Motivational Models of Alcohol Consumption

Portland State University, Portland OR

Investigators

Linked publications & trials

Abstract

[unreadable] DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The purpose of this two-year project is to investigate the role of alcohol in daily mood regulation among moderate to heavy drinkers. Specifically, motivational models of alcohol consumption have posited that individuals drink to enhance the experience of positive emotions and moods and also drink to cope with negative experiences. Moreover, enhancement and coping motivates are theorized to predict consumption in distinct contexts (i.e., social and solitary drinking, respectively). This notion corresponds with contemporary models of affect, which describe the unique functional qualities of positive and negative affect. Although compelling, previous studies have typically correlated endorsement of drinking motivations and average levels of consumption (e.g., do people who endorse a drinking to cope motivation drink more than those who do not endorse such a motivation?). However, relations among aggregate levels of motivation and drinking cannot address the critical, within-person associations asserted by the motivational models; for example, individuals drink more when they experience negative moods. In addition to understanding the rote of mood in drinking, it is critical to explore the precipitating factors that activate positive and negative moods and consequently consumption. Daily events have been strongly linked to daily moods, as well as consumption. Negative interpersonal exchanges (e.g., having an argument) have been identified as the most salient and distressing of daily events and account for over 80 percent of variation in daily mood. Moreover, interpersonal conflicts are viewed as a significant risk factor in terms of relapse among alcohol dependent individuals. Both positive and negative interpersonal exchanges have been associated with alcohol consumption. However, no study to date has been able to establish the temporal associations among interpersonal exchanges, moods and consumption. Because of the recently enhanced flexibility of programmable interviews for hand-held computers, it is now possible to monitor the ebb and flow of exchanges, moods, and health behaviors throughout the day. For example, the extent to which arguments predict solitary consumption, due to their adverse effect on negative moods, can be considered. The proposed study is a multivariate longitudinal study examining drinking motivations over a thirty-day period. This study will be the first to consider the within-day variation of positive and negative interpersonal exchanges, positive and negative moods and alcohol consumption in social and solitary contexts, and investigate the extent to which moods mediate interpersonal exchange-drinking associations. Moreover, this study will consider individual difference factors, such as gender, that specify who may be more vulnerable to drinking in response to positive and negative experiences. [unreadable] [unreadable]