. Consequently, a variety of studies has provided evidence that experiencing stress, anxiety, traumatic events and depressive episodes are related to binge drinking in general, especially among females (Choi & DiNitto, 2011a, 2011bKachadourian, Pilver, & Potenza, 2014;Mushquash, Sherry, Mackinnon, Mushquash, & Stewart, 2014;Prado Jde, Kerr-Correa, Lima, da Silva, & Santos, 2012;Skinner, Kristman-Valente, & Herrenkohl, 2016;Timko, Sutkowi, Pavao, & Kimerling, 2008;Wellman et al., 2014). However, in the case of depression, this link was not always significant (Choi & DiNitto, 2011a, 2011bGonzalez, Reynolds, & Skewes, 2011;Prado Jde et al., 2012); in certain cases it was even non-existent (Harrell & Karim, 2008). ...
... Self-medication can be a reason for binge drinking, i.e. the consumption of large amounts of alcohol at a given moment to alleviate, cope with or feel better after negative events or emotions (Kuntsche & Bruno, 2015;Mushquash et al., 2014;Stewart & Conrod, 2008). However, there is also evidence for a reversed causation, i.e. that binge drinking is responsible for depressive symptoms over time (Paljarvi et al., 2009). ...
... situation, individual and environment). Whereas binge drinking can occur in a stable, trait-like manner with only some fluctuations over time (Mushquash et al., 2014), situational factors may intervene and weaken the impact of individual factors such as personality. Hicks et al. (2015), for example, argue that despite the link between trait impulsivity and attentional bias among binge drinkers, it still remains to be demonstrated whether impulsive binge drinkers actually have difficulty controlling their impulses after exposure to alcohol cues in a given situation. ...
Objective:
Binge drinking (also called heavy episodic drinking, risky single-occasion drinking etc.) is a major public health problem. This paper provides an overview of recently published evidence concerning the definition and measurement, prevalence rates, health impact, demographic and psychosocial correlates of, and interventions for, binge drinking.
Design:
Narrative review.
Results:
Mostly occurring among young people at weekends, binge drinking increases the risk of both acute (e.g. injuries) and long-term negative consequences (e.g. alcohol disorders). Binge drinkers tend to be extrovert, impulsive and sensation-seeking. Stress, anxiety, traumatic events and depression are also related to binge drinking. Both alcohol-related behaviour of parents and general parenting (e.g. parenting styles, monitoring) are also important. Other major risk factors for binge drinking are frequently spending time with friends who drink, and the drinking norms observed in the wider social environment (e.g. school, community, culture). Emergency departments, birthday parties, fraternities and the workplace serve as settings for interventions; these are increasingly delivered via digital and mobile technology. There is evidence of small-sized effects across approaches (brief interventions, personalised normative feedback, protective behavioural strategies etc.) and populations.
Conclusion:
A more consistent terminology, investigating multi-level influences and identifying the most effective intervention components are challenges for future research.
... This has not been tested, however. Research with emerging adults suggests alcohol consumption is a trait-state, meaning alcohol use has a trait-like component (i.e., stable individual differences) and a state-like component (i.e., statedependent fluctuation) when measured over time (Mushquash, Sherry, Mackinnon, Mushquash, & Stewart, 2014 ). Using variance decomposition , Mushquash et al. showed slightly more variance attributable to trait-like stability than state-dependent factors (57% vs. 43%) in heavy episodic use among university students, suggesting alcohol consumption is best accounted for by both the dispositional stability and situational fluctuation of use over time. ...
... The purpose of this research was to test the overall pattern of state versus trait variance in alcohol use in this age group, change in statelike and trait-like variance over time during this developmental phase, and sex differences in how state-like and trait-like variance shift during adolescence. We used data from the Project on Adolescent Trajectories and Health (PATH), a cohort-sequential design spanning grades 7 to 11, and applied the variance decomposition approach described by Mushquash et al. (2014) to identify state and trait components of alcohol consumption. Based on Mushquash et al. (2014) and research showing rapid changes in drinking during adolescence (Chen & Jacobson, 2012 ) we hypothesized adolescent alcohol consumption would have a larger proportion of state-like variation compared to trait-like variation. ...
... We used data from the Project on Adolescent Trajectories and Health (PATH), a cohort-sequential design spanning grades 7 to 11, and applied the variance decomposition approach described by Mushquash et al. (2014) to identify state and trait components of alcohol consumption. Based on Mushquash et al. (2014) and research showing rapid changes in drinking during adolescence (Chen & Jacobson, 2012 ) we hypothesized adolescent alcohol consumption would have a larger proportion of state-like variation compared to trait-like variation. We hypothesized the state-like component of use would predominate early in development, but trait-like components would emerge and increase in magnitude across adolescence as alcohol use became more stable (Mushquash et al., 2014 ). ...
While average rates of change in adolescent alcohol consumption are frequently studied, variability arising from situational and dispositional influences on alcohol use has been comparatively neglected. We used variance decomposition to test differences in variability resulting from year-to-year fluctuations in use (i.e., state-like) and from stable individual differences (i.e., trait-like) using data from the Project on Adolescent Trajectories and Health (PATH), a cohort-sequential study spanning grades 7 to 11 using three cohorts starting in grades seven, eight, and nine, respectively. We tested variance components for alcohol volume, frequency, and quantity in the overall sample, and changes in components over time within each cohort. Sex differences were tested. Most variability in alcohol use reflected state-like variation (47-76%), with a relatively smaller proportion of trait-like variation (19-36%). These proportions shifted across cohorts as youth got older, with increases in trait-like variance from early adolescence (14-30%) to later adolescence (30-50%). Trends were similar for males and females, although females showed higher trait-like variance in alcohol frequency than males throughout development (26-43% vs. 11-25%). For alcohol volume and frequency, males showed the greatest increase in trait-like variance earlier in development (i.e., grades 8-10) compared to females (i.e., grades 9-11). The relative strength of situational and dispositional influences on adolescent alcohol use has important implications for preventative interventions. Interventions should ideally target problematic alcohol use before it becomes more ingrained and trait-like.
... peers, access and location). The trait-like stability of alcohol consumption is generally maintained into and throughout adulthood [47,48]. ...
Background and aims
Within many alcohol prevention interventions, changes in alcohol‐related attitudes (ARA) are often proposed as precursors to changes in drinking behaviour. This study aimed to measure the longitudinal relationship between ARA and behaviour during the implementation of a large‐scale prevention trial.
Design and setting
This study was a two‐arm school‐based clustered randomized controlled trial. A total of 105 schools in Northern Ireland and Scotland participated in the Steps Towards Alcohol Misuse Prevention Programme (STAMPP) Trial.
Participants
A sample of 12 738 pupils (50% female; mean age = 12.5 years at baseline) self‐completed questionnaires on four occasions (T1–T4). The final data sweep (T4) was 33 months post baseline.
Measurements
Individual assessments of ARA and heavy episodic drinking (HED) were made at each time‐point. Additional covariates included location, school type, school socio‐economic status and intervention arm. Estimated models examined the within‐individual autoregressive and cross‐lagged effects between ARA and HED across the four time‐points (Bayes estimator).
Findings
All autoregressive effects were statistically significant for both ARA and HED across all time‐points. Past ARA predicted future ARA [e.g. ARA T1 → ARA T2 = 0.071, credibility interval (CI) = 0.043–0.099, P < 0.001, one‐tailed]. Similarly, past HED predicated future HED (e.g. HED T1 → HED T2 = 0.303, CI = 0.222–0.382, P < 0.001, one‐tailed). Autoregressive effects for HED were larger than those for ARA at all time‐points. In the cross‐lagged effects, past HED statistically significantly predicted more positive ARA in the future (e.g. HED T2 → ARA T3 = 0.125, CI = 0.078–0.173, P < 0.001, one tailed) except for the initial T1–T2 path. In contrast, past ARA did not predict future HED across any time‐points.
Conclusions
Changes in alcohol‐related attitudes were not a precursor to changes in heavy episodic drinking within the Steps Towards Alcohol Misuse Prevention Programme (STAMPP) Trial in Scotland and Northern Ireland. Rather, alcohol‐related attitudes were more likely to reflect prior drinking status than predict future status. Heavy episodic drinking status appears to have a greater impact on future alcohol attitudes than attitudes do on future heavy episodic drinking.
... In fact, reductions in gambling cravings-as assessed by the GACS-predicted reductions in gambling symptoms and related behaviours, such as time and money spent gambling, in the treatment of co-morbid problem gambling and tobacco use (Bui et al., 2023). Future work should incorporate more repeated-measures designs which may allow for a more direct examination of the trait and state-like aspects of the craving construct, as seen in the literature on heavy episodic drinking (e.g., Mushquash et al., 2014). ...
The Gambling Craving Scale (GACS) is a multifaceted measure of gambling craving. Initial validation work by Young and Wohl (2009) in university student samples showed that the GACS had a three-factor structure capturing dimensions of Desire, Anticipation, and Relief. Despite its potential clinical utility as a measure of craving, the GACS has yet to be validated in people seeking treatment for gambling problems. Accordingly, we examined the psychometric properties in a sample of people (N = 209; Mage = 37.66; 62.2% female) participating in a randomized controlled trial testing a novel online treatment for problem gambling. We predicted the GACS would have a three-factor structure. In addition, we also examined measurement invariance across sex and problem gambling risk status. Finally, we assessed concurrent validity of the factors with other measures of problem gambling severity and involvement. Exploratory structural equation modeling findings supported a three-factor structure that was invariant across the groups tested. Each of the Desire, Anticipation, and Relief subscales were significant positive predictors of problem gambling severity and symptoms, and some form of gambling behaviour. Findings show the GACS is a promising scale to assess multidimensional craving experiences among people in treatment for gambling problems.
... Goals of the current study were threefold: (1) to assess whether neuroticism, extraversion, and conscientiousness moderated the relationships between drinking motives and binge drinking and ARP in a cross-cultural sample of Portuguese and US college students; (2) to determine whether the effect of interactions on ARP would be mediated by the frequency of binge drinking, and (3) to explore potential differences in the interactions of personality-by-motives as they related to binge drinking and ARP across two cultures. We know that across individuals from the US and Portugal binge drinking tends to be stable (Mushquash et al., 2014), and rank orders of drinking motives are similar (Mackinnon et al., 2017). It is also known that across the US and European nations associations between personality, drinking motives, and alcohol outcomes are similar (Mezquita et al., 2018), despite systematic differences in personality profiles (McCrae & Terracciano, 2008). ...
The present study examined whether personality traits and drinking motives interact to predict binge drinking and alcohol-related problems in a cross-cultural sample of college students. Participants were undergraduate drinkers ( N = 904; 66% female) from universities in Portugal ( N = 391) and the US ( N = 513). Participants completed measures assessing neuroticism, extraversion, conscientiousness, drinking motives, frequency of binge drinking, and the number of alcohol-related problems. A significant Country × Neuroticism × Conformity interaction was explained by differences between US and Portuguese samples. The effect of this interaction on alcohol- related problems was mediated by binge drinking. Findings suggest similarities and differences across cultures in the manner in which personality and drinking motives are associated with alcohol outcomes. Across cultures, neuroticism, extraversion, conscientiousness, and drinking motives are key factors to consider in the assessment, prevention, and treatment of alcohol use among college students.
... Providing information on actual risk may be helpful to improve self-awareness on BD. Of course, consistently with recent research, our model targets heavy episodic drinkers who seem characterized by a stable, traitlike tendency to drink in a risky manner, though this tendency seems to fluctuate in degree of expression over time (Mushquash et al., 2014). Nonetheless, our study design allowed to assess a between-person risk, because additional repeated measures over time would have been needed to provide a within-person risk perspective. ...
Objectives:
Binge drinking (BD) among young people has significant public health implications. Thus, there is the need to target users most at risk. We estimated the discriminative accuracy of an innovative model nested in a recently developed e-Health app (Digital-Alcohol RIsk Alertness Notifying Network for Adolescents and young adults [D-ARIANNA]) for BD in young people, examining its performance to predict short-term BD episodes.
Methods:
We consecutively recruited young adults in pubs, discos, or live music events. Participants self-administered the app D-ARIANNA, which incorporates an evidence-based risk estimation model for the dependent variable BD. They were re-evaluated after 2 weeks using a single-item BD behavior as reference. We estimated D-ARIANNA discriminative ability through measures of sensitivity and specificity, and also likelihood ratios. ROC curve analyses were carried out, exploring variability of discriminative ability across subgroups.
Results:
The analyses included 507 subjects, of whom 18% reported at least 1 BD episode at follow-up. The majority of these had been identified as at high/moderate or high risk (65%) at induction. Higher scores from the D-ARIANNA risk estimation model reflected an increase in the likelihood of BD. Additional risk factors such as high pocket money availability and alcohol expectancies influence the predictive ability of the model.
Conclusions:
The D-ARIANNA model showed an appreciable, though modest, predictive ability for subsequent BD episodes. Post-hoc model showed slightly better predictive properties. Using up-to-date technology, D-ARIANNA appears an innovative and promising screening tool for BD among young people. Long-term impact remains to be established, and also the role of additional social and environmental factors.
... The TPB instruments view intentions as traits (Boldero et al., 1992); as such, studies included in this review assessed the predictive value of drinking intentions over extended periods of time (2 weeks: Johnston and White, 2003;e.g., 1 week: Norman and Conner, 2006). Over shorter time periods, both trait-like personal characteristics (French and Cooke, 2012;Litt et al., 2014;Patrick and Lee, 2012) and state-like occasion-level influences might affect drinking intentions and behaviors (Mushquash et al., 2014;Northcote, 2011). Night-level drinking intentions may also be a function of usual drinking behaviors (i.e., heavier drinkers are likely to encompass heavier drinking intentions) as well as the previous night's consumption , the types and size of social events attended (Thrul et al., 2017), and the intended sequence of drinking events, such as predrinking before going out (Labhart et al., 2013). ...
Background:
Heavy alcohol use is common among young adults on weekend nights and is assumed to be intentional. However, little is known about the extent to which heavy consumption is planned prior to the onset of drinking and what factors contribute to drinking more than intended. This study investigates drinking intentions at the beginning of an evening and individual and situational factors associated with a subsequent consumption over the course of multiple nights.
Methods:
Using a smartphone application, 176 young people aged 16 to 25 (mean age = 19.1; 49% women) completed questionnaires on drinking intentions, consumption, and drinking environments before, during, and after multiple Friday and Saturday nights (n = 757). Multilevel regressions were used to investigate individual-level and night-level factors associated with previous drinking intentions and subsequent deviations from intentions.
Results:
Participants intended to consume 2.5 drinks (SD = 2.8) per night yet consumed 3.8 drinks (SD = 3.9) on average. Drinking intentions were higher among those who frequently went out at night and engaged in more frequent predrinking. Participants drank more than intended on 361 nights (47.7%). For both genders, the number of drinks consumed before 8 pm, attending multiple locations, and being with larger groups of friends contributed to higher consumption than intended at the individual and the night levels. Heavier consumption than intended also occurred when drinking away from home for men and when going to nightclubs for women.
Conclusions:
Making young adults aware of the tendency to drink more than intended, particularly when drinking begins early in the evening, moves from location to location, and includes large groups of friends, may be a fruitful prevention target. Structural measures, including responsible beverage service, may also help in preventing excessive drinking at multiple locations.
... Based on the maturity principle (Johnson et al., 2007) and previous research (O'Neill & Sher, 2000), we hypothesized drinking quantity, frequency, and problems will show a decreasing trajectory across 18 months, even after controlling for participant age. We expected greater decreases for drinking quantity and alcohol-related problems relative to drinking frequency based on research demonstrating stability of frequency over time (Mushquash, Sherry, Mackinnon, Mushquash, & Stewart, 2014;O'Neill & Sher, 2000). ...
Alcohol misuse is an increasingly common problem in undergraduate women. Building upon research suggesting that maturing out of risky patterns of alcohol use can occur, our study tested how three facets of alcohol use change differentially over time in undergraduate women. A sample of 218 undergraduate women (M age = 20.6 years) participated in a four-wave, 18-month longitudinal study measuring frequency of alcohol consuming occasions, quantity of alcohol consumed per occasion, and alcohol-related problems. Growth curve analyses showed that alcohol frequency remained stable over 18 months, whereas alcohol quantity and problems decreased over time. Results indicate undergraduate women are drinking with similar frequency over time, but they are drinking a smaller quantity of alcohol per drinking occasion and they are experiencing fewer alcohol-related problems. Findings help clarify the maturity principle by showing a different pattern of drinking as undergraduate women age that involves lower quantities of alcohol per drinking occasion and less problematic alcohol use, but not necessarily less frequent drinking.
... This alcohol consumption often begins around age 13, tends to increase during adolescence, with a peak in young adulthood (ages 18-22), and then gradually decreases. Evidence from longitudinal studies for BD shows moderate to strong stability over time, reflecting a large trait component with some state-like fluctuations (Mushquash et al., 2014). Furthermore, BD is characterized by a low perception of risk and polydrug consumption, with tobacco and marijuana being the most frequent substances used (Stickley et al., 2013). ...
Background:
The prevalence of binge drinking (BD), found especially among young people, is increasing worldwide and has become an important social and health concern. We studied, for the first time, the personality profile, using the Alternative Five Factor Model, among university students with BD and healthy controls, taking into account the possible influence of sex.
Methods:
70 participants with BD (30 men) and 70 healthy controls (30 men) were included, selected to control for characteristics that are known to be related to BD (physical and mental disorders, consumption of other drugs, circadian rhythms), completed the Zuckerman-Kuhlman Personality Questionnaire (ZKPQ).
Results:
The scores on Neuroticism-Anxiety and Impulsive Sensation-Seeking were higher in the BD group compared to the controls (p<0.001 in both cases). The higher scores in the BD group in Neuroticism-Anxiety are due to higher scores in the women's group (p=0.014), while those in Impulsive Sensation-Seeking are due to higher scores in the men's group (p=0.009), both in the Impulsivity and in the Sensation-Seeking subscales (p<0.045).
Conclusions:
Sex could be a factor that modulates the endophenotype of drug dependence (impulsive and anxious personality) and the prevention and/or treatment programs for BD should include not only the management of the personality risk factors but also different tailored approaches according to sex.
This study investigated the extent to which momentary reports of coping are a traitlike phenomenon and the validity of a questionnaire assessment of coping style. Participants (N = 96) completed the questionnaire, then monitored stressful events and coping activities for 2 days using a hand-held computer that administered a brief assessment every 40 min. Momentary reports exhibited a sizable traitlike component: Individual differences accounted for 42% of the variance for 2 coping items and 15–30% of the variance for 15 items. The questionnaire assessment of coping style was a poor predictor of average momentary coping; the coping style measure and the aggregated momentary measure of trait coping shared 23% of their variance for religion and 0–12% for the 16 other coping measures. Self-report assessments of trait coping are poor measures of the trait component of momentary coping and very poor predictors of coping in specific situations.
Heavy episodic drinking (HED) is a major health problem for young adults. Rates of HED have remained consistently high among young adults for the past two decades. Though research has identified various intrapersonal, interpersonal, and environmental contributors to HED, the majority of research focuses on intrapersonal factors. As such, more research is needed to test the role that specific interpersonal relationships play in perpetuating HED. This study tests the partner influence hypothesis that suggests partners in romantic relationships influence one another's HED over time. A sample of 208 young, nonmarried, heterosexual dating couples completed HED measures at baseline and again 28 days later. Actor-partner interdependence modeling revealed significant actor effects, demonstrating stability in HED within each partner over time. Results also showed significant partner effects where HED in both young men and women in dating relationships positively influenced their partners' future HED over a relatively short time frame. Patterns in the results suggest both women and men are more affected by their own than by their partner's prior level of HED. Nonetheless, small partner effects were present for both women and men. Results support the partner influence hypothesis and suggest HED is a self-propagating behavior sustained, in part, by a pattern of interpersonal influence. These results highlight the importance of considering both intrapersonal and interpersonal factors when implementing prevention and intervention programs for young adults' HED.
The perfectionism model of binge eating (PMOBE) is an integrative model explaining why perfectionism is related to binge eating. This study reformulates and tests the PMOBE, with a focus on addressing limitations observed in the perfectionism and binge-eating literature. In the reformulated PMOBE, concern over mistakes is seen as a destructive aspect of perfectionism contributing to a cycle of binge eating via 4 binge-eating maintenance variables: interpersonal discrepancies, low interpersonal esteem, depressive affect, and dietary restraint. This test of the reformulated PMOBE involved 200 undergraduate women studied using a 3-wave longitudinal design. As hypothesized, concern over mistakes appears to represent a vulnerability factor for binge eating. Bootstrapped tests of mediation suggested concern over mistakes contributes to binge eating through binge-eating maintenance variables, and results supported the incremental validity of the reformulated PMOBE beyond perfectionistic strivings and neuroticism. The reformulated PMOBE also predicted binge eating, but not binge drinking, supporting the specificity of this model. The reformulated PMOBE offers a framework for understanding how key contributors to binge eating work together to generate and to maintain binge eating.
Discrepancies (i.e., a subjective sense of falling short of one's own standards) are a key part of the perfectionism construct. Theory suggests discrepancies confer vulnerability to depressive symptoms. Since most research in this area is cross-sectional, longitudinal research is needed to disentangle directionality of relationships and to permit stronger causal inferences. Determining whether discrepancies are an antecedent of depressive symptoms, a consequence of depressive symptoms, or both is critical to understanding the discrepancies-depressive symptoms relationship. Knowledge about the temporal stability of discrepancies is also only starting to emerge, and it is unclear whether discrepancies predict incremental variance in depressive symptoms above and beyond neuroticism (i.e., a dispositional tendency to experience negative emotional states). The present study tested relationships among discrepancies, neuroticism, and depressive symptoms in 127 1st-year undergraduates using a 3-wave longitudinal design. Results suggest discrepancies may be understood as a trait-state where people are both highly consistent in their rank order on discrepancies and fluctuate somewhat in the level of discrepancies they experience at a particular point in time. As hypothesized, discrepancies predicted increases in depressive symptoms, even after controlling for neuroticism. Contrary to hypotheses, depressive symptoms did not predict changes in discrepancies. This study extends a long tradition of theory noting the depressing consequences of believing that one has fallen short of one's own standards. Harsh self-criticism and unobtainable self-expectations involving a strong sense of imperfection may be part of the premorbid personality of people vulnerable to depressive symptoms. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved).
Generalizability Theory (GT) provides a flexible, practical framework for examining the dependability of behavioral measurements. GT extends classical theory by (a) estimating the magnitude of multiple sources of measurement error, (b) modeling the use of a measurement for both norm-referenced and domain-referenced decisions, (c) providing reliability (
generalizability) coefficients tailored to the proposed uses of the measurement, and (d) isolating major sources of error so that a cost-efficient measurement design can be built. Unfortunately, GT has not been readily accessible to psychological researchers. G theory's inaccessibility may explain why classical theory remains the preferred method for estimating reliability. The purpose of this article is to present GT and its wide applicability to a broad audience. Our intent is to demystify GT and provide a useful tool to psychological researchers and test developers. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Background: The co-morbidity between social phobia and alcohol disorder is well established. Aims: This study investigated the nature of the relationship between traits associated with these disorders. Method: A total of 157 undergraduate drinkers (112 women; 45 men) completed measures tapping aspects of social phobia (i.e., the Social Avoidance and Distress Scale and the Brief Fear of Negative Evaluation scale) and drinking behavior (i.e., the Drinking Motives Questionnaire – Revised, quantity and frequency of alcohol consumption, and the Rutgers Alcohol Problem Index). Results: Correlational analyses (controlling for gender) revealed that: (i) social avoidance and distress was significantly negatively related to drinking frequency; (ii) fear of negative evaluation and social avoidance and distress were both significantly positively related to drinking to cope with negative emotions and to conform to peer pressure; and (iii) fear of negative evaluation was also significantly positively related to drinking to socialize and to drinking problems. The relationship between fear of negative evaluation and drinking problems was mediated by coping and conformity drinking motives. Conclusions: Implications for developing effective integrated treatments for co-occurring social anxiety and alcohol problems are discussed, as are preventative implications.
The personality systems of Cloninger (as measured by the Tridimensional Personality Questionnaire [TPQ]) and Eysenck (as measured by the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire [EPQ]) both have been linked to substance use and abuse. The current study examined the predictive utility of both systems for substance use disorder (SUD) diagnoses, both cross-sectionally and prospectively. Participants (N = 489 at baseline) completed the EPQ and TPQ and were assessed via structured diagnostic interview at baseline and 6 years later (N = 457 at follow-up). Both the EPQ and TPQ scales demonstrated bivariate cross-sectional and prospective associations with SUDs. Within each system, those dimensions marking a broad impulsive sensation-seeking or behavioral disinhibition trait were the best predictors prospectively, although the 2 systems were differentially sensitive to specific diagnoses. These relations remained significant even with autoregressivity, other concurrent SUD diagnoses, and multiple personality dimensions statistically controlled.
The 2001 Harvard School of Public Health College Alcohol Study surveyed students at 119 4-year colleges that participated in the 1993, 1997, and 1999 studies. Responses in the 4 survey years were compared to determine trends in heavy alcohol use, alcohol-related problems, and encounters with college and community prevention efforts. In 2001, approximately 2 in 5 (44.4%) college students reported binge drinking, a rate almost identical to rates in the previous 3 surveys. Very little change in overall binge drinking occurred at the individual college level. The percentages of abstainers and frequent binge drinkers increased, a polarization of drinking behavior first noted in 1997. A sharp rise in frequent binge drinking was noted among students attending all-women's colleges. Other significant changes included increases in immoderate drinking and harm among drinkers. More students lived in substance-free housing and encountered college educational efforts and sanctions resulting from their alcohol use.
Surveys have documented excessive drinking among college students and tracked annual changes in consumption over time. This study extended previous work by examining drinking changes during the freshman year, using latent growth curve (LGC) analysis to model individual change, and relating risk factors for heavy drinking to growth factors in the model. Retrospective monthly assessments of daily drinking were used to generate weekly estimates. Drinking varied considerably by week, apparently as a function of academic requirements and holidays. A 4-factor LGC model adequately fit the data. In univariate analyses, gender, race/ethnicity, alcohol expectancies, sensation seeking, residence, and data completeness predicted growth factors (ps <.05); gender, expectancies, residence, and data completeness remained significant when covariates were tested simultaneously. Substantive, methodological, and policy implications are discussed.
The recent growth in diary and experience sampling research has increased research attention on how people change over time in natural settings. Often however, the measures in these studies were originally developed for studying between-person differences, and their sensitivity to within-person changes is usually unknown. Using a Generalizability Theory framework, the authors illustrate a procedure for developing reliable measures of change using a version of the Profile of Mood States (POMS; McNair, Lorr, & Droppleman, 1992) shortened for diary studies. Analyzing two data sets, one composed of 35 daily reports from 68 persons experiencing a stressful examination and another composed of daily reports from 164 persons over a typical 28-day period, we demonstrate that three-item measures of anxious mood, depressed mood, anger, fatigue, and vigor have appropriate reliability to detect within-person change processes.
The perfectionism model of binge eating (PMOBE) is an integrative model explaining why perfectionism is related to binge eating. This study reformulates and tests the PMOBE, with a focus on addressing limitations observed in the perfectionism and binge-eating literature. In the reformulated PMOBE, concern over mistakes is seen as a destructive aspect of perfectionism contributing to a cycle of binge eating via 4 binge-eating maintenance variables: interpersonal discrepancies, low interpersonal esteem, depressive affect, and dietary restraint. This test of the reformulated PMOBE involved 200 undergraduate women studied using a 3-wave longitudinal design. As hypothesized, concern over mistakes appears to represent a vulnerability factor for binge eating. Bootstrapped tests of mediation suggested concern over mistakes contributes to binge eating through binge-eating maintenance variables, and results supported the incremental validity of the reformulated PMOBE beyond perfectionistic strivings and neuroticism. The reformulated PMOBE also predicted binge eating, but not binge drinking, supporting the specificity of this model. The reformulated PMOBE offers a framework for understanding how key contributors to binge eating work together to generate and to maintain binge eating.
The Substance Use Risk Profile Scale (SURPS) is based on a model of personality risk for substance abuse in
which four personality dimensions (hopelessness, anxiety sensitivity, impulsivity, and sensation seeking) are
hypothesized to differentially relate to specific patterns of substance use. The current series of studies is a
preliminary exploration of the psychometric properties of the SURPS in two populations (undergraduate and
high school students). In study 1, an analysis of the internal structure of two versions of the SURPS shows
that the abbreviated version best reflects the 4-factor structure. Concurrent, discriminant, and incremental
validity of the SURPS is supported by convergent/divergent relationships between the SURPS subscales and
other theoretically relevant personality and drug use criterion measures. In Study 2, the factorial structure of
the SURPS is confirmed and evidence is provided for its test–retest reliability and validity with respect to
measuring personality vulnerability to reinforcement-specific substance use patterns. In Study 3, the SURPS
was administered in a more youthful population to test its sensitivity in identifying younger problematic
drinkers. The results from the current series of studies demonstrate support for the reliability and construct
validity of the SURPS, and suggest that four personality dimensions may be linked to substance-related
behavior through different reinforcement processes. This brief assessment tool may have important
implications for clinicians and future research.
Dimensions of perfectionism are often proposed, but seldom integrated. Perfectionistic concerns and perfectionistic strivings were conceptualized as traits (core, relatively unchanging aspects of personality) and perfectionistic self-presentation as a characteristic adaptation (a contextualized cognitive-behavioral strategy). Theory suggests traits predispose people to engage in corresponding characteristic adaptations, and that perfectionistic concerns confer vulnerability for subjective well-being (SWB). It was hypothesized that perfectionistic concerns – but not perfectionistic strivings – would have an indirect effect on SWB through perfectionistic self-presentation. Young adults (ages 18–24) transitioning into university for the first time (N = 127) participated in a three-wave, 130-day longitudinal study. As hypothesized, perfectionistic self-presentation mediated the relationship between perfectionistic concerns and SWB. In contrast, perfectionistic strivings did not predict longitudinal change in perfectionistic self-presentation or SWB. This research integrates prior theory, and provides a novel test of hypotheses using longitudinal data.
Theory suggests perfectionists are inordinately motivated by agentic concerns (status, power, achievement, and self-mastery) and have deficits in communal domains (friendship, support, togetherness, and mutual dialogue). Emerging adults transitioning to university participated in a 2-wave, 130-day longitudinal design with quantitative and qualitative components. Participants completed questionnaire measures of perfectionism, and themes of agency and communion were coded from autobiographical narratives. Perfectionism was positively correlated with agency (especially status/victory subthemes) and uncorrelated with communion. Perfectionistic concerns and perfectionism cognitions were the most consistent correlates of agency across waves. Results support assertions that perfectionists are concerned with performance, self-control, dominance, and being recognized for achievements. Hypotheses regarding communion were unsupported, suggesting a need to develop coding schemes focused on social disconnection.
The objective of this review is to provide an update on existing research examining alcohol-related consequences among college students with relevance for individual-based interventions. While alcohol-related consequences have been a focus of study for several decades, the literature has evolved into an increasingly nuanced understanding of individual and environmental circumstances that contribute to risk of experiencing consequences. A number of risk factors for experiencing alcohol-related consequences have been identified, including belonging to specific student subgroups (e.g., Greek organizations) or drinking during high-risk periods, such as spring break. In addition, the relationship between students' evaluations of both negative and positive consequences and their future drinking behavior has become a focus of research. The current review provides an overview of high-risk student subpopulations, high-risk windows and activities, and college students' subjective evaluations of alcohol-related consequences. Future directions for research are discussed and include determining how students' orientations toward consequences change over time, identifying predictors of membership in high-risk consequence subgroups and refining existing measures of consequences to address evolving research questions.
Notes that alcohol abusers' verbal self-reports are likely to be an accurate reflection of drinking behavior and examines possible research strategies for further enhancing the accuracy of self-reports and for predicting inaccurate self-reports. These strategies include (1) determining how response error can be reduced in the question-answering process, (2) developing procedures to enhance accuracy beyond normal recall, (3) determining what amount of response variability is tolerable, (4) examining group vs individual levels of agreement, and (5) investigating whether wording of questions significantly affects response. Challenges to the use of self-reports in the field of alcohol abuse are noted. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Generalizability theory consists of a conceptual framework and a methodology that enable an investigator to disentangle multiple sources of error in a measurement procedure. The roots of generalizability theory can be found in classical test theory and analysis of variance (ANOVA), but generalizability theory is not simply the conjunction of classical theory and ANOVA. In particular, the conceptual framework in generalizability theory is unique. This framework and the procedures of generalizability theory are introduced and illustrated in this instructional module using a hypothetical scenario involving writing proficiency.
Introduction and aim:
Excessive consumption of alcohol is a major public health issue in university students. The dangers of heavy drinking are well known, with both acute and long-term consequences; however, there is limited information on patterns of extreme drinking (twice over the recommended threshold for low-risk drinking), and the differential effects of heavy versus extreme drinking on immediate consequent functioning in daily life. The current study investigated drinking patterns in a sample of university students and the association of different levels of alcohol consumption with self-reported physical, cognitive and emotional function the day after the drinking episode.
Design and methods:
Data for this study were collected from a sample of 281 University of Otago students using a 21 day Internet-based daily diary. Participants reported on their drinking the previous night and their physical, cognitive and emotional functioning on that day.
Results:
Participants reported drinking on 26.8% days overall and consuming an average of 7.2 standard drinks per occasion. Only heavy drinking (7+standard drinks for men, 5+standard drinks for women) and particularly extreme drinking (14+for men, 10+for women) predicted significant decreases in physical and cognitive functioning the next day. However, low-risk drinking (≤ 6 drinks for men,≤ 4 for women) was not associated with next-day impairment.
Discussion and conclusions:
Findings suggest that there are adverse, intermediate consequences of excessive drinking on dimensions relevant to students' lives. Drinking within low-risk guidelines is recommended.
This study investigated the extent to which momentary reports of coping are a traitlike phenomenon and the validity of a questionnaire assessment of coping style. Participants (N = 96) completed the questionnaire, then monitored stressful events and coping activities for 2 days using a hand-held computer that administered a brief assessment every 40 min. Momentary reports exhibited a sizable traitlike component: Individual differences accounted for 42% of the variance for 2 coping items and 15-30% of the variance for 15 items. The questionnaire assessment of coping style was a poor predictor of average momentary coping; the coping style measure and the aggregated momentary measure of trait coping shared 23% of their variance for religion and 0-12% for the 16 other coping measures. Self-report assessments of trait coping are poor measures of the trait component of momentary coping and very poor predictors of coping in specific situations.
Alcohol misuse in college students represents a significant public health problem. Toward improving the understanding of determinants of collegiate alcohol misuse, the current study examined several dimensions of impulsivity in relation to hazardous drinking in college students.
A one-way, two-group, cross-sectional design was used to compare hazardous drinkers (HZD) with social drinkers (SOC). HZD drinkers were required to score 6 or more on the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT); SOC drinkers were required to score 1-5 on the AUDIT. The sample comprised 93 participants (56% HZD; 76% male) who were recruited from a medium-sized public university. Participants were assessed under neutral conditions using the Eysenck Impulsivity Questionnaire (EIQ), Delay Discounting Task (DDT), and Stanford Time Perspective Inventory (STPI).
Consistent with predictions, HZD participants exhibited significantly greater impulsivity on the EIQ-Impulsivity subscale (p < .001), the STPI-Present Hedonism subscale (p < .01), and the STPIFuture subscale (p < .01); however, no differences were evident on the DDT (p > .40). The HZD group also scored marginally higher than the SOC group on the EIQ-Venturesomeness subscale (p < .10).
These findings suggest that greater impulsivity is associated with alcohol misuse in college students, most prominently in the area of propensity toward risk-taking and nonplanning (EIQ-Impulsivity subscale). The correspondence between these findings and previous studies, methodological considerations, and the need for prospective studies on impulsivity and alcohol misuse in college students are discussed.
Reformulating and testing the perfectionism model of binge eating: a short-term, fourwave longitudinal study
- Sherry Sp Mackinnon
- Sb
- Ar Graham
Mackinnon SP, Sherry SB, Graham AR, et al. Reformulating and testing the perfectionism model of binge eating: a short-term, fourwave longitudinal study. J Couns Psychol. 2011;58:630–646.
Personality and substance use disorders: a prospective study
- Sher Kj
- Bartholow
- Bd
- Wood
- Md
Sher KJ, Bartholow BD, Wood MD. Personality and substance use disorders: a prospective study. J Consult Clin Psychol. 2000;68: 818–829.
Personality and substance use disorders: a prospective study
- K J Sher
- B D Bartholow
- M D Wood
Sher KJ, Bartholow BD, Wood MD. Personality and substance use
disorders: a prospective study. J Consult Clin Psychol. 2000;68:
818-829.