Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Self-Consciousness Moderates The Relationship Between Perceived Norms And Drinking In College Students, Joseph W. Labrie, Justin F. Hummer, Clayton Neighbors

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The current research examines whether self-consciousness subscales have prognostic value in the relationship between perceived norms and drinking and if that differs among college men and women. Results indicate that self-consciousness moderates gender differences in the relationship between perceived social norms and drinking. A strong positive relationship was found between perceived norms (descriptive and injunctive) and drinking for men relative to women and this was more pronounced among individuals who were lower in public self-consciousness. Similarly, the relationship between perceived injunctive norms and drinking was significantly stronger among men than women and this was more pronounced among individuals who were …

Changes In Drinking Patterns Across The Transition To College Among First-Year College Males, Joseph W. Labrie, Toby Lamb, Eric Pedersen

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Few studies examine changes in drinking behavior during the transition from high school to college. Using a sample of 239 first-year males, we hypothesized that participants would increase drinking from pre-college to the first month of college. Results reveal a general trend toward increased drinking upon entering college. Caucasians increased drinking more than non-Caucasians. Social expectancies of alcohol moderated increases in drinking behavior. These findings indicate that differential changes in drinking behavior occur among incoming college males. Interventions with college students need to address both preventing heavy consumption and alcohol-related problems in pre-college light drinkers and in reducing these behaviors …

Estrogen And Hippocampal Plasticity In Rodent Models, Michael R. Foy, Michel Baudry, Roberta Diaz Brinton, Richard F. Thompson

Psychological Science Faculty Works

Accumulating evidence indicates that ovarian hormones regulate a wide variety of non-reproductive functions in the central nervous system by interacting with several molecular and cellular processes. A growing animal literature using both adult and aged rodent models indicates that 17β-estradiol, the most potent of the biologically relevant estrogens, facilitates some forms of learning and memory, in particular those that involve hippocampal-dependent tasks. A recently developed triple-transgenic mouse (3xTg-AD) has been widely used as an animal model of Alzheimer's disease, as this mouse exhibits an age-related and progressive neuropathological phenotype that includes both plaque and tangle pathology mainly restricted to hippocampus, …

Sensation Seeking And Visual Selective Attention In Adults With Hiv/Aids, David J. Hardy, Steven A. Castellon, Charles H. Hinkin, Andrew J. Levine, Mona N. Lam

Psychological Science Faculty Works

The association between sensation seeking and visual selective attention was examined in 31 adults with the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). Sensation seeking was measured with Zuckerman’s Sensation Seeking Scale Form V (SSS-V). Selective attention was assessed with a perceptual span task, where a target letter-character must be identified in a quickly presented array of nontarget letter-characters. As predicted, sensation seeking was strongly associated (R² = .229) with perceptual span performance in the array size 12 condition, where selective attention demands were greatest, but not in the easier conditions. The Disinhibition, Boredom Susceptibility, and Experience Seeking subscales of the …

A Brief Rutgers Alcohol Problem Index With Less Potential For Bias, Mitch Earleywine, Joseph W. Labrie, Eric R. Pedersen

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The Rutgers Alcohol Problem Index (RAPI), a popular measure of alcohol-related problems in adolescents, varies with many theoretically-relevant measures of individual differences, including sex. The sex differences in RAPI scores fit many models of alcohol problems but could also arise from biased items. In addition, a short form could increase the scale’s utility. The current study examined RAPI scores, an additional inventory of problem drinking, and measures of alcohol consumption in over 2,000 college student drinkers. Analyses revealed items that functioned differentially for men and women. Dropping these items created a shorter scale with almost identical psychometric properties but less …

Prepartying Promotes Heightened Risk In The College Environment: An Event-Level Report, Joseph W. Labrie, Eric R. Pedersen

Psychological Science Faculty Works

Due to the emergence of research literature examining the prepartying behavior of college students, the present study examines students’ varying drinking rates, blood alcohol levels (BALs), and alcohol-related consequences during two drinking events – one involving prepartying and one devoid of prepartying. Two-hundred and thirty-eight student drinkers completed an online drinking assessment detailing their two most recent drinking occasions involving and not involving prepartying. Participants responded to a series of questions regarding quantities consumed on the drinking day and occurrence of alcohol-related consequences. While men did not differ in drinking or estimated BALs, between the two drinking days, female participants …

The Role Of Self-Consciousness In The Experience Of Alcohol-Related Consequences Among College Students, Joseph W. Labrie, Eric R. Pedersen, Clayton Neighbors, Justin F. Hummer

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Heavy drinking among college students is a well-established national concern. An in-depth look at the characteristics and traits of heavy drinking students is an essential precursor to the development of successful targeted interventions with at-risk students. The current study examines the role self-consciousness (private, public, social anxiety) plays in the experience of alcohol-related consequences among a sample of 1,168 student members of campus organizations. Male gender predicted drinking in the sample, while both private self-consciousness and social anxiety predicted less drinking. Public self-consciousness predicted alcohol-related consequences over and above the variance explained by drinking for both males and females. Additionally, …

Normative Misperceptions Of Drinking Among College Students: A Look At The Specific Contexts Of Prepartying And Drinking Games, Eric R. Pedersen, Joseph W. Labrie

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Objective

In the collegiate context, misperceptions of student drinking norms are among the most salient predictors of heavy drinking, Despite overall overestimations of peer alcohol use, misperceptions of context-specific behaviors have been infrequently studied. The present study examines students' perceptions of the high-risk behaviors of prepartying and drinking games and investigates the relationship between perceived and actual behaviors.

Method

A sample of 524 college students completed an online assessment of actual and perceived alcohol use related to prepartying and drinking games. Quantity and frequency of overall drinking, prepartying, and drinking games were assessed for perceptions of all students at the …

An Application Of The Theory Of Planned Behavior To Sorority Alcohol Consumption, Karen Huchting, Andrew Lac, Joseph W. Labrie

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Greek-affiliated college students have been found to drink more heavily and frequently than other students. With female student drinking on the rise over the past decade, sorority women may be at particular risk for heavy consumption patterns. The current study is the first to apply the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) to examine drinking patterns among a sorority-only sample. Two-hundred and forty-seven sorority members completed questionnaires measuring TPB variables of attitudes, norms, perceived behavioral control, and intentions, with drinking behaviors measured one month later. Latent structural equation modeling examined the pathways of the TPB model. Intentions to drink mediated the …

Assessment Of Perceived And Actual Alcohol Norms In Varying Contexts: Exploring Social Impact Theory Among College Students, Eric R. Pedersen, Joseph W. Labrie, Andrew Lac

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The social norms approach to college drinking suggests that students misperceive the drinking behavior and attitudes of their peers. While much is known about these misperceptions, research is sparse regarding the context in which perceived and actual norms are assessed. As social influence is pronounced in college, the principles of Social Impact Theory may contribute to differences between assessments performed individually and those completed when surrounded by members of one’s salient reference group. The current study examines 284 members of campus organizations in two contexts (online and group) to determine if individuals endorse different responses to questions of perceived and …

A Brief Decisional Balance Intervention Increases Motivation And Behavior Regarding Condom Use In High-Risk Heterosexual College Men, Joseph W. Labrie, Eric R. Pedersen, Alysha D. Thompson, Mitch Earleywine

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Male college students constitute one of a number of at-risk populations susceptible to receiving and transferring sexually transmitted infections. Interventions designed to increase condom use have produced mixed results, but increasing motivation to use condoms may decrease risky sexual behavior. The current study examined the decisional balance, a component of Motivational Interviewing (MI), as an intervention to promote condom use. A total of 41 college men at-risk for negative outcomes from both unsafe sex and drinking participated. They reported both infrequent condom use and heavy drinking. Immediately following a decisional balance on condom use, three separate measures of motivation to …

A Randomized Motivational Enhancement Prevention Group Reduces Drinking And Alcohol Consequences In First-Year College Women, Joseph W. Labrie, Karen Huchting, Summer Tawalbeh, Eric R. Pedersen, Alysha D. Thompson

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Alcohol consumption among college students has become an increasing problem that requires attention from college administrators, staff, and researchers. Despite the physiological differences between men and women, college women are drinking at increasingly risky rates, placing them at increased risk for negative consequences. The current study tested a group motivational enhancement approach to the prevention of heavy drinking among 1st-year college women. Using a randomized design, the authors assigned participants either to a group that received a single-session motivational enhancement intervention to reduce risky drinking that focused partly on women’s specific reasons for drinking (n =126) or to an assessment-only …

The Differential Impact Of Relational Health On Alcohol Consumption And Consequences In First Year College Women, Joseph W. Labrie, Alysha D. Thompson, Paul Ferraiolo, Jonathan A. Garcia, Karie Huchting, Kristin Shelesky

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The Relational Health Indices (RHI) is a relatively new measure that assesses the strength of relationships. It has been found that relational health has a protective factor for women, such that it enhances positive experiences and limits negative ones. The current study is the first to use the RHI to examine the effect of relational health on alcohol consumption and alcohol consequences. First year college women were given questionnaires assessing relational health, drinking motives, and alcohol use in their first few months at a mid-sized, private university. Due to the social nature of college settings, it was predicted that relational …

Progesterone Receptors: Form And Function In Brain, Roberta Diaz Brinton, Richard F. Thompson, Michael R. Foy, Michel Baudry, Jun Ming Wang, Caleb E. Finch, Todd E. Morgan, Christian J. Pike, Wendy J. Mack, Frank Z. Stanczyk, Jon Nilsen

Psychological Science Faculty Works

Emerging data indicate that progesterone has multiple non-reproductive functions in the central nervous system to regulate cognition, mood, inflammation, mitochondrial function, neurogenesis and regeneration, myelination and recovery from traumatic brain injury. Progesterone-regulated neural responses are mediated by an array of progesterone receptors (PR) that include the classic nuclear PRA and PRB receptors and splice variants of each, the seven transmembrane domain 7TMPRβ and the membrane-associated 25-Dx PR (PGRMC1). These PRs induce classic regulation of gene expression while also transducing signaling cascades that originate at the cell membrane and ultimately activate transcription factors. Remarkably, PRs are broadly expressed throughout the brain …

Elements Of Attention In Hiv-Infected Adults: Evaluation Of An Existing Model, Andrew J. Levine, David J. Hardy, Terry R. Barclay, Matthew J. Reinhard, Michael M. Cole, Charles H. Hinkin

Psychological Science Faculty Works

Because of the multifactorial nature of neuropsychological tests, attention remains poorly defined from a neuropsychological perspective, and conclusions made regarding attention across studies may be limited due to the different nature of the measures used. Thus, a more definitive schema for this neurocognitive domain is needed. We assessed the applicability of Mirsky and Duncan's (2001) neuropsychological model of attention to a cohort of 104 HIV+ adults. Our analysis resulted in a five-factor structure similar to that of previous studies, which explained 74.5% of the variance. However, based on the psychometric characteristics of the measures comprising each factor, we offer an …

Live Interactive Group-Specific Normative Feedback Reduces Misperceptions And Drinking In College Students: A Randomized Cluster Trial, Joseph W. Labrie, Justin F. Hummer, Clayton Neighbors, Eric R. Pedersen

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This research evaluated the efficacy of a live and interactive group-specific normative feedback intervention designed to correct misperceptions of alcohol-related group norms and subsequently reduce drinking behavior. Campus organizations (N = 20) containing 1,162 college students were randomly assigned to intervention or assessment-only control conditions. Participants in the intervention condition attended an intervention during their organization’s regular standing meeting. Data were gathered in vivo using computerized handheld keypads into which participants entered personal responses to a series of alcohol-related questions assessing perceptions of normative group behavior as well as actual individual behavior. These data were then immediately presented in graphical …

Progesterone Regulation Of Synaptic Transmission And Plasticity In Rodent Hippocampus, Michael R. Foy, Garnik Akopian, Richard F. Thompson

Psychological Science Faculty Works

Ovarian hormones influence memory formation by eliciting changes in neural activity. The effects of various concentrations of progesterone (P4) on synaptic transmission and plasticity associated with long-term potentiation (LTP) and long-term depression (LTD) were studied using in vitro hippocampal slices. Extracellular studies show that the highest concentration of P4 tested (10⁻⁶ M) decreased the baseline synaptic transmission and magnitude of LTP, but did not affect LTD. Intracellular studies suggest the P4 effect to be mediated, at least in part, by GABAA activity. These results establish a general effect of P4 on synaptic transmission, multiple forms of synaptic plasticity, and …