Does drinking to cope explain links between emotion-driven impulse control difficulties and hazardous drinking? A longitudinal test.

Abstract

Difficulty controlling impulsive behaviors when experiencing negative emotions is a prominent risk factor for hazardous alcohol use, and prior research suggests that drinking to cope may mediate this association. The present study examines this possibility prospectively in a sample of 490 young adult women between the ages of 18 and 25. Participants completed measures of emotion-driven impulse control difficulties, drinking to cope, and hazardous alcohol use at six time points over the course of approximately 20 months (i.e., one assessment every four months). Multilevel structural equation modeling revealed that drinking to cope fully mediated the relationship between emotion-driven impulse control difficulties and hazardous alcohol use when examining these relationships between individuals and partially mediated this relation when examining these relationships within individuals. These findings suggest that drinking to cope is a key mechanism in the relationship between emotion-driven impulse control difficulties and hazardous drinking. Results highlight the importance of targeting both emotion dysregulation and drinking to cope when treating young women for alcohol use problems.

Risk for Revictimization Following Interpersonal and Noninterpersonal Trauma: Clarifying the Role of Posttraumatic Stress Symptoms and Trauma‐Related Cognitions

“…Participants were drawn from a larger, multiwave, multisite study of emotion dysregulation and sexual revictimization (also see Jaffe et al, 2017;Watkins, Franz, DiLillo, Gratz, & Messman-Moore, 2015;Watkins et al, 2014). A total of 491 women between 18 and 25 years of age were recruited from the community at four sites in the United States (Lincoln and Omaha, Nebraska; Jackson, Mississippi; Oxford, Ohio) for a study of women's life experiences.…”

Alcohol-naïve USVs distinguish male HAD-1 from LAD-1 rat strains

“…The onset of this negative state is an important aspect of the transition from recreational drug use to drug dependence. Moreover, individuals with pre-existing negative affective states either due to depression (Conner, Pinquart, & Gamble, 2009; Schuckit, Smith, & Chacko, 2006), posttraumatic stress (Gilpin & Weiner, 2016), or early life adversity (Cornelius, De Genna, Goldschmidt, Larkby, & Day, 2016) are likely to engage in relapse like behaviors (Watkins, Franz, DiLillo, Gratz, & Messman-Moore, 2015) which can further increase their risk of developing a substance use disorder (SUD). Furthermore, strategies aimed at improving emotional regulation have shown promise in reducing drug abuse behaviors (Tang, Tang, & Posner, 2016).…”

Hazardous Alcohol Consumption Moderates the Relationship Between Safer Sex Maintenance Strategies and Condomless Sex With Clients Among Female Sex Workers in Mexico

“…Our findings suggest that maintenance self-efficacy (person’s perceived ability or confidence to maintain a new behavior and deal with unexpected problems) is important to the maintenance of safer sex behaviors among FSWs, particularly those who engage in hazardous alcohol consumption. The latter has been associated with internalized self-criticism, low self-worth, and impulsive control difficulties (Blank, Connor, Gray, & Tustin, 2016; Skinner & Veilleux, 2016; Watkins, Franz, DiLillo, Gratz, & Messman-Moore, 2015), suggesting that in addition to alcohol treatment, enhancement of self-efficacy, particularly condom use self-efficacy, may be important for both achieving and maintaining behavior change in this subgroup of FSWs.…”