Julie A. Patock-Peckham

Effect of religion and religiosity on alcohol use in a college student sample

Two hundred and sixty-three alcohol using college students completed a questionnaire on their levels of alcohol use, problems with alcohol use, reasons for drinking, perceptions of control over drinking, impulsivity, venturesomeness, irrational beliefs, neuroticism, expectations of alcohol effects, depression, social norms, religious affiliation and intrinsic and extrinsic religiosity. Analyses of variance revealed that students with no religious affiliation reported significantly higher levels of drinking frequency and quantity, getting drunk, celebratory reasons for drinking and perceived drinking norms than those of either Catholic or Protestant religious affiliation, while no significant differences across groups were found for alcohol use problems. Protestants reported significantly higher levels of perceived drinking control than Catholics. Intrinsic religiosity, reflecting ones ego involvement with the tenets of ones religion, appeared to play a more important positive role over drinking behavior for Protestants than for Catholics.

College drinking behaviors: mediational links between parenting styles, impulse control, and alcohol-related outcomes

Mediational links between parenting styles (authoritative, authoritarian, permissive), impulsiveness (general control), drinking control (specific control), and alcohol use and abuse were tested. A pattern-mixture approach (for modeling non-ignorable missing data) with multiple-group structural equation models with 421 (206 female, 215 male) college students was used. Gender was examined as a potential moderator of parenting styles on control processes related to drinking. Specifically, the parent-child gender match was found to have implications for increased levels of impulsiveness (a significant mediator of parenting effects on drinking control). These findings suggest that a parent with a permissive parenting style who is the same gender as the respondent can directly influence control processes and indirectly influence alcohol use and abuse.

Validation of the TOSCA to measure shame and guilt

A college student sample (190 females, 148 males) was administered the Test of Self-Conscious Affect (TOSCA), which yields scales for shame and guilt. Subjects were also measured on perceived parenting, personality dimensions, religiosity, and psychological adjustment. There was some evidence that parental overprotection was associated with shame in males and guilt in females, while religiosity was largely not predictive of shame or guilt. Personality measures indicative of external locus of control and poor self-regulation were significantly correlated with shame for both males and females, with smaller effects in the opposite direction for guilt. For both genders, shame was highly predictive of poorer psychological adjustment, as measured by self-esteem, perceived stress, and psychiatric symptomatology, while guilt was uncorrelated with adjustment. These results support the validity of the TOSCA and suggest that shame is a significant risk factor for poor psychological adjustment.

College drinking behaviors: Mediational links between parenting styles, parental bonds, depression, and alcohol problems

Mediational links between parenting styles (authoritative, authoritarian, permissive), parental bond (positive, negative), depression, alcohol use and abuse were tested. A 2-group, multiple-indicator, multiple-cause structural equation model with 441 (216 female, 225 male) college students was examined. In general, a poor parental bond with ones father was highly predictive of depression, a well-known predictor of alcohol abuse and related problems for both genders. In contrast, a positive parental bond with ones father significantly mediated the positive effects of authoritative fathering on depression, which then decreased alcohol use problems for both genders. For women, a negative parental bond with ones father significantly mediated the effect of having an authoritarian father on depression, which increased alcohol use problems. These findings suggest that parental influences on pathways to alcohol abuse through depression (primarily through fathers for both genders) are distinct from pathways stemming from poor impulse control (with influences primarily from the same-sex parents for both genders).

IRRATIONAL BELIEFS AND BEHAVIORAL MISREGULATION IN THE ROLE OF ALCOHOL ABUSE AMONG COLLEGE STUDENTS

Two hundred three alcohol-using college students completed a questionnaire on their levels of alcohol use, moderate to severe problems with alcohol use, and measures of life stress, impulsivity, compulsivity, irrational beliefs, and depression. While impulsivity significantly predicted both alcohol use and problems, stress, compulsivity, irrational beliefs, and depression were found to only be significant predictors of alcohol use problems. When irrational beliefs, impulsivity, and compulsivity were combined to form an “irrational coping” scale, this construct was found in multiple regression analyses to completely mediate the effect of stress on alcohol use problems, while depression was a partial mediator of this effect. Results were interpreted in terms of Rational Emotive Behavior Theory.

Impulsivity, Sensation-Seeking, and Part-Time Job Status in Relation to Substance Use and Gambling in Adolescents

PURPOSE Although impulsivity, sensation-seeking, and part-time employment have each been linked to risky behaviors in adolescents, their inter-relationships are less well-understood. We examined data from adolescents to assess the following predictions: (1) sensation-seeking would relate closely to substance use and gambling; (2) impulsivity would relate closely to alcohol, drug, and gambling problems; and (3) these relationships would be particularly strong among those holding part-time jobs. METHOD High-school students (N = 3,106) were surveyed to provide data on impulsivity, sensation-seeking, and part-time job status. Bivariate and logistic regression analyses were conducted to examine relationships with gambling, substance use (i.e., alcohol, cigarettes, and marijuana) and related problems. RESULTS Both impulsivity and sensation-seeking related significantly to substance use and impulsivity to gambling. Impulsivity had stronger associations with drug and gambling problems than sensation-seeking did. Students with paid part-time jobs were more likely to drink alcohol, binge drink, and use marijuana. Sensation-seeking had a particularly strong relationship to heavy cigarette smoking among students with part-time jobs. Conversely, there was little relationship between part-time job status and smoking among low sensation-seekers. CONCLUSIONS These findings further support the relevance of sensation-seeking, impulsivity, and part-time job status to risky behaviors among adolescents. Sensation-seeking and impulsivity had unique relationships to risky behaviors, in accordance with theory and prior evidence. Impulsive adolescents may be in particular need for interventions to reduce drug use and gambling. Although part-time jobs can be beneficial, parents and caregivers should be mindful of potential negative ramifications of paid work outside the home.

Personality predictors of religious orientation among protestant, catholic, and non-religious college students

Abstract A total of 249 college students completed a questionnaire regarding their Religious Affiliation, Intrinsic/extrinsic Religiosity, Impulsiveness, Venturesomeness, Irrational Beliefs, Neuroticism, Depression, Obsession Proneness, Irrational Beliefs, and Positive and Negative stress. The subsample used included 214 students who indicated they were non-religious, Protestant, or Catholic. Religious affiliation was found to be a moderator of the correlations of religious ego-involvement i.e. intrinsic religious motivation, with various personality variables. Intrinsic religiosity was found to be predictive of proneness to obsessive-compulsive cognitions/behaviors among Catholics, but not among non-religious and Protestant subjects. These results were discussed in terms of ego-involvement with the particular social norms espoused by different religious affiliations.

The gender specific mediational pathways between parenting styles, neuroticism, pathological reasons for drinking, and alcohol-related problems in emerging adulthood

Mediational links between parenting styles, neuroticism, pathological reasons for drinking, alcohol use and alcohol-related problems were tested. A two-group SEM path model with 441 (216 female, 225 male) college students was examined. In general, pathological reasons for drinking mediated the impact of neuroticism on alcohol use and alcohol-related problems. A different pattern of relationships was found for each of the two genders. Perceptions of having an authoritarian father were positively linked to higher levels of neuroticism among males but this pattern was not found among females. For males, neuroticism mediated the impact of having an authoritarian father on pathological reasons for drinking with pathological reasons for drinking mediating the impact of neuroticism on alcohol-related problems. Perceptions of having a permissive father were linked to lower levels of neuroticism in females (but have been found as a consistent risk factor for other pathways to alcohol use elsewhere). Compared with other work in this area, these findings indicate parental influences regarding vulnerabilities for alcohol use may be specific to parent-child gender matches for some pathways and specific to one parent (irrespective of child gender) for other pathways.

The stress-response dampening hypothesis: How self-esteem and stress act as mechanisms between negative parental bonds and alcohol-related problems in emerging adulthood

The stress dampening model (Marlatt, 1987; Sayette, 1993; Sher, 1987) suggests certain individuals may use alcohol to escape from their negative life experiences. Pathological reasons for drinking (e.g., using alcohol as a means to cope) reflect the degree to which individuals are motivated to use alcohol in order to dampen or alleviate the stress they are experiencing (Johnson, Schwitters, Wilson, Nagoshi, & McClearn, 1985). Direct and mediational links among parental bonds (rejection, care, overprotection, autonomy, and neglect), self-esteem, stress, pathological reasons for drinking, and alcohol-related problems were explored. A Structural Equation Model with (405 students; 164 women, 241 men) college students was examined. Three path mediational analyses revealed several mediated pathways. Greater feelings of perceived father/mother neglectfulness (i.e., offspring feeling parents do not show up for them) were indirectly linked to more alcohol-related problems (e.g., indicative of alcohol use or dependence in emerging adulthood) through increased stress and pathological reasons for drinking. Furthermore, higher levels of father rejection (i.e., perception of feeling unwanted) were indirectly linked to more pathological reasons for drinking through low self-esteem and increased stress. However, greater feelings of mother care (affectionate and attentive) were indirectly linked to fewer pathological reasons for drinking through higher self-esteem and lower levels of stress. Moreover, high self-esteem was found to be indirectly linked to fewer alcohol-related problems through decreased stress and pathological reasons for drinking. These findings suggest several specific pathways for using alcohol to self-medicate (i.e., consume alcohol for a specific purpose) or dampen feelings of stress.

On the Mismeasurement of Impulsivity: Trait, Behavioral, and Neural Models in Alcohol Research among Adolescents and Young Adults

We review the extent to which the psychosocial trait, behavioral, and neural models of impulsivity in adolescence and young adulthood commonly used in alcohol research may be reconciled. Recent advances in the development of trait models of impulsivity have converged towards a three-trait framework of impulsigenic traits, with motivational drive (extraversion), effortful control (conscientiousness and/or constraint), and emotion dysregulation (neuroticism) at its core, which has similar developmental models in childhood. Behavioral models of impulsivity have focused on a two-factor model centered around impulsive choice versus impulse response, which seems to have little theoretical or empirical connection with trait models of impulsivity. Throughout, we review recent neuroimaging research related to trait and behavioral impulsivity. We also discuss research on how trait and behavioral impulsivity are associated with alcohol use risk and AUDs and how behavioral impulsivity is affected by alcohol use. We note significant problems in integrating trait and behavioral research, driven by the absence of a shared theoretical framework for behavioral and trait models, a general underrepresentation of developmental research, and inconsistencies in definitions of impulsivity in the literature.