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Social networking sites (SNSs) are popular among college-aged adults. The defining characteristic of SNSs is that they are a platform to electronically share content. Most students report posting alcohol-related content (ARC) on SNSs. Little is known concerning these students who consume both alcohol and ARC yet choose not to generate ARC.The purpose of the current study was to compare key characteristics of posters and non-posters and develop a measure assessing reasons for not posting ARC.The researchers recruited a diverse sample of 1063 college students from two universities for an online study.Relative to posters of ARC, non-posters tend to drink less, have fewer alcohol-related problems, and report fewer reasons for drinking. Non-posters also report viewing several positive and negative consequences of drinking on SNSs, but at lower levels than ARC posters. The Reasons Not to Post ARC Scale was correlated with common alcohol measures (drinking motives, drinking problems) and self-monitoring. The scale was not correlated with some other measures (posting and sharing alcohol-related content).Given the dominant echo chamber effects of ARC on SNSs, examining non-posters can provide insight into the cognitions that might prevent others from joining the ARC social media culture.

Posting and viewing of alcohol-related content to social media is prevalent among college students and is related to problematic drinking. However, the cognitive self-presentation and self-monitoring processes behind users' alcohol-related content posts to different platforms are largely unknown.Through in-depth, qualitative interviews with college students (n = 15) who drink heavily and post alcohol-related content regularly, we developed the Alcohol Self-Presentation Model.Using a multi-step thematic analysis approach, the themes of protectiveness and acquisitiveness emerged; these themes served as the basis of our model. In total, three protectiveness (perceived permanence of the content, privacy and reputation concerns) factors and four acquisitiveness (provocative, impulsive, high-status, maintaining relevance and connections) factors were derived.Our model delineated the alcohol self-presentations which allowed participants to demonstrate disparate versions of themselves to certain social media audiences. Our results illuminated that what people identify as being alcohol-related content, and what motivates the individual to post alcohol-related content, are essential to better comprehending how their alcohol-related content uniquely contributes to their drinking. Understanding students' alcohol self-presentations is important since their alcohol-related content may be putting themselves, and others, at-risk by perpetuating patterns of frequent posting and heavy drinking within the network. Our model may inform future behavioural interventions targeting the reduction of drinking among young people who are active on social media.

Drinking is common among young adult veterans. Previous research has established that veterans’ drinking is more strongly associated with veteran versus civilian drinking norms. The present research extends these findings by examining the influence of self-identification both with other veterans and with civilians as moderators of the association between perceived norms and drinking. Veterans aged 18–34 (N=1015; 88.7% male; M=28.23, SD=3.44) were recruited via Facebook to participate. Measures included same-gender veterans/same-gender civilians self-identification, same-gender veterans/same gender-civilians perceived drinking norms, and own drinking. Pairwise comparisons revealed both male and female veterans identified more with other veterans than civilians and perceived drinking to be more prevalent among other veterans than civilians. However, males overestimated male veteran drinking norms to a greater degree than male civilian norms whereas the opposite was true for females. Negative binomial analysis examining a three-way interaction between veteran identification, civilian identification, and civilian norms revealed civilian drinking norms were positively associated with drinking, particularly for veterans who strongly identified with both veterans and civilians. Conversely, civilian drinking norms were also found to be negatively associated with drinking, particularly for those who did not identify strongly with civilians but identified strongly with veterans. This study represented a preliminary step for understanding how identity plays a role in terms of veterans’ drinking. Given that veterans drank at differing levels of identification, it may be important to consider identities that are most salient when designing interventions targeting individual veterans.

The onset of the pandemic saw shifts in messaging around the acceptability of alcohol consumption at different times and contexts. A psychometric analysis of responses to injunctive norms may reveal important differences in specific aspects of norms that were influenced by the pandemic. Study 1 used alignment analysis to evaluate measurement invariance in low- and high-risk injunctive norms across samples of Midwestern college students from 2019 to 2021. Study 2 used an alignment-within-confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) approach to replicate the solution from Study 1 in an independent longitudinal sample ( N = 1,148) who responded between 2019 and 2021. For Study 1, the latent mean for high-risk norms was significantly higher in 2021, and the endorsement of four specific norms also differed. In Study 2, increases in latent means for low- and high-risk norms were observed across 2020 and 2021, and differential endorsement emerged for one high-risk norm item. Examining scale-level changes in injunctive drinking norms provides insight into how college students’ perceptions changed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Research has established two types of passion (i.e., harmonious and obsessive) for several activities, behaviors, and relationships (Vallerand & Houlfourt, 2003). Harmonious passion is characterized by an autonomous orientation toward an activity, while obsessive passion is characterized by a more controlled orientation toward an activity. Similar but not congruent conceptualizations of approaches to religion have been explored. Moreover, the preponderance of research suggests that religiousness is associated with decreased problematic alcohol use. However, little research has been done into contrasting approaches to religious devotion. We explored harmonious and obsessive passion for religious beliefs and practices and their association with alcohol use and alcohol-related problems. Perceived stress and satisfaction with life were examined as mediators. Participants included 707 undergraduate students (54.8% female) from a large southwestern university who were recruited as a part of a larger alcohol-related intervention trial. Data were collected at three time points: baseline, 3-month follow-up, and 6-month follow-up, and were analyzed prospectively, with passion and mental health at time 1 and time 2 predicting alcohol outcomes at time 2 and time 3. The indirect effects of both obsessive passion and harmonious passion on alcohol problems through perceived stress were significant, and in opposite directions. Additionally, moderation analyses showed that both obsessive and harmonious passion for religion moderated the associations between perceived stress and drinking and between perceived stress and alcohol problems.

Discrimination is a pervasive stressor among African-American adults. Social support is an important protective factor for psychological distress, especially among minority populations. Although a number of studies have examined social support in relation to discrimination, little research has examined how social support may serve as an important protective factor against both physical and psychological symptoms related to overall psychological distress within this group. The current study examined social support as a moderator of the relationship between discrimination and overall psychological distress as measured by the Brief Symptom Inventory among a community sample of 122 African-American church-going adults. Results indicated that social support buffered the associations of discrimination and overall psychological distress (p 0.0001) in expected directions. Findings highlight the importance of cultivating strong social relationships to attenuate the effects of this social determinant on mental health disparities among this group.

Despite the growing prevalence of cannabis use and associated consequences among U.S. young adults, relatively little is known about precisely what level of marijuana involvement may be problematic.With this study we sought to identify empirically-derived cut-scores for the Marijuana Consequences Questionnaire (MACQ) that would distinguish among levels of cannabis risk in a sample of young adult college students (N = 496). We also examined how these levels of cannabis risk corresponded to a variety of indicators of cannabis involvement, including frequency of use, intoxication, other measures of cannabis consequences, and indicators of more severe cannabis involvement (e.g., physiological dependence, loss of control over use, cannabis use disorder).Receiver operating characteristic analyses yielded cutoffs that distinguished among three distinct levels of risk, "Low", "Moderate", and "High". These empirically derived cut scores showed strong overall differentiation among classifications, with good sensitivity and specificity. MACQ-based risk levels were validated across several indices of cannabis involvement. Cutoffs differed across genders.Findings offer a new application for the MACQ, allowing for the identification of those at greatest risk. As such, this measure may be used to facilitate appropriately targeted intervention.

A robust finding is the positive association between self-generated alcohol-related content (SG-ARC) on social media (SM) and drinking among emerging adults; however, the reasons for this relationship are still unclear. A factor that has yet to be explored in combination with SG-ARC is how viewing others’ alcohol-related content (ARC) may be impacting young adults’ drinking. This cross-sectional study conducted across two universities asked students (N=780; M=20.80 years old; SD=2.29; 67.82% female) to self-report how many SG-ARC posts they posted, to estimate how much they saw others’ ARC, and how much they drank weekly. SG-ARC was then evaluated as a moderator of the association between viewing others’ ARC and drinking. A negative binomial regression model with robust sandwich estimators was employed. Results revealed that both SG-ARC and viewing others’ ARC were positively associated with drinking. A significant two-way interaction between SG-ARC and others’ ARC emerged such that viewing others’ posts appeared to exert an influence on drinking, particularly for students who did not post as many SG-ARC posts. These findings provide evidence that seeing others’ ARC may be socially influencing students to drink, especially if they do not post as much SG-ARC themselves, by altering their internalized drinking norms.

This article discusses ethical concerns surrounding social media content posted by nurses; specifically, how these posts may violate public trust. It also summarizes considerations for nurses to contemplate before posting to social media and provides examples of positive uses of social media.

Substantial research has found a robust relationship between stressful life events and increased negative health outcomes and a greater predisposition to various forms of substance use and gambling behavior; however, less is known about the individual factors that explain this relationship. The present study examines the moderating factors of gambling to cope and individual impulsivity factors (e.g., perseverance, premeditation, and negative urgency) on the relationship between stressful life events over the past year and gambling problems among a sample of college students. Participants included 653 total students (48.57% female; M = 26.31 years old; SD = 8.35 years) enrolled in universities across the United States who scored three or higher on the South Oaks Gambling Screen, an indicator of risk for problematic gambling. We found a positive relationship between stressful life events and gambling problems. Gambling to cope moderated the link between stressful life events and gambling problems such that for those higher in gambling to cope, stressful life events had little impact on gambling problems while those at lower to moderate levels of gambling to cope saw a positive relationship between stressful life events and gambling problems. Moreover, we found two significant three-way interactions between stressful life events, gambling to cope, and impulsivity factors of perseverance and premeditation in predicting problems. These findings suggest that prevention and/or treatment strategies should consider how gambling to cope and impulsivity factors in conjunction with an individual’s report of stressful life events relate to problematic gambling and associated consequences.

There is considerable research demonstrating that college life alcohol salience is associated with alcohol use among undergraduates. However, the strength of this association may depend on whether students self-identify with other students on their campus; self-identification with other students may indicate how influential other students are on an individuals' drinking. As such, the current research investigated whether identification with the "typical student" moderated the relationship between college life alcohol salience beliefs and alcohol-related outcomes. Five-hundred and eleven undergraduates reported their alcohol use, how closely they identified with other students, as well as their college life alcohol salience beliefs. Poisson moderated regression models and negative binomial moderation regression models were employed. Results indicated that self-identification with other students was a significant moderator of the association between college life alcohol salience beliefs and frequency of drinking as well as peak number of drinks, but not drinks per week or alcohol-related problems. Findings suggest that it may be important to shift students' perceptions surrounding drinking as being an important part of the college experience, particularly for those who identify with their peers.

Deviance Regulation Theory (DRT) proposes that individuals regulate their behavior to be in line with the behaviors of others. Specifically, individuals desire to stand out in positive way and not stand out in a negative way. DRT has been successfully applied to encourage other health behaviors and offers a unique method to utilize both injunctive norms in combination with descriptive norms in brief alcohol interventions. This randomized controlled trial evaluated a computer-delivered, norms-based personalized feedback intervention which systematically varied the focus on whether specific drinking behaviors were described as common or uncommon (a descriptive norm), whether the drinking behaviors were healthy versus unhealthy, and whether the drinking behaviors were positively or negatively framed (an injunctive norm). Nine-hundred and fifty-nine college drinkers completed baseline, three-month, and six-month follow-up assessments. Results indicated messages focusing on unhealthy drinking behaviors, particularly when described as uncommon, were most effective in reducing drinking and alcohol-related problems over time. This research utilizes deviance regulation theory as a way of improving personalized normative feedback by elucidating how to construct messages for brief interventions based on descriptive characteristics associated with specific target drinking behaviors in combination with perceptions of prevalence and acceptability of such drinking behaviors (an injunctive norm).

Recent literature has provided evidence that online behaviors may be a manifestation of off-line cognitions; furthermore online self-presentations may shape off-line outcomes. The present study examined the associations between the individual difference variable of authenticity (measured via relatio

‘Facebook depression’ findings have been mixed. One reason for the conflicting results may be Facebook's complex relationship with relatedness needs and depressive symptoms. Thus, this article reviewed the existing literature to better elucidate these associations. Facebook use appears to be motivated by both connection and disconnection (and vice versa), which in turn, has implications for users’ mental health. Additionally, Facebook engagement promoting connection (e.g., dialog with friends) seems to improve well-being whereas disconnecting activities (e.g., evaluative social comparisons) may lead to negative consequences. A key to understanding ‘Facebook depression’ may be to explore Facebook's built-in features, which may be provoking and proliferating users’ negative affect. This article identifies established theories related to these mechanisms, in order to guide future research.

Personalized normative feedback (PNF) has been used extensively to reduce alcohol consumption, particularly among heavy drinkers. However, the majority of PNF studies have used only descriptive norms (real or perceived pervasiveness of a given behavior). The purpose of the current study was to explore the efficacy of PNF both with and without an injunctive message indicating approval or disapproval based on the participants' standing relative to other students' drinking levels. This randomized trial evaluated two brief web-based alcohol intervention conditions (descriptive-norms-feedback-only condition versus a descriptive-plus-injunctive-message condition relative to an assessment-only control condition).Participants included 176 students who had reported at least one heavy drinking episode in the past month. Participants completed baseline and follow-up assessments of perceived norms and drinking. Follow-up assessments were completed at 2 weeks post-intervention by 165 (94%) participants.Analyses were conducted using zero-inflated negative binomial regression models. As expected, the descriptive-norms-only condition was effective in reducing drinking among heavier baseline drinkers at follow-up relative to the control condition. However, contrary to expectations, the descriptive-plus-injunctive-message condition did not predict less drinking at follow-up.This study was unique in using an injunctive message as an adjunct to descriptive-norms feedback within the context of drinking. Findings highlight the need for additional research into the role of defensiveness, which may serve as an impediment to using injunctive norms/messages in interventions for problematic substance use and other potentially stigmatizing behaviors.

Background Literature has consistently shown a positive relationship between young adults’ social media alcohol-related posts and drinking outcomes; however, the reasons for this association and the psychosocial influences behind students’ posting of alcohol-related content are still unclear. Peer influences have been robustly shown to predict students’ drinking such that students’ perceptions of their friends’ drinking is positively associated with their own drinking. Objective Although research has demonstrated that online and offline peer influences are robust predictors of drinking among college students, perceptions of friends’ approval and students’ drinking in relation to alcohol-related posting have yet to be explored longitudinally. Methods The current multi-site, multi-method study examined students ( N=316; 58.7% female) from a Midwest (58.8%) and Northwest university over a 4-year period. All Facebook alcohol-related posts were coded each academic calendar year and perceived friends’ approval of drinking and students’ alcohol use were assessed annually. A lagged, random coefficients negative binomial model was specified to examine between- and within-person effects. Results After controlling for perceptions of friends’ alcohol-related posts, results revealed that time, drinking more, and perceiving friends as more approving of drinking were significantly and positively associated with posting alcohol-related content at the between-person level. Moreover, a significant interaction of Time X Drinking, with drinking at the between-person level, emerged such that heavier drinkers tended to post less often over time. Conclusions Increases in alcohol-related content posts are likely to over-inflate students’ drinking norms and their drinking. Thus, it is plausible that social media networks containing more alcohol-related content may contribute to cyclical increases in drinking for individuals within that network.

Although the concepts of harmonious and obsessive passion have been productive in explaining why people eagerly engage in such activities as sports, Internet use, and gambling, previous research has not yet extended these models to explain alcohol and marijuana use among college students. The current research was conducted to clarify the relationships among harmonious and obsessive passion, alcohol and marijuana use, and negative consequences.Two studies were conducted using online assessments. In Study 1, 748 heavy drinking college students (58% female) were recruited and completed measures of passion for drinking alcohol, alcohol use, and alcohol-related negative consequences. In Study 2, 352 regular marijuana-using students (54% female) were recruited and completed assessments of marijuana passion, marijuana use, and marijuana-related consequences.Study 1 found that among heavy drinking college students, harmonious passion was a stronger predictor of increased consumption than was obsessive passion, whereas obsessive passion was a stronger predictor of alcohol-related problems than was harmonious passion. Study 2 revealed similar findings with regard to harmonious passion predicting marijuana consumption; however, unlike Study 1, no significant difference between the passions was found in predicting marijuana-related problems.This research provides a novel perspective on motivation for alcohol and marijuana use. Findings suggest that understanding the locus of young adults' passion for substance use may be helpful in identifying those who are likely to develop a substance use disorder and therefore may be the most in need of assistance and intervention.

The detrimental effect of ambivalence over emotional expression (AEE) on social support has been well documented. However, the underlying mechanism of this effect remains unclear. Research has demonstrated that when general needs are not met, negative psychological outcomes occur. Thus, the current study investigated general needs satisfaction (GNS) as a potential mediator of the association between AEE and social support among 352 undergraduates. Results revealed that AEE was negatively associated with autonomy, relatedness, competence, and social support, whereas social support was positively associated with autonomy, competence, and relatedness. Further, GNS and each of its three subscales were all found to significantly mediate the association between AEE and social support. Thus, findings from the present study contribute to our understanding of AEE by illustrating a potential mechanism through which AEE may lead to a lack of perceived social support, namely GNS.

The first experimental study of relationship talk (N = 42 couples) showed that when couples read stories about spouses who talked to each other about their relationships, such talk had different outcomes for the spouses, depending on the context and which partner was speaking. We replicated and improved upon this study in a number of ways (e.g. sample size and composition, new dependent variable, more standardized materials, more sophisticated and appropriate statistical techniques). Findings were almost identical to those of the earlier study including three-way interactions. Results (N = 238 couples) showed that when spouses talked about their relationship with each other, they were seen to have more positive outcomes, including closeness, than when they did not talk about their relationship. Further, relationship talk appeared to be especially positive in conflictive situations, but the effects of such talk were much weaker in pleasant situations. These findings were conceptualized as evidence of share...

This study evaluated pet affinity as a buffer between ambivalence over emotional expression (AEE) and social support. AEE occurs when one desires to express emotions but is reluctant to do so and is related to negative psychological outcomes. Individuals high in AEE may have difficulty receiving social support and thus may not gain accompanying benefits. Social support has been associated with positive health outcomes, and pet support is positively associated with human social support. The present study explores the potential protective effect of pet affinity. One hundred ninety-eight undergraduate dog owners completed measures assessing perceived social support, pet affinity, and AEE. AEE was expected to be negatively associated with social support, and pet affinity was expected to buffer the negative effects of AEE on social support. We found that AEE was negatively associated with perceived social support. An interaction between pet affinity and AEE emerged such that the negative association between AEE and social support was weaker among those higher in pet affinity. Thus, at high levels of AEE, those who felt a close connection with their pets reported more perceived social support than those less connected with their pets. Overall, these findings emphasize the potential benefits of pet affinity.

The aim of the present study was to test promising constructs (decisional balance and drinking identity) and their interaction with gender as predictors of risky college drinking. We expected that, consistent with previous work, drinking identity would be positively associated with alcohol consumption and problems. We further expected that drinking identity would be more strongly related to outcomes among individuals scoring low in decisional balance. Additionally, we expect the relationship between drinking identity and alcohol behavior to vary as a function of decisional balance.Participants included 329 undergraduates (M=23.11; SD=5.63; 74.47% female) who met heavy drinking criteria (defined as women who consumed 4 or more drinks per occasion and men who consumed 5 or more drinks per occasion) and completed an online survey comprised of self-report measures.Decisional balance was negatively correlated with both drinking and problems, which partially supported expectations. As expected, drinking identity was positively correlated with drinking and problems. A two-way interaction emerged between drinking identity and decisional balance regarding problems, indicating that drinking identity was associated with more problems, especially among those lower in decisional balance. A three-way interaction between drinking identity, decisional balance, and gender emerged regarding problems such that drinking identity was associated with more problems for those lower in decisional balance and this effect was stronger among men.Findings lend support to the perspective that decisional balance, drinking identity, and gender are all influential factors that are associated with the experience of alcohol problems.

Two studies investigated how social comparison to peers through computer-mediated interactions on Facebook might impact users' psychological health. Study 1 (N = 180) revealed an association between time spent on Facebook and depressive symptoms for both genders. However, results demonstrated that making Facebook social comparisons mediated the link between time spent on Facebook and depressive symptoms for men only. Using a 14-day diary design (N = 152), Study 2 found that the relationship between the amount of time spent on Facebook and depressive symptoms was uniquely mediated by upward, nondirectional, and downward Facebook social comparisons. Similarly, all three types of Facebook social comparisons mediated the relationship between the number of Facebook logins and depressive symptoms. Unlike Study 1, gender did not moderate these associations. Both studies provide evidence that people feel depressed after spending a great deal of time on Facebook because they feel badly when comparing themselves to...

Although social networking sites such as Facebook have been touted as creating a global village, there may be a downside to such computer-mediated interactions on user's well-being. One such consequence is that stimuli via computer-mediated interactions may be anxiety-provoking for some users. As such, recent studies have tried to ascertain personality factors and individual differences that are associated with higher anxiety in connection with extensive Facebook use. The current study evaluated the relationships among extraversion, time on Facebook, need for approval, and anxiety among college students (N=280). Results revealed that need for approval significantly moderated the association between extraversion and anxiety. Specifically, individuals higher in extraversion tended to be less anxious, although this was less true for those extraverts who were higher in need for approval. Further, this moderating effect was stronger among extraverts who were high in need for approval and spent more time on Facebook relative to those who spent less time on Facebook. The present research contributes to the emerging literature by providing evidence regarding how personality factors interact with Facebook usage.

The current study investigated whether religious coping would moderate the association between ambivalence over emotional expression (AEE) and depressive symptoms and anxiety symptoms such that the positive relationship between AEE and depressive symptoms and anxiety symptoms would be weaker among those higher in religious coping. Three-hundred and fifty-two undergraduates (M age=23.51 years, SD=6.80; 84.4% female) completed study materials. Contrary to expectations, results revealed a significant interaction between religious coping and AEE such that religious coping exacerbated the relationship between higher AEE and distress symptoms. The implications of this study suggest that religious coping may not be an ideal coping mechanism for individuals with high levels of AEE. These results indicate the need to further examine the role of AEE in religious coping, and have potential implications for clinicians, healthcare professionals, and religious mentors who may promote the use of religious coping in treatment.

Introduction Individuals rate opposite sex faces as more attractive after consuming or being primed with alcohol. However, other traits such as intelligence and likeability have not been examined and might vary as a function of information about one's drinking habits. We expected social drinkers to be rated more positively than heavy drinkers, abstainers, or recovering alcoholics. We further hypothesized that faces with similar drinking habits to participants would be rated as more appealing. Methods Five hundred ninety-four undergraduates viewed 25 opposite sex faces randomly paired with drinking information, and rated each face on perceived appeal. Results Hierarchical linear models revealed that social drinkers were rated as most appealing, as expected. Unexpectedly, recovering alcoholics were rated as the next most appealing, followed by abstainers, then heavy drinkers. The interaction between drinker type and participants' own drinking predicting ratings indicated that the heavier the participant drinks, the more favorably they rated heavy drinkers compared to other types of drinkers. Thus, as expected, ratings varied as a function of participants' own drinking; however, ratings did not vary as a function of participants' alcohol-related problems. Conclusions Findings support hypotheses in that social drinkers were generally perceived as appealing compared to other drinker types, and ratings tended to be influenced by participants' own drinking. Individuals' prototypes and norms regarding drinking may influence how they perceive others when others' drinking habits are known. This might be especially important to consider with heavy drinkers who may seek out others who drink similarly, which could reinforce problematic drinking.

This study evaluates associations between coping drinking motives (CDM; drinking to regulate negative affect), depressive symptoms, and drinking behavior and extends the literature by also taking into account gender differences. Two hundred forty-three college students (Mean age = 22.93, SD = 6.29, 82% female) participated. Based on previous research, we expected that CDM would be positively associated with drinking and problems, particularly among those higher in depressive symptoms, as individuals experiencing higher levels of negative affect (i.e. depressive symptoms) and who drink to cope are likely to drink more and experience more alcohol-related problems. Lastly, based on established gender differences, we expected that CDM would be positively associated with drinking and problems, especially among females higher in depressive symptoms. Unexpectedly, findings suggested that CDMs were positively related to peak drinking, especially among those lower in depressive symptoms. Results further revealed a significant three-way interaction between CDM, depressive symptoms, and gender when predicting alcohol-related problems and drinking frequency. Specifically, we found that CDM were more strongly associated with problems among women who were lower in depressive symptoms; whereas CDM were more strongly associated with problems among men who were higher in depressive symptoms. These findings offer a more comprehensive depiction of the relationship between depressive symptoms, CDM, and drinking behavior by taking into account the importance of gender differences. These results provide additional support for considering gender when designing and implementing alcohol intervention strategies.