Discrimination, drinking to cope, protective behavioral strategies, and alcohol-related consequences among university students.

OBJECTIVE: University students who experience more discrimination typically report more negative consequences from alcohol use. The study aimed to assess whether drinking to cope and protective behavioral strategies for alcohol use would help explain the relationship between everyday discrimination and alcohol-related consequences among university student drinkers. METHOD: Data were collected in Fall 2020 and the sample included 707 undergraduate and graduate students from a large public institution in the northeast who reported consuming alcohol in the past month. Participants identified predominantly as women (71.7%; 24.6% men) and White (65.1%; 7.9% Black/African American; 7.2% Asian/Asian American; 7.1% Hispanic/Latinx). A cross-sectional serial mediation analysis using structural equation modeling was conducted using Mplus. RESULTS: Controlling for alcohol use, results supported a serial partial mediation model. More experiences of discrimination predicted a significant increase in alcohol-related consequences, above and beyond the increase attributed to drinking to cope. More frequent use of protective behavioral strategies significantly increased the odds of reporting no alcohol-related consequences. CONCLUSIONS: Drinking to cope and protective behavioral strategies for alcohol use may help explain why university students who report frequent discrimination are more likely to experience alcohol-related consequences, independent of how much alcohol they consume. Findings can inform clinical and prevention practice, advocacy, and training.

Drinking to cope with COVID-19 anxiety predicts greater alcohol problems for undergraduate students.

Objective: Drinking more and drinking to cope increase undergraduates' likelihood of experiencing alcohol-related problems (ARP; e.g., driving intoxicated). In accordance with stress-coping models of addiction, anxiety about COVID-19 may motivate undergraduates to drink to cope, leading them to experience more ARP. However, this hypothesis has not been tested. Participants and methods: During fall 2020, 358 undergraduate drinkers (Mage = 21.18; 69.80% cis-women; 62.30% White) provided data regarding COVID-anxiety, alcohol consumption, drinking to cope, and ARP during an annual student survey. Results: Mediation analysis controlling for alcohol consumption revealed greater COVID-anxiety predicted higher levels of drinking to cope; in turn, higher levels of drinking to cope were associated with more ARP. Additionally, the positive relationship between greater COVID-anxiety and experiencing more ARP was explained entirely by higher levels of drinking to cope. Conclusion: During the pandemic and beyond, university prevention and intervention initiatives should target coping motives for alcohol use to help students avoid ARP.

Associations between Impulsivity and Exercise Addiction, Disordered Eating, and Alcohol Use Behaviors: A Latent Profile Analysis.

BackgroundDespite the known negative consequences of exercise addiction and preliminary evidence suggesting that it may co-occur with other health risk behaviors, no studies to date have examined exercise addiction among college students in conjunction with disordered eating behaviors and alcohol use. The aim of this study was to describe which college students are most at-risk for co-occurring health risk behaviors to enhance the efficiency of health risk prevention efforts. Method: Guided by multidimensional theories of impulsivity and substance use models of comorbidity, this study used latent profile analysis to examine whether separate, conceptually meaningful profiles of risk for exercise addiction, disordered eating behaviors, and alcohol use would emerge among 503 college students from a large public university. Results: The best-fitting model supported three profiles. MANOVA results revealed significant profile differences based on exercise addiction, binge eating, purging, laxative/pill/diuretic use, exercising longer than 60 minutes, negative urgency, and problematic alcohol use. Profile 3 students (n = 29), labeled the Affect Driven Health Risk-Takers, demonstrated the highest levels of impulsivity (i.e., negative urgency, lack of premeditation, lack of perseverance, and sensation seeking) and the most risk behaviors compared to the other two profiles. Profile membership was associated with distinct levels of negative urgency, exercise addiction, disordered eating behaviors, and problematic alcohol use. A small proportion of undergraduates demonstrated co-occurring exercise addiction, disordered eating behaviors, and problematic alcohol use. Profile membership also predicted the health outcomes of clinically significant exercise addiction and hazardous alcohol use. Conclusions: Findings illuminated how patterns of risk behavior engagement were associated with clinically significant exercise addiction and hazardous alcohol use and will inform prevention efforts and clinical interventions with at-risk college students.