Do impulsivity and biological sex moderate associations between alcohol-related sexual willingness and behavior among young adults?

This study examined three-way interactions between baseline levels of willingness to engage in alcohol-related sexual behaviors, facets of impulsivity (i.e., urgency, lack of premeditation, and sensation seeking) and biological sex on alcohol-related sexual behaviors 6 months later. Participants were a sample of high-risk 18–25 year olds (N = 321, mean age 22.44) from a larger randomized controlled trial with eligibility criteria including engaging in unprotected sexual behavior after drinking alcohol within the past month at baseline. Results indicated females reporting high urgency and willingness levels were the most likely to engage in alcohol-related sex and to use a condom/dental dam after drinking. Males reporting low urgency levels and high sensation seeking and willingness levels engaged in more alcohol-related sex compared to females. Interventions to decrease alcohol-related sexual behavior by reducing willingness could incorporate sex-specific and impulsivity-related content, particularly related to urgency

Disentangling Associations Between Frequency of Specific Social Networking Site Platform Use, Normative Discrepancies, and Alcohol Use Among Adolescents and Underage Young Adults

Although there is a robust literature examining normative discrepancies for drinking, less is known related to normative discrepancies related to alcohol-posting behavior on social networking sites (SNS). Given that SNS are posited to be an important risk factor for adolescent and young adult alcohol use, the aims of the present study were to: (1) document descriptive and injunctive normative discrepancies for number of alcohol-related posts on SNS, (2) examine associations between frequency of using SNS platforms (Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat) and descriptive and injunctive normative discrepancies, and (3) to examine whether descriptive and injunctive normative discrepancies are associated with willingness to use alcohol and drinking among adolescents and young adults. Data were drawn from the baseline assessment of a larger longitudinal experimental study (N= 306, age 15-20). Overall, participants perceived that their peers are more approving of and post about alcohol use more often than they do themselves, thus indicating significant descriptive and injunctive normative discrepancies. More frequent use of Facebook was associated with having greater descriptive normative discrepancies, whereas frequency of both Facebook and Instagram use were associated with greater injunctive normative discrepancies. Results further indicated that controlling for frequency of SNS use, descriptive normative discrepancies, but not injunctive, were associated with greater willingness to drink and drinks per week. Results provide evidence that in particular, descriptive normative discrepancies for SNS use may be important to target when planning intervention programs to reduce the impact of SNS use on adolescent and young adult alcohol use

Lockdown, bottoms up? Changes in adolescent substance use across the COVID-19 pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic notably altered adolescent substance use during the initial stage (Spring 2020) of the pandemic. The purpose of this longitudinal study is to examine trajectories of adolescent substance use across the pandemic and subsequent periods of stay-at-home orders and re-opening efforts. We further examined differences as a function of current high school student versus graduate status. Adolescents (n = 1068, 14–18 years, Mage = 16.95 years and 76.7% female at T1) completed 4 different self-report surveys, starting during the first stay-at-home order and ending approximately 14 months later. Negative binomial hurdle models predicted: (1) the likelihood of no substance use and (2) frequency of days of substance use. As hypothesized, results demonstrated significant increases in adolescents’ likelihood of alcohol use, binge drinking, and cannabis use once initial stay-at-home orders were lifted, yet few changes occurred as a result of a second stay-at-home order, with rates never lowering again to that of the first lockdown. Further, graduates (and particularly those who transitioned out of high school during the study) demonstrated a greater likelihood and frequency of substance use and were more stable in their trajectories across periods of stay-at-home orders than current high school students. Unexpectedly, however, there was a strong increase in current high school students’ likelihood of e-cigarette use and a significant linear increase in participants’ frequency of e-cigarette use over the study. Results suggest adolescent substance use, and in particular, e-cigarette use among current high school students, may be of increasing concern as the pandemic evolves

Age as a Moderator of the Association Between Anticipated Regret and the Posting and Deleting of Alcohol-Related Content on Social Networking Sites Among Adolescents and Young Adults

Research demonstrates associations between alcohol consumption and posting alcohol-related content on social networking sites (SNS); less is known regarding motivations behind deleting alcohol content on SNS and differences by age. The present study examined the associations of anticipated regret with posting and deleting alcohol-related content; age was examined as a moderator. Participants (N = 306; 47.1% male) aged 15 – 20 completed a baseline survey for a larger experimental study. Results indicated significant interactions between anticipated regret and age, such that higher levels of both increased the odds of both posting (OR = 1.37) and deleting (OR = 1.30) alcohol-related content on SNS. Specifically, the association between anticipated regret and posting was stronger for younger individuals, whereas the relationship between anticipated regret and deleting was stronger for older individuals. A personalized age-specific intervention aimed at alcohol-related anticipated SNS regret may lead to changes in posting and deleting of alcohol-related SNS content, which may have implications for subsequent alcohol use

Spring Break versus spring broken: Predictive utility of Spring Break alcohol intentions and willingness at two levels of extremity.

The present study evaluated the predictive utility of willingness and intention, two important constructs within the Prototype Willingness model, in relation to Spring Break drinking when assessed at both high and low levels of alcohol-related risk

A Parent-Based Intervention for Reducing High-risk Social Media Cognitions, Alcohol Use, and Negative Consequences Among Adolescents: Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Pilot Study

BackgroundThe prevalence of adolescent alcohol use continues to be a public health concern. Although adolescents spend an increasing amount of time with their friends, parents remain an important source of support and continue to play a key role in the lives of their adolescents. Extensive research in this area has resulted in parent-based intervention (PBI) efforts to prevent or reduce adolescent alcohol use. However, one major limitation of PBIs is that they do not currently consider the large role that social media plays in adolescents’ lives and in relation to their alcohol use. We will add to the literature by developing and refining a web-based PBI designed to reduce both high-risk social media cognitions and alcohol use among adolescents. ObjectiveThe central goal of the proposed study is to develop, refine, and pilot a web-based PBI to reduce both high-risk social media cognitions and alcohol use among adolescents. MethodsA total of 100 parent-teen dyads will be randomly assigned to one of the following 2 conditions: intervention or control. Parents in the intervention group will be given access to the web-based PBI and suggestions for working through the PBI modules with their teens. The parent-teen dyads will fill out 3 questionnaires: a baseline questionnaire, 1-month questionnaire, and 6-month questionnaire. ResultsRecruitment and enrollment will begin in August 2022. Upon completion of the intervention trial, we will examine the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary effect sizes of the newly developed web-based PBI. ConclusionsThis study has the potential to open doors for future studies examining the clinical implications of an efficacious web-based PBI to reduce alcohol use and high-risk cognitions about alcohol displays on social media. Trial RegistrationClinicalTrials.gov NCT04333966; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04333966 International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID)PRR1-10.2196/3854

Prototype Willingness Model cognitions mediate personalized normative feedback efficacy

Personalized normative feedback (PNF) interventions have been shown to be efficacious at reducing college student drinking. Because descriptive norms have been shown to mediate PNF efficacy, the current study focused on examining additional prototype willingness model social reaction cognitions, namely, prototypes and willingness, as mediators of intervention efficacy. We expected the PNF interventions to be associated with increased prototype favorability of students who do not drink, which would in turn be associated with decreased willingness to drink and subsequently, less drinking. The current study included 622 college students (53.2% women; 62% Caucasian) who reported one or more heavy drinking episodes in the past month and completed baseline and three-month follow-up assessments. As posited by the framework of the prototype willingness model, sequential mediation analyses were conducted to evaluate increases in abstainer prototype favorability on willingness on drinking, and subsequently willingness to drink on drinking behavior. Mediation results revealed significant indirect effects of PNF on three-month drinking through three-month prototypes and willingness, indicating that the social reaction pathway of the prototype willingness model was supported. Findings have important implications for PNF interventions aiming to reduce high-risk drinking among college students. Study findings suggest that we should consider looking at additional socially-based mediators of PNF efficacy in addition to perceived descriptive norms