Patterns and predictors of high-intensity drinking and implications for intervention.

Abstract

Efforts to intervene with subgroups at particularly high risk for alcohol use require information on factors that differentiate drinking intensity levels. This article summarizes existing research and provides new findings on sociodemographics and risk factors that differentiate high-intensity drinking (HID) to provide context for developing and delivering interventions for the highest-risk drinkers. Cross-sectional data were obtained in 2019 from participants who reported past 30-day alcohol use in 2018 as part of the nationally representative 12th grade Monitoring the Future study. Among past 2-week drinkers in 2019 (N = 601; modal age 19; 57.0% male; 67.4% non-Hispanic White), bivariate associations between drinking intensity (moderate drinking [1-4 drinks for women/1-5 drinks for men], binge-only drinking [4-7/5-9 drinks], and HID [8+/10+ drinks]) and a range of sociodemographic characteristics, risk factors, and alcohol-related consequences were examined. Results showed binge-drinking norms, social and enhancement drinking motives, nicotine vaping, and use of limiting/stopping drinking and manner of drinking protective behavioral strategies differentiated all drinking intensity levels, lending support to HID and binge-only drinking having an overlapping risk profile. However, there were also risk factors uniquely associated with HID, including sex, college attendance, employment, HID norms, use of serious harm reduction protective behavioral strategies, family history of drinking problems, any cigarette or drug use other than marijuana, and depression symptoms. Therefore, risk factors differentiate young adult drinking intensity. These results can inform efforts to adapt interventions for young adults who report HID. Public Health Significance StatementThis study indicates that young adults who report high-intensity drinking have higher social and enhancement drinking motives than young adults who engage in drinking at binge levels below highintensity drinking thresholds. Young adults who report high-intensity drinking are more likely to have a family history of drinking problems and to report more depression symptoms than young adults who engage in drinking at binge or moderate-intensity levels. The results from the present study suggest that brief interventions targeting HID likely need to address unique risks, including other substance use, depression symptoms, fewer protective behavioral strategies, and negative alcohol consequences.

Consequences, Motives, and Expectancies of Consumption as Predictors of Binge Drinking in University Women

“…On the other hand, among the reasons for consumption, BD female university students allude to social motives, followed by coping with depression, and enhancement motives. The importance they give to social and enhancement motives for consumption supports the results of other studies in which most university students report that they drink for social and fun reasons ( Patrick et al, 2021 ; Richards et al, 2021 ).…”

“…Despite this, research has focused more on extracting predictive models of the influence of coping and enhancement motives, indicating that they are more stable over time and that they are associated with a greater presence of negative consequences. Motives of a more external nature such as social is left out ( Cooper et al, 2016 ) despite being the most present among university students ( Patrick et al, 2021 ; Richards et al, 2021 ). The present study reinforces the importance of contemplating social motives, given that the higher the score in this type of motives, the greater the probability of BD, unlike the more internal reasons (coping and enhancement) in which this relationship is not so evident.…”

“…To date, several studies with general university population (both males and females) report that coping motives stand out for their greater weight in explaining both BD ( Herschl et al, 2012 ; Patrick et al, 2017 ; Terry-McElrath et al, 2017 ), as well as problems derived from this consumption behavior ( Cooper et al, 2016 ; Bacio, 2021 ; Bresin and Mekawi, 2021 ; Richards et al, 2021 ). Enhancement and social motives also share an important weight in the prediction of BD ( Patrick et al, 2021 ; Richards et al, 2021 ). However, when dealing with larger consumption amounts both tend to lose explanatory weight, especially social motives ( Tragesser et al, 2007 ; Cooper et al, 2008 ; Kuntsche and Cooper, 2010 ), even though people who mainly drink for social motives are more vulnerable to social norms regarding alcohol consumption.…”

ELSA cohorte 2014: clases de consumo de alcohol, tabaco y marihuana en estudiantes universitarios argentinos

“…Los resultados indican que una gran porción de los participantes presenta patrones problemáticos de consumo de alcohol (i.e., consumo episódico elevado) y que, incluso, un porcentaje relativamente alto de los estudiantes presenta consumo extremo de alcohol (patrón de consumo característico de una de las clases de consumo identificadas). Apenas recientemente el consumo extremo de alcohol está adquiriendo notoriedad en el campo de investigación de las conductas de consumo (Hua et al, 2020;Patrick et al, 2021). En función de los presentes resultados, consideramos que las medidas de consumo extremo de alcohol (8/10 unidades estándar para mujeres y hombres, respectivamente) deberían incluirse de manera rutinaria en los estudios que analizan el consumo de alcohol y, además, deberían destinarse más esfuerzos a la identificación de sus posibles causas y consecuencias a corto, mediano y largo plazo.…”

Promoting uptake of efficacious brief alcohol interventions for young adults within institutions of higher education: Challenges and opportunities.

“…Involvement in fraternity and sorority life and athletics, perceptions of intense academic demands, and peer influences and pressure have also been linked to heavy and problematic alcohol use (NIAAA, 2021). In this special issue, Patrick et al (2021) identified numerous risk factors for high-intensity drinking (HID; 8+/10+ drinks in a sitting for college women and men, respectively) such as certain drinking motives, mental health symptoms, and perceived norms for HID, among college students who drink. Research on college students also indicates that excessive drinking is associated with increased risk for stopping out or dropping out of college, as well as problems transitioning from college to graduate school or to the workforce (Arria et al, 2018).…”