Can Emerging Adults’ Dating Psychological Aggression be Explained by Family-of-Origin Psychological Aggression, Emotion Dysregulation, and Drinking?

Intimate partner violence (IPV) impacts the lives of millions of individuals; nearly 1 in 4 women and 1 in 7 men report experiencing IPV during their lifetime. Previous studies frequently cite family-of-origin aggression as a risk factor for later experiences with IPV. Research with adults who engage in IPV finds an association with childhood exposure to family violence, but the strength of that association may vary. Psychological aggression often pre-dates more severe IPV and college students are a particular risk group for IPV. Additionally, previous literature has revealed gender differences in response to childhood experiences of family violence. As such, the current study sought to identify factors that explain and moderate risk for dating psychological aggression (DPA) in college adults, and sex differences in those associations. Participants (464 women, 142 men), who were in a current romantic relationship lasting at least 3 months, completed measures of past psychological aggression in the family-of-origin (PAF), current emotion dysregulation, risky drinking, and DPA perpetrated in current dating relationships. Emotion dysregulation mediated the relationship between PAF and current DPA; however, differences among specific types of PAF and sex were noted. Results support an intergenerational transmission of PAF and suggest that parent–child sex dyads influence this process. The findings also provide evidence that higher levels of drinking are associated with increased emotion dysregulation. These results contrast with the alcohol expectancy for stress relief and support public messaging that alcohol use does not relieve stress. Clinical and research implications for prevention of the intergenerational transmission of aggression are discussed.

Alcohol Consumption Behavior among Undergraduate Students in Thailand: Development of a New Causal Relationship Model

Alcohol consumption among undergraduate students in Thailand is problematic. The aim of this study was to deepen our understanding of this problem by developing a causal relationship model for the alcohol consumption behavior of undergraduate students in Thailand, and to verify the model’s concordance with empirical data. Four latent variables were considered: alcohol consumption behavior, alcohol expectancy, drinking refusal self-efficacy, and health literacy. Participants included representative 1st – 5th year undergraduate students at the Thailand National Sports University, with 600 students being selected using stratified random sampling procedures. The descriptive statistics and the causal relationship model were analyzed using LISREL 8.80. The model developed was in good agreement with the empirical data (c2=228.66, df = 79, p > 0.05 , c2/df=2.894, SRMR =0.07, RMSEA =0.06, CFI =0.99, and RFI =0.98), with all computed indices passing the stipulated criteria. On the basis of the coefficients of determination in the structural equation model, alcohol expectancy, drinking refusal self-efficacy, and health literacy together accounted for 80% of the variance in the student’s alcohol consumption behavior. These theoretically based causal factors provide new directions for future intervention work aimed at modifying the alcohol consumption behaviors of undergraduate students at the Thailand National Sports University. This can be accomplished by developing activities that are suitable and contextually sensitive to their needs.

African American College Students’ Drinking Behaviors and Their Relationship to Self-Efficacy and Positive or Negative Expectancies Regarding Alcohol Consumption

College students’ alcohol consumption remains a significant concern for colleges and universities. However, most research overwhelmingly utilizes White samples from predominantly White universities, limiting knowledge of African American students’ drinking behaviors on historically Black campuses. This study examined alcohol usage among African American college students by investigating relationships between alcohol consumption and positive and negative expectancies as well as self-efficacy. A convenience sample of 282 students was used. The Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) measured alcohol consumption and identified individuals whose consumption created hazardous drinking patterns. Alcohol expectancy was measured by the Alcohol Effects Questionnaire (AEQ), and the Spheres of Control Scale measured self-efficacy. Students in this sample tended to believe that alcohol consumption was linked with more negative than positive alcohol expectancy beliefs. Alcohol expectancies, specifically positive expectancies, appeared to play a significant role in predicting alcohol consumption. There was also a positive relationship between positive expectancies and alcohol consumption. Despite these results, our regression model was only able to account for about 20% of the variance (r2 = 0.187). These findings are important in developing prevention and intervention programs to address the pervasive and critical social ills and reduce alcohol consumption among African American college students.

The association between child alcohol sipping and alcohol expectancies in the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) study

Background and Aims: Underage drinking is a serious societal concern, yet relatively little is known about child sipping of alcohol and its relation to beliefs about alcohol. The current study aimed to (1) examine the contexts in which the first sip of alcohol occurs (e.g., type of alcohol, who provided sip, sip offered or taken without permission); (2) examine the association between sipping and alcohol expectancies; and (3) explore how different contexts of sipping are related to alcohol expectancies. We expected to find that children who had sipped alcohol would have increased positive expectancies and reduced negative expectancies compared to children who had never sipped alcohol. Design: We utilized data from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) study, a longitudinal study of children in the United States. Setting: Twenty-one sites throughout the United States. Participants/Cases: We utilized data from 4,842 children ages 9 to 11; 52% were male and 60% were White. Measurements: Child sipping context was measured with the iSip, and alcohol expectancies were measured with the Alcohol Expectancy Questionnaire- Adolescent, Brief (AEQ-AB).Findings: We found that 22% of the sample had sipped alcohol. Children reported sipping beer most frequently, and the drink most often belonged to the child’s father. We found that children who had sipped had higher positive alcohol expectancies than children who had not while accounting for demographic and family history variables related to alcohol expectancies. Child sipping was not significantly associated with negative expectancies and the context of the first sip of alcohol was not significantly associated with positive and negative expectancies. Conclusions: Providing sips of alcohol to children is associated with them having more favorable expectations about drinking.