Ashley N. Linden

A qualitative review of psychosocial risk factors associated with caffeinated alcohol use

Caffeinated alcoholic beverages (CABs) are increasingly popular among young adults. The use of such beverages is associated with negative consequences including heavy alcohol use, risky sexual and driving behaviors, as well as other drug use. The prevalence of CAB use and their related harms warrants greater focus into the factors that may explain why use is associated with negative outcomes or what factors may impact their association. Consequently, the present study reviewed existing research on CABs and highlighted constructs (i.e., drinking motives, substance expectancies, perceived drinking norms, risk-taking propensity) that could act as mediators or moderators of CAB use and consequences. We proposed implications for practice and future research.

Caffeinated alcohol consumption profiles and associations with use severity and outcome expectancies.

Growing evidence suggests that the consumption of caffeinated alcoholic beverages (CAB) may be riskier than alcohol alone. Efforts to identify patterns of CAB use and the correlates of such drinking patterns could further our conceptualization of and intervention for this health issue. Consequently, the current study aimed to (1) identify distinct classes of CAB users, (2) examine differences between classes on measures of alcohol and caffeine problems, and (3) compare distinct classes of CAB users on caffeine and alcohol outcome expectancies. Participants were 583 (31% men) undergraduate students from a psychology research pool. Latent profile analysis models were derived using four indicators: CAB use quantity, CAB use frequency, alcohol use quantity, and alcohol use frequency. Finding revealed four classes of drinkers: High Alcohol/High CAB (6.00%), High Alcohol/Moderate CAB (5.15%), High Alcohol/Low CAB (22.99%), and Low Alcohol/Low CAB (65.87%). The Low Alcohol/Low CAB class reported the lowest relative levels of caffeine dependence symptoms, caffeine withdrawal, alcohol use problems, and heavy episodic drinking frequency. Further, results indicated differential expectancy endorsement based on use profiles. CAB users in the High Alcohol/Low CAB class endorsed more positive alcohol expectancies than the Low Alcohol/Low CAB group. Those in the High Alcohol/High CAB class endorsed stronger withdrawal symptom caffeine expectancies than all other classes. Inclusion of substance-specific expectancies into larger theoretical frameworks in future work of CAB use may be beneficial. Findings may inform intervention efforts for those at greatest risk related to CAB consumption.

Associations between psychological distress and alcohol outcomes as mediated by time perspective orientation among college students

The present study examined time perspective orientation as an underlying factor in explaining the associations between psychological health and alcohol use outcomes. Participants were 250 college students (182 women) from a mid-size public university. Participants completed measures of time perspective orientation, alcohol consumption and problems, and psychological symptomatology. Mediational analyses revealed that past-negative time perspective acted as an underlying mechanism in the relationships between all psychological symptoms variables (e.g. anxiety, depression) and alcohol-related problems. Our findings indicate that having a pessimistic view of ones past may help explain the positive relationship between poorer mental health symptoms and alcohol-related problems. Intervention strategies could be developed to focus more specifically on time perspective in this population.

Protective behavioral strategy use and motivations for drinking: exploring Alternatives to Drinking strategies.

Protective behavioral strategy (PBS) use is associated with less alcohol consumption and fewer alcohol-related problems. Further, greater endorsement of social or enhancement drinking motives (i.e., positive motives) is associated with less frequent PBS use. Limited research has, however, explored coping or conformity motives (i.e., negative motives) in relation to PBS. Consequently, the present study aimed to (1) identify the types of PBS most strongly associated with negative and positive motives and (2) examine different types of PBS as mediators of the relationship between each drinking motive and alcohol outcomes. Participants were college students (n=303; 70% women) who completed measures of drinking motives, PBS, alcohol use, and alcohol-related problems. Results indicated that greater endorsement of positive drinking motives were more strongly associated with less frequent use of PBS while drinking whereas negative motives were more strongly related to less frequent Alternatives to Drinking strategy use. Further, strategies used while drinking were more relevant in a model of positive drinking motives and Alternatives to Drinking strategies were more relevant in a model of negative motives. These findings may suggest that whereas individuals with stronger positive motives have difficulty using strategies while drinking, individuals who drink to cope or conform have greater difficulty utilizing Alternatives to Drinking strategies. Based on our results demonstrating that different types of PBS are more relevant for various types of drinkers, it may be important for future interventions to discuss not only the participants PBS use but also their motivations for consuming alcohol.

Drinking Buddies: Who Are They and When Do They Matter?

The present study sought to further examine the role of peers on alcohol use and problems among young adults. In particular, we focused on a specific subset of peers in ones social network mostly for activities related to alcohol use called “drinking buddies.” The presence of drinking buddies in ones social network has been shown to predict heavy drinking uniquely over time but few studies have focused on potential factors moderating the relationship. Consequently, an aim of present study was to examine the influence of drinking buddies on alcohol outcomes and the extent to which the relationship may be dependent on ones normative perceptions. Another aim was to provide a descriptive examination of drinking buddies. Participants were college students (n = 250; 72.8% women) who completed self-report measures of alcohol use and problems, injunctive norms, descriptive norms and social network characteristics. Results showed that descriptive norms moderated the relationship between drinking buddies and all alcohol outcomes assessed. Specifically, the influence of drinking buddies was stronger for those who perceived a lower prevalence of peer drinking. Examination of drinking buddies characteristics revealed that these peers tended to be young adults who were moderate social drinkers with whom they felt close and perceived to be available for concrete and emotional support. Several differences emerged between the drinking buddies of heavy versus non-heavy drinkers. The present study contributed to the larger body of work on peer influence and alcohol use by examining a specific subgroup of peers that may promote risky drinking.

An examination of risky drinking behaviors and motivations for alcohol use in a college sample

Abstract Objective: The current study examined (1) drinking motives as a mediator of risky drinking behaviors (ie, pregaming and drinking games) and alcohol-related problems and (2) whether gender moderates the association between risky drinking behaviors and negative consequences. Participants: Participants (N = 368; 68% female) were drinkers aged 18 to 25. Data were collected from September to November 2010 and January to May 2011. Methods: Participants completed measures regarding typical pregaming and drinking game alcohol consumption, drinking motives, and alcohol-related consequences. Results: Social, coping, and enhancement motives partially explained relationships, with enhancement motives explaining the most variance for pregaming (31%) and drinking games (44%). Relationships between risky drinking and consequences were not moderated by gender. Conclusions: Drinking to enhance positive affect may be the most salient motivation for drinking related to pregaming and drinking games for college drinkers. Findings have implications for interventions tailored to students engaging in various heavy drinking practices.

Protective behavioral strategies, alcohol expectancies, and drinking motives in a model of college student drinking

An extensive body of research asserts alcohol expectancies, or beliefs regarding the effects of alcohol, as an important influence on drinking. However, the extent to which expectancies are related to drinking motives and protective behavioral strategies (PBS) has yet to be examined. Existing alcohol mediational models suggest associations between expectancies and drinking motives as well as positive drinking motives and PBS use. Thus, it is possible that drinking motives and PBS use act as intervening factors in the relationship between expectancies and alcohol outcomes. Consequently, the cross-sectional study presented here aimed to test the indirect effect of expectancies (i.e., social facilitation) on alcohol outcomes through drinking motives and PBS use. Participants were 520 (358 female) college student drinkers with a mean age of 20.80 (SD = 4.61) years. Students completed measures of expectancies, drinking motives, PBS use, alcohol use, and alcohol-related problems. Results from structural equation modeling indicated that drinking motives and PBS mediated the relationship between social expectancies and alcohol use. In particular, expectancies were associated with greater positive drinking motives, drinking motives were associated with less PBS use, and PBS was associated with less alcohol use and fewer alcohol-related problems. Given the key role of PBS in explaining drinking outcomes in our model, active efforts to incorporate PBS in alcohol interventions may be particularly beneficial for college students. Further, our findings support the consideration of PBS use as a part of the motivational model of alcohol use in future work.

Caffeinated Alcohol Use and Expectancies for Caffeine Versus Alcohol

Background: Caffeinated alcoholic beverage (CAB) use is related to alcohol-related risk. Limited research has examined outcome expectancies and CAB consumption. Objectives: This study tested the predictive utility of caffeine and alcohol expectancies in CAB use outcomes (i.e. quantity, frequency, and alcohol-related harms). Methods: Participants were 419 (302 women) alcohol and caffeine users from a mid-sized urban university. Data collection occurred between August 2010 and December 2011. Participants completed measures of caffeine and alcohol expectancies, alcohol problems, alcohol use, and CAB use. Results: Caffeine and alcohol expectancies contributed uniquely to approximately 12% of the variability in quantity, 8% in frequency, and 16% in problems. When examined separately, alcohol expectancies explained approximately 10% to 11% of the variance, whereas caffeine expectancies accounted for 6% of the variance in CAB use quantity. For CAB use frequency, alcohol and caffeine expectancies accounted for about 8% and 4%, respectively. Alcohol expectancies accounted for 12% to 14% of variance, whereas caffeine expectancies accounted for 4% to 6% in alcohol-related harms. Conclusions/ Importance: The present study sought to address a gap in the literature regarding the contributions of expectancies in the prediction of CAB use. Our findings provide support for the predictive utility of both caffeine and alcohol expectancies in accounting for individual variability in CAB use but alcohol expectancies may exert greater impact on use patterns. Inclusion of both types of expectancies in larger theoretical frameworks may be beneficial in gaining a more complete and deeper conceptualization of this risky behavior.

Social anxiety among young adult drinkers: the role of perceived norms and drinking motives

The aim of the study was to examine the separate and combined influence of perceived norms, negative reinforcement drinking motives, and social anxiety on alcohol outcomes. Participants (N = 250) completed measures of injunctive norms, social anxiety, drinking motives, alcohol use, and alcohol-related problems. Data collection occurred in 2010. When examined separately, motives emerged as a stronger predictor of alcohol outcomes over norms. When tested jointly, findings suggest that for drinkers higher in social anxiety, normative perceptions are relevant and to such a degree that norms actually supersede their motivation to drink to conform. Implications and limitations are discussed.