Sensation seeking and drinking game participation in heavy-drinking college students

Multifaceted impulsivity as a moderator of social anxiety and cannabis use during pregaming

Individuals may drink or use cannabis to cope with social anxiety, and drinking or using cannabis prior to social situations (e.g., pregaming) may be a way to limit the experience of anxiety when entering social settings. However, theoretical and empirical work has reported mixed associations between social anxiety and substance use, specifically alcohol and cannabis. Little work has looked at how other variables, such as impulsivity (a central component to high risk drinking such as pregaming), may shed light onto these mixed findings. College students who reported past year pregaming (n = 363) completed self-report surveys. Supporting prior work, we found that social anxiety was associated with fewer pregaming days, even among those high in sensation seeking. However, those reporting higher social anxiety also reported higher cannabis use during pregaming, specifically among those who reported high sensation seeking and high positive urgency. Results suggest specific facets of impulsivity may affect the association between social anxiety and cannabis use during high risk drinking events.

Perceptions of Alcohol Advertising Vary Based on Psychological Characteristics

BACKGROUND

The alcohol industry recognizes children and pregnant women as population sub-groups vulnerable to the effects of alcohol marketing. Research indicates that heavy alcohol users are also potentially vulnerable to alcohol marketing. The purpose of the current study is to determine if sub-groups defined by psychological characteristics should be classified as potentially vulnerable as well.

METHODS

College students (n = 326) from two northeast schools were recruited to complete a survey containing questions on demographics, alcohol use, and psychological characteristics (alcohol expectancies, alcohol dependence, sensation seeking traits, and past delinquent behaviors). Additionally, after viewing each of five alcohol ads (4 television and 1 magazine), participants answered questions about their perceptions of alcohol consumption, responsible drinking, excessive drinking, and appeal of the ads. Main effects were assessed using hierarchical linear modeling, with adjustment for age, sex, race, ethnicity, and AUDIT score.

RESULTS

Alcohol expectancies (p < .001), particularly the social and physical pleasure and social expressiveness sub-scales, and sensation seeking traits (p = .002) were positively associated with alcohol ad appeal. Alcohol dependence symptoms, specifically impaired control and tolerance, were positively associated with perceptions of responsible drinking (p = .035), even though mean perceived number of drinks consumed met the definition of binge drinking.

CONCLUSIONS

Individuals with positive alcohol expectancies, sensation seeking traits, and alcohol dependence may be vulnerable to alcohol advertising and marketing. Because alcohol advertising often contains content that can serve as a cue or reinforce to drink, specific regulations may be needed to prevent alcohol-related harm from occurring in these sub-populations.

Do brief motivational interventions reduce drinking game frequency in mandated students? An analysis of data from two randomized controlled trials

College students frequently engage in drinking games (DGs) and experience a variety of consequences as a result. It is currently unknown whether brief motivational interventions (BMIs) that provide feedback on DG participation can reduce this high risk behavior. This study examined outcome data from 2 randomized clinical trials to examine whether BMIs facilitate change in DG frequency and how these changes may occur. Mandated college students (Trial 1, N = 198, 46% female; Trial 2, N = 412; 32% female) were randomized to BMI or comparison control conditions. Hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) was used to compare the BMI and comparison groups to determine whether the BMI reduced DG participation over time. Percent change talk (PCT) during the discussion of DG during the session was examined as a predictor of change in DG frequency, and gender was examined as a moderator of treatment effects. Controlling for regular drinking frequency, participants who received a BMI did not significantly reduce their DG frequency relative to the comparison group in either sample, and the BMI was equally ineffective at reducing DG behavior for men and women. DG-related PCT during the BMI was associated with lower DG frequency at the second follow-up in both trials. In Trial 1, PCT during the BMI was associated with less steep increases in DG frequency across the course of all follow-ups. Effects of PCT on DG behavior were not moderated by gender. Findings did not support hypothesized reductions in DG participation following a BMI. Future research should explore whether targeted DG-specific interventions could reduce DG participation and the role of in-session client language in facilitating such change. (PsycINFO Database Record

Predicting Alcohol, Cigarette, and Marijuana Use From Preferential Music Consumption

This study investigated whether use of alcohol, cigarettes, and marijuana may be predicted from preferential consumption of particular music genres. Undergraduates (257 women and 78 men) completed a questionnaire assessing these variables. Partial correlation analyses, controlling for sensation-seeking tendencies and behaviors, revealed that listening to conventional music (pop, country, and religious genres) was negatively correlated with cigarette smoking (p=.001) and marijuana use (p<.001). Additionally, listening to energetic music (rap or hip-hop and soul or funk genres) was positively correlated with marijuana use (p=.004). The only significant predictor of alcohol use was country music, with which it was positively correlated (p=.04). This research suggests an especially harmful influence of energetic music on marijuana use.

Variations in parental monitoring and predictions of adolescent prescription opioid and stimulant misuse

OBJECTIVE

This study examined relations between adolescents' family structures, social ties, and drug-related attitudes, and their misuse of prescription opioids and stimulants. Different relationships were anticipated for the substances based on prior research highlighting varying motivations for their use.

METHOD

Based on an earlier model of adolescent substance misuse, two path analytic models were tested using data from 12 to 17 year olds in the 2012 U.S. National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH: N=17,399).

RESULTS

Female respondents reported higher levels of parental warmth, as did youth from wealthier families. Greater parental monitoring was reported by adolescents from wealthier and intact families. Parental monitoring and warmth predicted adolescents' social ties and individual differences associated with drug use, and both variables predicted prescription opioid and stimulant misuse. Contrary to previous research, for adolescents aged 12 to 14, high levels of parental monitoring, while positively associated with attitudes and social ties, also predicted higher rates of prescription stimulant misuse when combined with low levels of parental warmth. Results were cross-validated with data from the 2011 NSDUH.

CONCLUSIONS

Analyses highlighted the importance of understanding and differentiating the underlying factors associated with adolescent prescription stimulant and opioid misuse, and the role of parental behaviors in prevention.

Social anxiety and drinking refusal self-efficacy moderate the relationship between drinking game participation and alcohol-related consequences

BACKGROUND

Participation in drinking games is associated with excessive drinking and alcohol risks. Despite the growing literature documenting the ubiquity and consequences of drinking games, limited research has examined the influence of psychosocial factors on the experience of negative consequences as the result of drinking game participation.

OBJECTIVES

The current event-level study examined the relationships among drinking game participation, social anxiety, drinking refusal self-efficacy (DRSE) and alcohol-related consequences in a sample of college students.

METHODS

Participants (n = 976) reported on their most recent drinking occasion in the past month in which they did not preparty.

RESULTS

After controlling for sex, age, and typical drinking, higher levels of social anxiety, lower levels of DRSE, and playing drinking games predicted greater alcohol-related consequences. Moreover, two-way interactions (Social Anxiety × Drinking Games, DRSE × Drinking Games) demonstrated that social anxiety and DRSE each moderated the relationship between drinking game participation and alcohol-related consequences. Participation in drinking games resulted in more alcohol problems for students with high social anxiety, but not low social anxiety. Students with low DRSE experienced high levels of consequences regardless of whether they participated in drinking games; however, drinking game participation was associated with more consequences for students confident in their ability to resist drinking.

CONCLUSION

Findings highlight the important role that social anxiety and DRSE play in drinking game-related risk, and hence provide valuable implications for screening at-risk students and designing targeted harm reduction interventions that address social anxiety and drink refusal in the context of drinking games.

Influence of neurobehavioral incentive valence and magnitude on alcohol drinking behavior

The monetary incentive delay (MID) task is a widely used probe for isolating neural circuitry in the human brain associated with incentive motivation. In the present functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study, 82 young adults, characterized along dimensions of impulsive sensation seeking, completed a MID task. fMRI and behavioral incentive functions were decomposed into incentive valence and magnitude parameters, which were used as predictors in linear regression to determine whether mesolimbic response is associated with problem drinking and recent alcohol use. Alcohol use was best explained by higher fMRI response to anticipation of losses and feedback on high gains in the thalamus. In contrast, problem drinking was best explained by reduced sensitivity to large incentive values in mesolimbic regions in the anticipation phase and increased sensitivity to small incentive values in the dorsal caudate nucleus in the feedback phase. Altered fMRI responses to monetary incentives in mesolimbic circuitry, particularly those alterations associated with problem drinking, may serve as potential early indicators of substance abuse trajectories.

Exploring a multidimensional approach to impulsivity in predicting college student gambling

Impulsivity has been implicated as a contributing factor in the development of gambling problems among college students, but attempts to confirm this relation have been inconsistent. One explanation for these incongruent findings is that impulsivity may be multidimensional and that distinct dimensions differentially predict separate behaviors. Using a large, diverse sample of college students, a factor analysis of self-report measures related to impulsivity revealed a three-factor structure of Behavioral Activation, Preference for Stimulation, and Inhibition Control that was similar to the structure found by Meda et al. (Behav Pharmacol 20(5-6):390-399, 2009) in a different adult sample. Low risk gamblers and symptomatic gamblers scored significantly lower on Behavioral Activation and Inhibition Control than non-gamblers. Conversely, low risk gamblers and symptomatic gamblers scored significantly higher on Preference for Stimulation. Prevalence of gambling and gambling activity preference for this sample was also assessed.

The role of personality variables in drinking game participation

Drinking games are prevalent among college student and associated with increased risk of experiencing negative alcohol-related consequences. Personality variables, and specifically impulsivity and sensation seeking, have been linked to increased alcohol consumption and related negative consequences, but research on the relationship between personality and drinking game participation is limited. The current study used path analysis to assess the impact of sensation seeking and impulsivity on frequency of drinking game participation and related consequences in a sample of undergraduate college students. Findings suggest that sensation seeking and impulsivity are positively associated with frequency of drinking game participation. Both impulsivity and sensation seeking had a direct effect on negative consequences associated with drinking games, and both had an indirect relationship when controlling for the frequency of drinking game participation. The results are largely consistent with previous studies in suggesting that impulsivity and sensation seeking play a role in predicting risky alcohol use and related negative consequences. Understanding the relationship between personality variables and negative drinking game consequences may better inform the treatment of hazardous drinking among college students.

The prospective effects of impulsivity on alcohol and tobacco use in a college sample

Alcohol and tobacco use are strongly associated, particularly in younger populations, and concurrent use may encourage progression toward dependence on both substances. Impulsivity has been linked to the use of alcohol and tobacco individually, but has not been studied in terms of its association with use of both. This study tested the hypothesis that the effects of impulsivity (sensation seeking and negative urgency) on smoking initiation in a sample of college students (n = 400) would be mediated by alcohol consumption. We also predicted that sensation seeking and negative urgency would predict alcohol and cigarette use and overlap among initiators. Sensation seeking and negative urgency both predicted smoking initiation, but only the former effect was mediated by alcohol use. Among initiators, sensation seeking was associated with more frequent alcohol use as well as more frequent overlap between alcohol and tobacco use but not with smoking frequency. Higher negative urgency was associated with more frequent smoking, but not with alcohol use or alcohol/tobacco overlap. Findings are consistent with previous research in college samples and suggest the existence of multiple pathways to alcohol and tobacco use and co-use in college students.

Personality Risk Factors and Readiness to Change in Mandated and Voluntary College Students Enrolled in an Alcohol Intervention Program

This study compared personality risk factors and readiness to change drinking behavior among mandated and volunteer college students. The sample (N = 583) completed three measures of motivation to change and personality risk factors at baseline, 3 months, and 6 months between 2011 and 2012. Linear mixed models were used to determine an association of continuous outcome variable(s) with covariates over time. Participants in the action stage had lower impulsivity scores. Gender was significant, with females showing the highest anxiety and lowest sensation seeking. The findings indicate a number of future directions to advance innovative alcohol intervention and treatment programs on college campuses.

Are they all the same? An exploratory, categorical analysis of drinking game types

Drinking games have become a ubiquitous part of the college student drinking culture and are associated with drinking to intoxication and increased alcohol consequences. Contemporary research commonly considers drinking games holistically, with little to no consideration to the different drinking game types. The current study describes the creation of a novel DG categorization scheme and reports differences between DG categories. Participants were 3421 college students (58% female) who completed online surveys. Based on participant responses, 100 distinct drinking games were identified and defined. Two student focus groups were conducted in which drinking game definitions and rules were verified by students. Drinking games were then categorized into five mutually exclusive categories: Targeted and Skill games, Communal games, Chance games, Extreme Consumption games, and Even Competition games. Finally, the frequency of games played in each category and typical player profiles were reported. Differences in peak drinks and frequency of specific alcohol consequences were documented according to game categories. The findings provide a novel drinking game categorization scheme and an exploratory analysis of basic differences between game categories.

[The role of temperament and emotional awareness in risk taking in adolescents]

INTRODUCTION

Risk-taking behaviors among adolescents are now considered as a real public health issue. To investigate for potential vulnerability factors, adolescent risk-taking behavior can be analyzed from several different perspectives, based on biological, social or psychological variables. Risk-taking theories based on temperamental dimensions examine individual differences in propensity for engaging in such behaviors, whereas others focused on emotional processing disorder such as alexithymia or anhedonia with diverse conclusions. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between risk taking and two levels of psychological functioning: personality with reference to Cloninger's model of personality, and emotion with reference to Lane and Schwartz's level of emotional awareness theory.

METHOD

The sample consisted in 488 adolescents (m(age)=14.93, SD=1.44) with 257 boys (m(age)=15, SD=1.51) and 231 girls (m(age)=14.52, SD=1.23) who completed a set of three inventories: the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance Scale (YRBSS), the Tridimensional Personality Questionnaire, and the Level of Emotional Awareness Scale. Risk-taking behaviors were also assessed indirectly with regards to teachers or school educators' evaluation.

RESULTS

Moderate to weak significant correlations were found between temperament dimensions and risk-taking, and between level of emotional awareness and risk-taking. A positive moderate correlation was observed between novelty and risk-taking, whereas a negative weak correlation was observed between harm avoidance and risk-taking. Level of emotional awareness shows moderate negative correlations with risk-taking, as the two self and others dimensions. Finally, a model including the four temperament and the two emotional awareness dimensions was tested with risk-taking as the outcome variable. It accounted for 33% of the total variance (R(2)=0.33; F=30.78, p<0.0001), with novelty seeking (p<0.0001), self (p<0.0001) and others (p=0.0001), and level of emotional awareness as significant criteria.

DISCUSSION

As hypothesized, temperamental dispositions of novelty seeking and harm avoidance, associated with weak emotional awareness, were associated with risk-taking. They may be considered as vulnerability factors for adolescents to engage in risk-taking behaviors. Several propositions may explain our results. First, risk-taking might be considered as an attempt to struggle against a sensation of emptiness due to a lack of emotion. Second, it may tend to replace emotion by sensations, which could be more controlled. Third, it could be an attempt - without success - to construct the complexity of subjective emotional experience.

Fear versus humor: the impact of sensation seeking on physiological, cognitive, and emotional responses to antialcohol abuse messages

This study investigates the differences in physiological, cognitive, and emotional responses to existing emotional antialcohol abuse advertisements (fear vs. humor appeal) between high and low sensation seekers. A 2 (Message Type) x 2 (Sensation-Seeking Tendency) x 4 (Message Repetition) mixed-model experiment with repeated measures was conducted with 71 college students. The results, based on self-reports, indicated that fear messages generated more interest and perceived danger of excessive drinking regardless of sensation-seeking tendency, whereas humorous messages were rated as more likeable than fear messages, and the difference was bigger among low sensation seekers than among high sensation seekers. One interesting finding was that for both fear and humor appeals, low sensation seekers showed greater emotional responses (greater corrugators activities and greater zygomatic activities) than high sensation seekers overall. The implications of the current study as well as suggestions for future study were discussed.

The effects of sensation seeking, misperceptions of peer consumption, and believability of social norms messages on alcohol consumption

The social norms marketing approach is one method used to reduce extreme alcohol consumption. The current study implemented a web-based survey (N = 891) to assess whether sensation-seeking, perceived moderate drinking norms, and social norm message believability impacted alcohol consumption on a college campus. Sensation seeking was not directly related to normative perceptions of others' moderate alcohol consumption. Sensation seeking, perceived norms, and message believability all had direct effects on alcohol consumption, and the interaction of sensation seeking and message believability impacted alcohol consumption, while the interaction of sensation seeking and perceived norms on alcohol consumption was marginally significant. Implications of these findings for the social norms marketing approach are discussed.

Drinking game participation among undergraduate students attending National Alcohol Screening Day

OBJECTIVES, PARTICIPANTS, METHODS: Drinking game participation has increased in popularity among college students and is associated with increased alcohol consumption and alcohol-related problems. The current study investigated drinking game participation among 133 undergraduates attending National Alcohol Screening Day (NASD) in April of 2007.

RESULTS

A large percentage of the sample reported lifetime (77%) and recent (52%) drinking game participation. Males were more likely to report recent participation and reported higher levels of consumption while playing drinking games. Drinking game participants were more likely to experience a range of alcohol-related problems, and the relationship between drinking game participation and alcohol-related problems was mediated by weekly alcohol consumption.

CONCLUSIONS

These results suggest that drinking game participation is a risk factor for elevated levels of alcohol consumption and alcohol-related problems. Programs should be developed to educate students about the risks of drinking game participation, and prevention programs like NASD should address drinking games.

Fluid skills: drinking games and alcohol consumption among Australian university students

The objective of this study was to assess participation in drinking games among Australian university students; to determine the range of games played, their context and participant motivations; and to analyse the impact of games on alcohol consumption and its adverse consequences. We used a cross-sectional survey incorporating structured interviews and a self-administered questionnaire with students between 18 and 25 years of age at the University of Western Australia. This was a qualitative assessment of drinking game typology and contexts and participant motivation. Quantitative outcomes were rate and frequency of participation in drinking games; amount and rate of alcohol consumption during games; incidence of adverse outcomes following participation. Twenty-seven interview responses and 256 questionnaire responses were analysed for qualitative and quantitative outcomes, respectively. The qualitative analysis enabled categorisation of drinking games by skill and competitive nature, with varying influence on hazardous drinking. Common reported motivations for play included boredom, social pressure and social unease. The associated heavy drinking and possible hazards were well recognised but did not affect the decision to play. In the quantitative arm, most drinkers (74%) reported having participated in a drinking game. Game players reported playing an average of four drinking games in the previous 6 months. An average of six standard drinks was consumed during the most recent game. Pressure to participate from others was reported by 60% of game participants, while 50% reported that they had placed pressure on others to participate. Half (51%) reported an adverse outcome following participation. Loss of consciousness due to drinking was experienced or witnessed by 89% of game players, of whom 63% reported that the person was put to bed, while 54% reported that the person was watched. Participation in drinking games was common, and plays an important social role in this group. Drinking games were associated commonly with binge drinking and adverse outcomes. Future harm minimisation strategies targeting this group should address the particular risks of these games.

Risk for excessive alcohol use and drinking-related problems in college student athletes

There is compelling evidence that college student athletes engage in frequent episodes of heavy drinking and are prone to negative consequences resulting from such use. This study sought to identify risk and protective factors associated with student-athlete drinking and determine if student-athlete risk factors differed from those of non-athletes. Athletes compared to non-athletes reported more exaggerated perceptions of peer heavy drinking and lower sensation seeking and coping and enhancement motives for drinking, suggesting a risk profile distinct from non-athletes. In the overall sample, higher sensation seeking, overestimation of peer heavy drinking, non-use of protective behaviors while drinking, and higher enhancement and coping drinking motives were associated with greater frequency of heavy episodic drinking and more negative drinking consequences. In athletes compared to non-athletes, sensation seeking was more strongly associated with heavy episodic drinking and drinking to cope was more strongly associated with negative alcohol-related consequences. Overall, the results suggest that already proven brief intervention strategies, with minor adaptations related to the roles of sensation seeking and drinking to cope, may be helpful for student athletes.

Sensation seeking, attitudes toward drug use, and actual use among adolescents: testing a model for alcohol and ecstacy use

The use of ecstasy (MDMA), one of the most popular substances among young people in the context of many leisure and fun activities, is moving from party and recreation circuits to high schools and college dorms, in many cases in combination with alcohol consumption. Bearing in mind the concurrent use of the two drugs and the "gateway" thesis of a progression from legal drugs to illegal ones, a causal(1) model of linkages among sensation seeking, attitudes toward alcohol and ecstasy consumption, and frequency of use was tested using structural equation modeling (SEM). The data were obtained from a sample of 450 high school students ranging in age from 14 to 18 (47% male, 53% female). An additional moderator analysis was performed in order to examine a possible moderating role of sensation seeking in the relationship between attitudes toward consumption and frequency of use of both alcohol and ecstasy. Results were consistent with the hypothesis that positive attitudes toward consumption mediate the effects of sensation seeking on drug use. In addition, whereas our results were coherent with the existence of direct effects of sensation seeking on drug use, these were only found in the case of alcohol consumption. However, a moderating effect of this same variable was observed in the relationship between positive attitudes toward ecstasy consumption and its frequency of use. General and specific clinical implications and limitations of these findings are discussed and future lines of research suggested. .

Predictors of alcohol use during the first year of college: implications for prevention

The first year of college is a unique transition period, in which the student establishes a college identity and social network. Alcohol use is often part of this process, and many first-year college students develop a pattern of heavy drinking that puts them at risk for adverse consequences during their college years and into young adulthood. To better understand the development of risky alcohol use during this transition, we reviewed the literature on influences on college drinking and identified moderators and mediators that were particularly relevant for first-year alcohol use. As the transition from high school to college presents a unique opportunity for intervention, we discuss how these moderators and mediators can inform alcohol abuse prevention programs. We also identify approaches aimed at changing the culture of alcohol use on campus. Limitations of the reviewed research are highlighted in the context of promising directions for future research.

Drinking game participation among college students: gender and ethnic implications

Participation in drinking games by college students has recently sparked research attention. While previous research indicates that women play drinking games at lower frequencies than men, the current study reveals that college women may be playing games at rates similar to college men. In a sample of 105 coed college students, participants completed a 3-month Timeline Followback recording every drinking event and quantity consumed. They then were prompted to identify which drinking events involved drinking games and how much alcohol was consumed during game playing. Both men and women engaged in drinking games at similar rates and consumed more drinks on game playing days than on non-game drinking days. However, drinking game participation was related to alcohol-related consequences in women only. Further, while Caucasian participants played drinking games more often than non-Caucasian participants, an association between game participation and alcohol-related consequences emerged in non-Caucasian participants.

Sensation seeking, alcohol use, and sexual behaviors among sexually transmitted infection clinic patients in Cape Town, South Africa

Alcohol use is associated with risks for HIV/AIDS. The association between alcohol and sexual risk may be accounted for by sensation seeking personality. However, sensation seeking in relation to substance use and HIV risk has not been examined in Africa. In this study, 292 men and 219 women receiving sexually transmitted infection (STI) diagnostic and treatment services in Cape Town, South Africa, completed anonymous behavioral surveys. Structural modeling was used to test a model of alcohol use and sensation seeking in relation to sexual risk behaviors. Results showed that sensation seeking and alcohol use in sexual contexts were related to HIV risks, controlling for gender and marital status. The association between sensation seeking and HIV risk was partly accounted for by alcohol use in proximity to sex. In contrast to studies conducted in the United States, sensation seeking was not related to alcohol-sex outcome expectancies. These findings suggest that alcohol use is an important HIV transmission risk factor for many STI clinic patients and that interventions for individuals who are characterized as sensation seekers are urgently needed in South Africa.

Sensation seeking and alcohol use: a meta-analytic review

A meta-analysis was conducted to investigate the association between sensation seeking and alcohol use. Analysis of 61 studies revealed a small to moderate size, heterogeneous effect (mean weighted r=.263) between alcohol use and sensation seeking total scale scores. Analysis of the four sensation seeking components indicated that disinhibition was most strongly correlated with alcohol use (mean weighted r=.368). Categorical moderator analyses revealed that studies that did, versus did not, analyze covariates yielded smaller effect sizes. Continuous moderator analyses indicated that earlier published studies and higher percentages of male and white Caucasian participants were associated with stronger effect sizes between sensation seeking and alcohol use. Novel statistical methodologies for analyzing the association between sensation seeking and alcohol use were proposed and recommendations for future research were suggested.

The relationship between impaired decision-making, sensation seeking and readiness to change in cigarette smokers

OBJECTIVE

The study investigated whether impaired decision-making as measured by the Gambling Task and Sensation Seeking, on one hand, and nicotine-dependence and readiness to change, on the other hand, show mutual influences in cigarette smokers.

METHODS

Cigarette smokers were classified as dependent or non-dependent smokers. Assessment included stages of change (RCQ), decisional balance (DBS), Sensation Seeking Scale Form-V (SSS-V), and performance on the Gambling Task (GT).

RESULTS

With the exception of a significant higher score in the SSS-V subscale Experience Seeking in dependent smokers, correlations between nicotine-dependence and cognitive features were not significant. The directions of the non-significant differences were not consistent. No significant relationship was found between the SSS-V and the GT, on one hand, and the readiness to change smoking behaviour, on the other hand.

CONCLUSIONS

The results of the present study suggest that impaired performance on the GT and high scores in Sensation Seeking do not play an important role in nicotine-dependence and readiness to change smoking behaviour or vice versa.

Sensation seeking and alcohol use by college students: examining multiple pathways of effects

This study tests the proposition that peer influence mediates the effect of sensation seeking, a personality trait, on alcohol use among college students. Cross-sectional data to test this proposition were collected from a representative sample of college students at a large public northeastern university (N = 427). Results of hierarchical regression analyses showed that, as hypothesized, sensation seeking influenced personal alcohol use both directly and indirectly, through its impact on students' frequency of association with alcohol-using peers and the size of their drinking norm misperception. The findings suggest that interventions that seek to limit the frequency in which high sensation seekers associate with peers whose alcohol use is extreme or, alternatively, seek to facilitate social interactions of high sensation seekers with normative peers, may supplement efforts to influence sensation seekers' alcohol and other drug use through tailored mass media advertisements.

Effective message design targeting college students for the prevention of binge-drinking: basing design on rebellious risk-taking tendency

This study examined the responses of college students who were exposed to different types of episodic stories related to drinking (gender-consistent vs. gender-inconsistent condition) and their intention to modify risky behavior (binge drinking) based on their rebellious risk-taking tendency. Self-report measures such as intention to modify drinking behavior and reaction to the message were measured. Eighty-two college students between the ages of 19 and 23 years participated in a posttest-only group design experiment. Results suggested that rebellious participants were less afraid of the dangers of binge drinking than those who were low in rebelliousness for the gender-consistent condition. Regardless of the level of rebelliousness, the participants who were in the gender-consistent (increased relevance) condition produced higher recognition scores than those who were in the gender-inconsistent condition. However, the rebellious participants who were in the gender-inconsistent condition exhibited a higher level of intention to change their drinking behavior than did those in the gender-consistent condition.

A prospective study of sensation seeking and alcohol use as predictors of sexual risk behaviors among men and women receiving sexually transmitted infection clinic services

Sensation seeking, the propensity to seek optimal stimulation and engage in risk behaviors, correlates with alcohol expectancies, which are related to alcohol use in sexual situations, potentially increasing risks for sexually transmitted infections (STIs). In the current prospective study of 313 male and 140 female STI clinic patients, path analyses showed that sensation seeking predicted unprotected intercourse 6 months later. Sensation seeking also predicted alcohol outcome expectancies, which predicted alcohol use in sexual contexts 6 months later, which in turn predicted unprotected sex. Tests for mediation showed that alcohol expectancies accounted for the association between sensation seeking and alcohol use in sexual contexts. These findings replicate previous research, with the prospective design confirming directional hypotheses and supporting causal conclusions.

Reactivity to Alcohol-Related Cues: Relationship Among Cue Type, Motivational Processes, and Personality

This study examined the relationship between personality traits implicated in the drinking literature (i.e., sensation seeking and anxiety) and reactivity to 2 different alcohol cues. The opportunity to consume alcohol was manipulated, and differences in urge and affective reactivity were assessed. Gray's (1987) model of impulsive sensation seeking and anxiety was adopted to investigate relationships between personality and responses to the appetitive (consumption) and aversive (no consumption, nonrewarding) alcohol cues in 40 regular social drinkers. The consumption cue produced increases in appetitive motivation and positive correlations with sensation-seeking traits. The no-consumption cue produced increases in aversive motivation and positive correlations with anxiety-related traits. It was concluded that Gray's model of impulsive sensation seeking and anxiety may provide a useful framework for examining the personality correlates of cue reactivity to different cues.

Anxiety sensitivity, controllability, and experiential avoidance and their relation to drug of choice and addiction severity in a residential sample of substance-abusing veterans

The aim of the present study was to evaluate anxiety-related psychological risk factors (e.g., anxiety sensitivity, perceived uncontrollability, emotional avoidance) and their relation to drug of choice and addiction severity in an inpatient residential substance abuse population. Fully detoxified veterans (N=94) meeting criteria for Axis I substance abuse disorders were enrolled in a 28-day residential substance abuse treatment program and completed the following measures at intake and discharge: Anxiety Sensitivity Index, Body Sensations Questionnaire (BSQ), Acceptance and Action Questionnaire (AAQ), Beck Depression Inventory (BDI; intake only), and the Anxiety Control Questionnaire (ACQ). Consistent with the expectation, veterans who reported more distress over bodily sensations (anxiety sensitivity, BSQ) and depressive symptoms (BDI) were more likely to avoid experiencing negative affect (AAQ) and perceived themselves as lacking in control (ACQ). Further, extent of avoidance, and to a lesser extent, controllability, discriminated between participants as a function of primary and comorbid diagnostic status, whereas anxiety sensitivity did not. No relation was found between anxiety sensitivity and drug of choice, and relations between assessed psychological factors and domains of addiction severity were mixed. Findings suggest that heightened bodily sensitivity, emotional avoidance, and perceived uncontrollability are common sequelae of patients seeking residential substance abuse treatment, but they do not contribute uniquely to drug of choice and measures of addiction severity. Theoretical and treatment implications are discussed with particular emphasis on approaches that may increase coping with untoward bodily cues, decrease avoidance of negative affect, and improve patient's sense of personal control over their responses and the environment.

Examining the role of drinking motives in college student alcohol use and problems

A motivational model of alcohol involvement (M. L. Cooper, M. R. Frone, M. Russell, & P. Mudar, 1995) was replicated and extended by incorporating social antecedents and motives and by testing this model cross-sectionally and longitudinally in a sample of college students. Participants (N = 388) completed a questionnaire battery assessing alcohol use and problems, alcohol expectancies, sensation seeking, negative affect, social influences, and drinking motives. Associations among psychosocial antecedents, drinking motives, and alcohol involvement differed from those found by M. L. Cooper et al. (1995). These findings point to the importance of social influences and of positive reinforcement motives but not to the centrality of drinking motives in this population.

Self-reported drinking-game participation of incoming college students

Drinking games are associated with excess alcohol use and alcohol-related problems, yet it is unclear whether they are unique to the college environment or whether students come to college familiar with such games. The authors queried 1,252 students attending voluntary summer orientation programs about their experiences with drinking games. A majority (63%) indicated they had played drinking games and viewed them as a means to get drunk quickly and to socialize, control others, or get someone else drunk. Logistic regression analyses revealed that familiarity with drinking situations was associated with a greater likelihood of playing drinking games. Students who reported drinking more frequently and consuming greater quantities of alcohol than others, having lifetime marijuana use, and initiating alcohol consumption between the ages of 14 and 16 years were significantly more likely to have participated in drinking games. These findings demonstrate the importance of considering students' participation in drinking games when campus officials address alcohol use.

College students' self-reported reasons for why drinking games end

Previous research has noted that drinking game participation is associated with increased risk of negative alcohol-related consequences. The current study examined the reasons that students give for how drinking games end and/or why students elect to quit playing. Both men and women identified other people quitting and deciding that they have had enough to drink as the most important single item reasons for quitting play. Principal components analysis using a list of 20 reasons identified six factors, four of which contained overlapping items: Conformity/Boredom; Interpersonal Competition; Sexual Contact; Excessive Consumption; Interpersonal Conflict; and External Circumstances. The factors correlated in a theoretically meaningful fashion with measures of alcohol consumption and consequences and personality. Conformity/Boredom reasons and External Circumstances reasons were least associated with negative alcohol-related consequences. Many students apparently play until they get too drunk or too sick to continue. Understanding how games end may offer clues to designing skills training or other prevention interventions to reduce harm associated with drinking games.