Arthur W. Blume

Mindfulness meditation and substance use in an incarcerated population

Despite the availability of various substance abuse treatments, alcohol and drug misuse and related negative consequences remain prevalent. Vipassana meditation (VM), a Buddhist mindfulness-based practice, provides an alternative for individuals who do not wish to attend or have not succeeded with traditional addiction treatments. In this study, the authors evaluated the effectiveness of a VM course on substance use and psychosocial outcomes in an incarcerated population. Results indicate that after release from jail, participants in the VM course, as compared with those in a treatment-as-usual control condition, showed significant reductions in alcohol, marijuana, and crack cocaine use. VM participants showed decreases in alcohol-related problems and psychiatric symptoms as well as increases in positive psychosocial outcomes. The utility of mindfulness-based treatments for substance use is discussed.

The Role of Executive Cognitive Functions in Changing Substance Use: What We Know and What We Need to Know

BackgroundExecutive cognitive functions (ECF) have been linked to skills such as planning, organizing, problem solving, decision-making, initiating and self-regulating behavior, working memory, and motivation; critical activities needed to monitor and change substance use behavior.PurposeThe purpose of this study is to investigate how ECF may impact important variables associated with changing substance use behavior.MethodsThis study is a critical review of the extant literature about how ECF may influence substance abuse treatment outcomes and behavior change.ResultsA review of the literature found evidence that poorer ECF likely hinders substance use behavior change and is often associated with behavior labeled as denial. However, the relationship between ECF and substance abuse appears to be highly complex.ConclusionsTraditional methods of substance abuse assessment, interpretation of behavior, and intervention may need to be reconsidered in light of new research about executive cognitive dysfunction. Implications for future research are discussed.

Variables associated with intimate partner violence in a deploying military sample

Variables associated with intimate partner violence (IPV) were examined within a sample of military personnel preparing to deploy. Soldiers with intimate relationships processed for mobilization through Fort Bliss, Texas, completed a questionnaire that queried demographic information, relationship satisfaction, stress, risky alcohol use behaviors, and tactics used during intimate relationship conflict. Four hundred forty-nine deploying soldiers (15.8% of 2,841 with usable data) reported IPV in the past year. Younger age, less education, less relationship satisfaction, more stress, and risky alcohol use behaviors were significant individual predictors of engaging in IPV. The results of this study are discussed in terms of their implications for targeting efforts to reduce IPV among military personnel.

Predictors of change in binge drinking over a 3-month period

Self-efficacy and positive and negative alcohol expectancies have been associated with drinking reduction for some groups, but the relationship of these constructs with changes in high-risk binge drinking behavior among young adults over time is poorly understood. Seventy-six young adults between the ages of 18-32 were recruited to examine this question. Lower self-efficacy and greater positive alcohol expectancies predicted greater numbers of follow-up binge drinking episodes, and greater positive alcohol expectancies predicted greater follow-up alcohol consumption. Young adults with lower self-efficacy, and greater numbers of positive alcohol expectancies may be at risk for experiencing a worsening binge pattern over time.

Ethics Instruction Increases Graduate Students' Responsible Conduct of Research Knowledge but not Moral Reasoning

The purpose of this study was to assess the short-term effectiveness of ethics courses in enhancing responsible conduct of research (RCR) knowledge and moral judgment among graduate students in health-related disciplines. Forty-eight graduate students completed a questionnaire about research experience, knowledge and judgments about appropriate research practices, and a standardized test of moral judgment at the beginning and end of a semester-long ethics course. Knowledge about RCR but not moral judgment increased significantly in some areas. The results are discussed in terms of implications for RCR instruction and of future research designed to improve RCR instruction.

Alcohol Use and Comorbid Anxiety, Traumatic Stress, and Hopelessness Among Hispanics

Little is known about the comorbidity of alcohol use, anxiety, hopelessness, and trauma among Mexican Americans, especially those living in impoverished and often isolated communities or neighborhoods (colonias in Spanish) along the U.S.-Mexico border that may be particularly vulnerable due to stressful living conditions. The current study utilized a community participatory model to investigate the relationships of alcohol use, acculturation, anxiety, hopelessness, and trauma in 100 Mexican origin colonia residents. Significant comorbidity was expected and that anxiety, hopelessness, and post-traumatic symptoms were hypothesized to be associated with the severity of the alcohol use disorders of participants. Participants who met DSM-IV criteria for alcohol dependence reported significantly more symptoms of anxiety and post-traumatic stress, and symptoms of anxiety were significantly associated with alcohol use disorders. This study provides evidence of the need for further investigation of stress, trauma, anxiety, hopelessness, and alcohol abuse in Mexican American residents and to inform future prevention and treatment efforts to improve both the physical and mental health of this population.

Beliefs About Drinking Behavior Predict Drinking Consequences

Abstract Cognitions about drinking, such as positive expectancies and self-efficacy, have been found to profoundly innuence drinking behavior. Although the relationship of self-efficacy and positive expectancies with drinking consumption has been established, the relationship of self-efficacy and alcohol expectancies with the number of reported drinking related consequences has not been examined. One hundred thirteen participants who met criteria for alcohol abuse or dependence were administered the Situational Confidence Questionnaire, the Alcohol Expectancies Questionnaire, the Drinker Inventory of Consequences-Recent, and the Losses of Significance Self-report Questionnaire-Revised. As predicted, lower self-efficacy and greater positive alcohol expectancies predicted greater recent drinking consequences beyond those accounted for by alcohol consumption alone. Greater numbers of positive alcohol expectancies also predicted greater numbers of recent important alcohol related losses. Correcting errant assumptions about alcohol expectancies and strategies designed to increase self-efficacy may reduce harmful drinking consequences even if a client is unwilling to reduce consumption.

Predictors of aversive alcohol consequences in a military sample

The purpose of this study was to identify predictors of risky alcohol use and alcohol-related consequences among postdeployment soldiers. Demobilizing soldiers completed an assessment packet that included questions about demographic factors, relationships, stress, and alcohol-related consequences. Significant predictors of greater alcohol-related consequences, as assessed with the CAGE questionnaire, included fewer years of formal education, male gender, not being in an intimate relationship, racial/ethnic minority status, enlisted rank, having been deployed to the continental United States, and greater stress, whereas significant predictors of drinking and driving included male gender, not being in an intimate relationship, and greater stress. Identifying the predictors of alcohol consequences that occur upon demobilization may aid in determining which soldiers are at risk for such consequences before deployment and may help to maintain military readiness.

Examining drinking consequences and reasons for drinking in a bilingual college sample

College drinking behavior is a national public health concern. However, little research has been conducted to test the psychometric validity and reliability of alcohol use measures among Spanish-speaking Hispanic college students. Adopting a translation-back-translation approach, the Rutgers Alcohol Problem Index (RAPI) was translated into Spanish and the Razones del Consumo de Alcohol (RCA), a newly created measure of one’s reasons for drinking, was developed in Spanish. Both measures were administered to 155 Spanish-speaking students at a university in the Southwestern United States. All translated measures demonstrated adequate internal consistency reliability. Support for the construct validity of the translated RAPI measure was demonstrated as gender and RCA scores were predictive of RAPI scores in their expected directions [R 2 = .438, F(2, 138) = 53.36, p = .000]. Acculturation was not significantly associated with RAPI scores nor did acculturation interact with RCA scores to enhance the predictability of RAPI scores. Finally, an exploratory factor analysis was performed on the RCA revealing a one-factor solution as the most adequate description of the RCA data. Knowledge of reasons for drinking as assessed by the RCA seems useful in predicting drinking-related consequences among Hispanic college students.

Religious coping and psychological functioning in a correctional population

The objective of this study was to examine main and interactive relationships between religious upbringing and coping (spirituality, participation, pleading, and discontentment), and mental health outcomes (depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms, somatization, and hostility) among 305 incarcerated adults. Using hierarchical linear regression controlling for demographic variables and stressful life events, several significant relationships emerged. First, being raised with a formal religion was significantly predictive of both decreased depressive symptoms and reduced hostility. Second, there were significant interactions between religious discontentment and gender for all four outcomes, indicating that relationships between religious discontentment and depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms, somatization and hostility were larger for females compared to males. Third, relationships between pleading and both depression symptoms and hostility were significantly moderated by stressful life events. And finally, there was a marginally significant relationship between religious pleading and increased somatization. These results are further described, and study limitations and implications are discussed.