Personality or pathology? Predictors of early substance use in first-year college students.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the current study was to examine the dual role of personality and psychopathology in predicting substance use among first-year students. PARTICIPANTS: 103 first-semester undergraduate students were recruited via the university subject pool. METHODS: Participants completed personality questionnaires, structured clinical interviews, followed by the completion of diary entries each week reporting on substance use throughout their first semester. RESULTS: Results indicated that a past diagnosis of an affective (mood/anxiety/stress) disorder was the most significant predictor of substance use. Personality and current psychopathology had no association to substance use. CONCLUSION: This finding is consistent with developmental models of substance use relating to emotion-related disease and suggests that greater nuance is needed in understanding substance use risk in college students.