Roisin M. O'Connor

Background: Alcohol use and problems increase during adolescence and peak in early adulthood. Tension reduction theory points to anxiety sensitivity as a risk factor for alcohol misuse, and the theory of planned behavior suggests that injunctive norms (i.e., perceived approval of risky drinking) may be central to this risk trajectory.Methods: This study utilized a longitudinal person‐centered approach to identify unique patterns of injunctive norms (by three referent groups: typical students, friends, and parents) among 223 college students (M_age = 18.82, 62.2% women).Results: Latent profile analyses revealed three distinct injunctive norm profiles, which proved to be identical across the three measurement points. These profiles were characterized by mixed levels of perceived approval (high typical students, neutral friends, low parents; Mixed Tolerance profile), low levels of perceived approval (low typical students, friends, parents; Low Tolerance profile), and high levels of perceived approval (high typical students and friends, neutral parents; High Tolerance profile). Student membership in these profiles was moderate to highly stable over time. A higher level of anxiety sensitivity was associated with membership in profiles characterized by high perceived approval of risky drinking. The Mixed Tolerance profile was associated with the least amount of alcohol misuse and problems (protective), the Low Tolerance profile was associated with some risk, and the High Tolerance profile was associated with the most risk.Conclusion: Our findings demonstrate the nature and stability of injunctive norm profiles and offer new insight into the role of injunctive norm topologies in Alcohol‐Related Social Risk (AS‐risk) for young adult alcohol misuse and related problems.

The start of the COVID-19 pandemic in December 2019 led to abrupt and significant changes across the world.1,2 Public health measures aimed at curbing the spread of the virus (e.g., stay-at-home or...

The Gambling Craving Scale (GACS) is a multifaceted measure of gambling craving. Initial validation work by Young and Wohl (2009) in university student samples showed that the GACS had a three-factor structure capturing dimensions of Desire, Anticipation, and Relief. Despite its potential clinical utility as a measure of craving, the GACS has yet to be validated in people seeking treatment for gambling problems. Accordingly, we examined the psychometric properties in a sample of people (N = 209; M_age = 37.66; 62.2% female) participating in a randomized controlled trial testing a novel online treatment for problem gambling. We predicted the GACS would have a three-factor structure. In addition, we also examined measurement invariance across sex and problem gambling risk status. Finally, we assessed concurrent validity of the factors with other measures of problem gambling severity and involvement. Exploratory structural equation modeling findings supported a three-factor structure that was invariant across the groups tested. Each of the Desire, Anticipation, and Relief subscales were significant positive predictors of problem gambling severity and symptoms, and some form of gambling behaviour. Findings show the GACS is a promising scale to assess multidimensional craving experiences among people in treatment for gambling problems.

Negative affect (depression/anxiety) and alcohol use among Indigenous youth in Canada remain a concern for many communities. Disparate rates of these struggles are understood to be a potential outcome of colonization and subsequent intergenerational trauma experienced by individuals, families, and communities. Using a longitudinal design, we examined change in alcohol use and negative affect, and reciprocal associations, among a group of Indigenous adolescents. Indigenous youth (N = 117; 50% male; M_age=12.46–16.28; grades 6–10) from a remote First Nation in northern Quebec completed annual self-reported assessments on negative affect (depression/anxiety) and alcohol use. A Latent Curve Model with Structured Residuals (LCM-SR) was used to distinguish between- and within-person associations of negative affect and alcohol use. Growth models did not support change in depression/anxiety, but reports of drinking increased linearly. At the between-person level, girls reported higher initial levels of depression/anxiety and drinking; depression/anxiety were not associated with drinking. At the within-person level, drinking prospectively predicted increases in depression/anxiety but depression/anxiety did not prospectively predict drinking. When Indigenous adolescents reported drinking more alcohol than usual at one wave of assessment, they reported higher levels of negative affect than expected (given their average levels of depression/anxiety) at the following assessment. Our findings suggest that when Indigenous youth present for treatment reporting alcohol use, they should also be screened for negative affect (depression/anxiety). Conversely, if an Indigenous adolescent presents for treatment reporting negative affect, they should also be screened for alcohol use.

Background: Gray’s original Reinforcement Sensitivity Theory (RST) posits that an oversensitive behavioral inhibition system (BIS) may increase risk for negative-reinforcement-motivated drinking, given its role in anxiety. However, existing data provides mixed support for the BIS-alcohol use association. The inconsistent evidence is not surprising, as the revised RST predicts that the behavioral approach system (BAS) should moderate the effect of the BIS on alcohol use. A strong BAS is thought to bring attention to the negatively reinforcing effects of alcohol, leading to problem drinking among those with a strong BIS. While emerging results support this interaction, we still have much to learn about the mechanisms underlying this effect on alcohol use. Accordingly, we examined motives for alcohol use as mediators of the joint associations of the BIS and the BAS on drinking behaviors. Specifically, our central hypothesis was that individuals with a strong BIS and a strong BAS would endorse increased negative reinforcement motives for drinking (coping and conformity motives), which in turn would predict heavy drinking and alcohol problems. Method: Participants (N=346; 195 women) completed study measures as part of the baseline assessment for a larger study. Results: Overall, results partially supported the hypotheses. Mediated moderation analyses showed that the indirect effect of the BIS on alcohol problems, through coping and conformity motives, was strongest at high levels of the BAS. This effect was not supported for alcohol use. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that clinical interventions should target coping and conformity reasons for drinking among anxious, reward responsive, young adults.

Existing research on perfectionism and binge eating suggests that socially prescribed, self-oriented, and other-oriented perfectionism (Socially Prescribed Perfectionism, SPP; Self-Oriented Perfectionism, SOP; and Other-Oriented Perfectionism, OOP) are differentially related to binge eating. However, previous studies have largely utilized cross-sectional methodology. The present study used a 20-day daily diary methodology to examine associations between daily levels of perfectionistic dimensions and next-day binge eating behaviors with a nonclinical sample of emerging adults (N = 263). Zero-inflated negative binomial regression models indicated that daily SPP (but not SOP or OOP) predicted a greater intensity of next-day binge eating behaviors in the count portion of the model; however, daily levels of perfectionistic dimensions did not predict the presence/absence of next-day binge eating behaviors in the zero-inflated portion of the model. Additionally, analyses examining the reverse causal direction (i.e., binge eating behaviors predicting higher next-day perfectionism) failed to provide evidence that the occurrence or intensity of binge eating behaviors predicts next-day levels of SPP, SOP, or OOP. Overall, at a daily level, SPP appears to be a vulnerability factor for binge eating behaviors. It may be helpful for clinicians to target state-levels of SPP to reduce harmful binge eating behaviors. Public Significance Statement It has been suggested that people may be more likely to binge eat when they believe that others expect and demand perfection from them. This idea was supported by the results of this study, which showed that when a nonclinical sample of emerging adults (i.e., 18-25-year-olds) reported strongly believing that others expect and demand perfection from them (i.e., socially prescribed perfectionism), they were more likely to have more intense binge eating behaviors on days when they engaged in binge eating behaviors.

The association between restrained eating and alcohol use remains poorly understood among undergraduates. Consistent with tension reduction theory, individuals with disordered eating may be motivated to drink alcohol to cope with negative emotionality. Perhaps what pushes them to drink despite restriction goals is impulsivity. The combined impact of drinking to cope and impulsivity on the theoretically complex link between restrained eating and alcohol outcomes has not been previously examined. The current study tested the moderating effect of drinking to cope and impulsivity on the association between restrained eating and alcohol use and problems. Undergraduates (N = 1,619) self-reported on eating disorder symptoms, alcohol use motives, impulsivity, and alcohol outcomes. A moderation model revealed that restrained eating predicted past 30-day alcohol use, but only for women high in both drinking to cope and impulsivity. These findings help characterize alcohol misuse risk among young adults who restrict their eating, thereby, results may inform interventions.

In longitudinal studies involving multiple latent variables, researchers often seek to predict how iterations of latent variables measured at early time points predict iterations measured at later time points. Cross-lagged panel modeling, a form of structural equation modeling, is a useful way to conceptualize and test these relationships. However, prior to making causal claims, researchers must first ensure that the measured constructs are equivalent between time points. To do this, they test for measurement invariance, constructing and comparing a series of increasingly strict and parsimonious models, each making more constraints across time than the last. This comparison process, though challenging, is an important prerequisite to interpretation of results. Fortunately, testing for measurement invariance in cross-lagged panel models has become easier, thanks to the wide availability of R and its packages. This paper serves as a tutorial in testing for measurement invariance and cross-lagged panel models using the lavaan package. Using real data from an openly available study on perfectionism and drinking problems, we provide a step-by-step guide of how to test for longitudinal measurement invariance, conduct cross-lagged panel models, and interpret the results. Original data source with materials: https://osf.io/gduy4/. Project website with data/syntax for the tutorial: https://osf.io/hwkem/.