Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Differences In Weekday Versus Weekend Drinking Among Nonstudent Emerging Adults, Cathy Lau-Barraco, Abby L. Braitman, Ashley N. Linden-Carmichael, Amy L. Stamates

Psychology Faculty Publications

In the current investigation, we sought to examine "day-of-the-week" drinking of an at-risk sample of nonstudent emerging adults and whether specific factors are associated with differential drinking patterns. Our study aims were to (a) identify differences in weekday versus weekend drinking, and (b) examine specific expectancies (i.e., sociability, tension reduction) and demographic factors (e.g., age, sex) relating to weekend versus weekday drinking after controlling for harmful drinking and holiday drinking. Participants were heavy-drinking noncollege attenders recruited from the community (N = 238; 63.4% men, 35.7% women; M age = 21.92 years). They reported daily drinking for the previous 30 days …

Finding Success In Failure: Using Latent Profile Analysis To Examine Heterogeneity In Psychosocial Functioning Among Heavy Drinkers Following Treatment, Adam D. Wilson, Adrian J. Bravo, Matthew R. Pearson, Katie Witkiewitz

Psychology Faculty Publications

Aims- To estimate differences in post-treatment psychosocial functioning among treatment failures' (i.e. heavy drinkers, defined as 4+/5+ drinks for women/men) from two large multi-site clinical trials and to compare these levels of functioning to those of the purported treatment successes' (i.e. non-heavy drinkers).

Design- Separate latent profile analyses of data from two of the largest alcohol clinical trials conducted in the United States, COMBINE (Combined Pharmacotherapies and Behavioral Interventions) and Project MATCH (Matching Alcoholism Treatments to Client Heterogeneity), comparing psychosocial outcomes across derived classes of heterogeneous treatment responders.

Setting- Eleven US academic sites in COMBINE, 27US treatment sites local to …

Personalized Boosters For A Computerized Intervention Targeting College Drinking: The Influence Of Protective Behavioral Strategies, Abby L. Braitman, James M. Henson

Psychology Faculty Publications

Objective: Computerized interventions are cost-effective and can quickly deliver individual feedback to many students. However, in-person interventions are more efficacious. The current study sought to improve the efficacy of a popular online intervention via e-mailed boosters with personalized feedback.

Participants: Participants were 213 student drinkers at a southeastern public university, ages 18-24. Methods: Students were randomized into (1) intervention only, or (2) intervention plus booster. Alcohol consumption and related problems were assessed at baseline, 2weeks post, and 4weeks post.

Results: Boosters yielded reductions in drinking, but not alcohol-related problems. Boosters were associated with significant reductions for drinking frequency, heavy drinking …

A Latent Profile Analysis Of Drinking Patterns Among Nonstudent Emerging Adults, Cathy Lau-Barraco, Abby L. Braitman, Amy L. Stamates, Ashley N. Linden-Carmichael

Psychology Faculty Publications

Research indicates that nonstudent emerging adults, as compared to their college-attending peers, are at higher risk for experiencing alcohol-related problems, including alcohol use disorders. The present study sought to extend the limited research on nonstudent drinking by (1) identifying sub-groups of nonstudent drinkers based on their drinking patterns and (2) determining the extent to which social-cognitive between-person factors related to drinking (i.e., social expectancies, perceived drinking norms, social drinking motivations) distinguish these sub-groups. Participants were 195 (65.1% men) nonstudent emerging adult heavy episodic drinkers recruited from the community. Mean age was 21.88 (SD = 2.08) years and 45.4% were unemployed. …

Clarifying Observed Relationships Between Protective Behavioral Strategies And Alcohol Outcomes: The Importance Of Response Options, Abby L. Braitman, James M. Henson, Kate B. Carey

Psychology Faculty Publications

Protective behavioral strategies (PBS), or harm-reduction behaviors that can potentially reduce alcohol consumption or associated problems, have been assessed in varied ways throughout the literature. Existing scales vary in focus (i.e., broad vs. narrow), and importantly, in response options (i.e., absolute frequency vs. contingent frequency). Absolute frequency conflates PBS use with number of drinking occasions, resulting in inconsistencies in the relationship between PBS use and alcohol outcomes, whereas contingent frequency is less precise, which could reduce power. The current study proposes the use of absolute frequencies to maximize precision, with an adjustment for number of drinking days to extricate PBS …