Young Adults’ Physical Distancing Behaviors During the Initial Months of the COVID-19 Pandemic: Adherence to Guidelines and Associations With Alcohol Use Behavior

2021 ◽  
pp. 216769682110046
Author(s):  
Clare Einberger ◽  
Scott Graupensperger ◽  
Christine M. Lee
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Young Adults ◽  
High Risk ◽  
Alcohol Use ◽  
Heavy Episodic Drinking ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Adult Behavior ◽  
Health Communities ◽  
High Risk Drinking ◽  
Use Behavior

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, the scientific and public health communities have become increasingly focused on understanding young adults’ physical distancing behaviors and the role that young adults have on viral potentiation and community spread. In the present study, we surveyed a group of 560 young adults (ages 22-28) from the greater Seattle area in April 2020, during statewide “shelter-in-place” recommendations, to examine young adults’ self-reported adherence to physical distancing guidelines. Self-report measures were used to identify strong adherers and poor adherers, which we then compared in terms of engagement in specific physical distancing behaviors and alcohol use behaviors pertaining to physical distancing adherence. We found that most young adults are classified as strong adherers, and that poor adherers reported more frequent violations of physical distancing guidelines including having friends over to their residence or going over to other residences. Poor adherers were also significantly more likely to engage in high-risk alcohol use behavior, such as heavy episodic drinking, compared to those young adults who were classified as strong adherers. Our results provide initial evidence that young adults who engage in high-risk drinking may be at greater risk for non-adherence to government recommended physical distancing guidelines. This deeper understanding of young adult behavior during the COVID-19 pandemic can better inform public health outreach to increase physical distancing adherence currently, as well as in preparation for future contagious health crises that may require societal-level adherence to behavioral guidelines.

scholarly journals Changes in College Student Alcohol Use During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Are Perceived Drinking Norms Still Relevant?

2021 ◽  
pp. 216769682098674
Author(s):  
Scott Graupensperger ◽  
Anna E. Jaffe ◽  
Charles N. B. Fleming ◽  
Jason R. Kilmer ◽  
Christine M. Lee ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
College Students ◽  
Young Adults ◽  
College Student ◽  
Alcohol Use ◽  
Strong Support ◽  
Heavy Episodic Drinking ◽  
Use Behavior

With widespread concern for increased alcohol use during the COVID-19 pandemic, there is a pressing need to examine changes in young adults’ alcohol use and to identify antecedents of increased use. We tested the hypothesis that self-reported changes in alcohol use during the pandemic (frequency, quantity, heavy episodic drinking) would relate to perceptions of peers’ changes in alcohol use. In April of 2020, 507 college students self-reported changes in their alcohol use and perceived changes in use for typical students at their university (i.e., norms). Most students in our sample reported decreased alcohol use and perceived decreases in peers’ alcohol use. Perceptions of peers’ changes in alcohol use behavior strongly related to changes in students’ own alcohol use. Findings provide strong support for norms-based strategies that can correct normative misperceptions by highlighting the fact that most college students are not in fact engaging in heavier alcohol use during the COVID-19 pandemic.

scholarly journals Functional-Belief-Based Alcohol Use Questionnaire (FBAQ) as a Pre-Screening Tool for High-Risk Drinking Behaviors among Young Adults: A Northern Thai Cross-Sectional Survey Analysis

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 1536
Author(s):  
Nalinee Yingchankul ◽  
Wichuda Jiraporncharoen ◽  
Chanapat Pateekhum ◽  
Surin Jiraniramai ◽  
Kanittha Thaikla ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Young Adults ◽  
High Risk ◽  
Alcohol Use ◽  
Screening Tool ◽  
Drinking Behavior ◽  
Standard Drink ◽  
Cross Sectional Survey ◽  
Discriminative Ability ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
High Risk Drinking

Background: an alcohol-use disorders identification test (AUDIT) is a standard screening tool for high-risk drinking behavior. Standard drink calculation is difficult to comprehend and may lead to inaccurate estimates. This study intended to develop a practical pre-screening tool for the identification of high-risk drinkers among young adults. Methods: a cross-sectional survey was conducted in Northern Thailand from July 2016 to December 2016. Data was collected on relevant characteristics and health beliefs about drinking. The 12-month AUDIT was used as the reference standard. Logistic regression was used for the score derivation. The discriminative ability was measured with an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AuROC). Result: a total of 1401 young adults were included. Of these, 791 people (56.5%) were current drinkers. Three functional-belief items were identified as independent predictors of high-risk drinking and were used to develop the functional-belief-based alcohol-use questionnaire (FBAQ). The FBAQ demonstrated an acceptable discriminative ability—AuROC 0.74 (95% confidence interval (CI) 0.70, 0.77). Conclusion: The FBAQ contains only three simple belief questions and does not require unintelligible standard drink calculation. Implementing the FBAQ score and the AUDIT in a serial manner might be a more effective method in a mass-screening program for alcohol-use disorder in young adults.

scholarly journals Exploring the use of workplaces to recruit “hard-to-reach” male drinkers to a survey on alcohol use and awareness of health messages

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah Dance ◽  
Charlotte Dack ◽  
Celia Lasheras ◽  
Cathy McMahon ◽  
Paul Scott ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Alcohol Use ◽  
Financial Incentive ◽  
Health Messages ◽  
Heavy Episodic Drinking ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Recruitment Strategies ◽  
Public Health Messages ◽  
Alcohol Related Harm ◽  
Related Harm

Abstract Background Lower socioeconomic status (SES) groups, particularly lower SES males, are at greater risk of alcohol-related harm than higher SES groups, despite drinking at the same level or less. However, they are rarely recruited for research through typical recruitment strategies. Consequently, limited evidence exists on patterns of alcohol use and effectiveness of public health messages for these groups. Using workplaces to recruit male drinkers from lower SES backgrounds may provide a feasible and accessible approach to research participation and enable improved understanding of alcohol use, drinking motives and acceptance of alcohol-related public health messages in this underrepresented and high-risk group. We investigated workplace-based strategies to recruit male drinkers from lower SES backgrounds. We also investigated their experiences and motivations for alcohol use, and acceptance of alcohol-related public health messages. Methods A feasibility element investigated the effectiveness of workplace-based strategies to recruit male drinkers from lower SES backgrounds in the south west of England. A pilot element investigated this population’s experiences and motivations for alcohol use, and acceptance of alcohol-related public health messages, through a mixed-methods survey. Results Feasibility results indicated that workplace-based recruitment strategies, including recruiting participants in person at their workplace and providing a financial incentive, effectively led to the recruitment of 84 male drinkers (70% recruitment rate), predominately from lower SES backgrounds, to a survey. Pilot results indicated that more than half of participants were at increasing risk of alcohol-related harm, and approximately one fifth engaged in weekly heavy episodic drinking. Participation in campaigns aimed at reducing alcohol use, and knowledge of government alcohol consumption guidelines, were low. Participants reported negative beliefs about alcohol including health effects, dependency and excess use, and financial and occupational effects. Positive beliefs about alcohol included relaxation, socialising, and enjoyment. Conclusions Workplace-based recruitment, using in-person recruitment and a financial incentive, may be a feasible strategy to recruit male drinkers from lower SES backgrounds. Pilot results may direct larger scale research aiming to understand alcohol use in this population and inform targeted public health messages. Workplace-based recruitment may represent a promising avenue for future research aiming to tackle inequalities in participation in alcohol research.

scholarly journals Increases in Risky Drinking During the COVID-19 Pandemic Assessed via Longitudinal Cohort Design: Associations With Racial Tensions, Financial Distress, Psychological Distress and Virus-Related Fears

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
William V Lechner ◽  
Natasha K Sidhu ◽  
Jackson T Jin ◽  
Ahmad A Kittaneh ◽  
Kimberly R Laurene ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Psychological Distress ◽  
High Risk ◽  
Alcohol Use ◽  
Financial Distress ◽  
Daily Life ◽  
Drinking Patterns ◽  
Risky Drinking ◽  
Factors Associated ◽  
High Risk Drinking ◽  
Over Time

Abstract Background The COVID-19 pandemic has created disruptions to daily life resulting in wide-spread unemployment and psychological distress. Recent studies have reported high rates of alcohol use during this time; however, longitudinal data remain scarce and factors associated with increases in high-risk drinking observed over time are unknown. Aims The current study examined changes in high-risk drinking patterns across four 7-day observation periods, prior to and following a university wide campus closure. Additionally, factors associated with changes in alcohol use patterns were examined including financial distress, psychological distress, impact of racial tensions and virus-related fears. Method Students (N = 1001) in the Midwestern USA completed repeated assessments between March and June 2020. Each survey included a timeline follow-back measure of alcohol use. Pandemic-related distress spanning several factors was assessed at the final follow-up. Results Risky drinking patterns increased significantly over time. Overall, psychological distress and impact of racial tensions were associated with higher rates of risky drinking, whereas COVID-19-related fears were associated with lower rates. However, only financial-related distress was associated with an increase in risky drinking patterns over time. Conclusions Increased risky drinking patterns observed in the current study may signal problems that are likely to persist even after the direct impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on daily life ends. Individuals experiencing financial distress may represent a particularly high-risk group. Interventions targeting the cross-section of job loss, financial stress and problematic alcohol use will be important to identify.

scholarly journals Distribution of sickness absence risk across different levels and patterns of drinking: findings from the Stockholm Public Health Cohort

2020 ◽  
pp. 145507252097230
Author(s):  
Jonas Landberg ◽  
Mats Ramstedt
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Alcohol Use ◽  
Sickness Absence ◽  
Selection Bias ◽  
Risk Function ◽  
Heavy Episodic Drinking ◽  
Confounding Factors ◽  
Health Selection ◽  
Moderate Drinking

Aim: This study estimated (i) the risk function between different indicators of alcohol use and long-term sickness absence, adjusting for possible confounding factors, (ii) whether the risk function between average volume of consumption and sickness absence is modified by heavy episodic drinking (HED), and (iii) to what extent the risk for sickness absence among abstainers is due to health selection bias. Data and methods: The study was based on data from the Stockholm Public Health Cohort 2006, with an analytical sample of 16,477 respondents aged 18–64 years. The outcome included register-based long-term (> 14 days) sickness absence. Negative binominal regression was used to estimate the association between sickness absence and average weekly volume of consumption, frequency of HED, and both in interaction. Results: Abstainers, chronic heavy drinkers and respondents with the highest frequency of HED had approximately two-fold higher rates of sickness absence relative to the reference groups, i.e., moderate drinkers and those with HED one to 6 times per year. Adjustment for confounding factors did not materially affect the shape of the risk function. After exclusion of abstainers with alcohol-related problems, or poor health, the estimates for abstainers became non-significant. Moderate drinkers with HED did not have significantly higher rates of sickness absence than moderate drinkers without HED. Conclusions: Our results suggest a significant association between alcohol use and sickness absence. There were indications that the U-shaped risk function may largely be due to health selection bias among abstainers. We found no indication of effect modification of HED on moderate drinking.

Unpacking Violent Behavior in Young Adulthood: The Relative Importance of Hazardous Alcohol Use

2021 ◽  
pp. 088626052110441
Author(s):  
Siobhan Lawler ◽  
Lexine Stapinski ◽  
Maree Teesson ◽  
Katrina Prior ◽  
Miguel Basto-Pereira ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Risk Factors ◽  
Young Adults ◽  
Alcohol Use ◽  
Young Adulthood ◽  
Violent Behavior ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Unique Contribution ◽  
Hazardous Alcohol Use ◽  
Hazardous Alcohol

Young adulthood is an important developmental period for investigating the nature of violent behavior. This study examines the unique contribution of alcohol use to violence perpetration among young adults in the Australian community, after accounting for the influence of sociodemographic, early life, trait, and well-being influences. Cross-sectional, self-report data was collected from 507 young adults aged 18-20 years in the Australian general community via an online survey. Sequential logistic regressions examined the relative and independent contribution of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), impulsivity, psychological distress, and hazardous alcohol use to past-year violent behavior. Results show one in eight young adults aged 18-20 (13%) reported at least one act of violent behavior in the past year, primarily assault perpetrated against another person. Sequential logistic regression identified that after controlling for other risk factors, the number of ACEs reported and hazardous alcohol use were independently and positively associated with increased odds of reporting violent behavior in young adulthood. These findings demonstrate that ACEs and hazardous alcohol use are important, independent correlates of violent behavior in young adults. While preventing early adversity is key for reducing violence in the community, this evidence suggests that it is also important to target proximal causes such as hazardous alcohol use. Increasing early and widespread access to evidence-based, trauma-informed violence-prevention programs targeting risk factors across multiple settings is critical for reducing harm and supporting young people into healthy adulthood.

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