Search

Alcohol and marijuana are two of the most commonly used substances among young adults in the United States. In the past year, approximately 82% of young adults ages 19 to [...]

Background Research demonstrates that perceptions of others’ attitudes toward drinking behaviors (injunctive norms) are strong predictors of alcohol consumption and problems. Personalized normative feedback (PNF) aims to reduce the discrepancy between one’s perception of others’ attitudes toward drinking and others’ actual attitudes toward drinking. An implicit assumption of PNF is that self and (perceived) other attitudes toward drinking are aligned (thus, shifting one’s perceptions of others’ attitudes shifts one’s own attitudes). However, there is minimal research on the extent to which alignment (or discrepancy) in self-other attitudes toward drinking is associated with alcohol-related outcomes. Methods College students (N = 1,494; Mage = 20.11, 61.0% female, 66.4% White) who endorsed past-month heavy episodic drinking reported injunctive norms toward drinking on weekends, drinking daily, drinking to black out, and drinking and driving. Participants reported their perceptions of attitudes toward these drinking behaviors for three reference groups: close friends, typical university-affiliated peers, and parents. Outcomes included weekly drinking, alcohol problems, and alcohol-related risk. Results Response surface analyses indicated that alignment in approval (versus alignment in disapproval) of drinking demonstrated a linear association with alcohol-related outcomes. Discrepancies in self-peer and self-parent attitudes were associated with alcohol-related outcomes and one’s own attitudes (versus one’s ratings of others’ attitudes) of drinking were more strongly associated with outcomes. Conclusions Results provide evidence of how self-other discrepancies in attitudes toward drinking are associated with alcohol-related outcomes. Future work is needed to test whether self-other discrepancies in attitudes toward drinking impacts response to norms-based interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We examined the correspondence between college students' (N = 192, 71% women) definitions of free-pours and their free-poured volumes of beer, wine, and liquor. Participants' mean beer definitions and free-pours were positively correlated; participants' mean wine and liquor definitions were larger than their free-pours, which were fairly accurate. Contrary to what the aggregate mean values indicated, fewer than half of the participants accurately free-poured a standard volume of beer, wine, or liquor (37.4%, 35.1%, and 22.2%, respectively) or provided an accurate definition of beer (45.8%); similar to the aggregate data, few participants provided accurate definitions of standard serving of wine (12.2%) or liquor (12.8%) Instead, a majority of participants' definitions and free-pours were well over or under a standard serving. For all three types of alcohol, there was little correspondence between each individual participant's definitions and his or her free-poured volumes. These data suggest analyses of individual data points may provide information important for data collection, prevention, and intervention strategies.

Objective: Cannabis is the most used psychoactive substance among adolescents and is a public health concern. Cannabis demand is a quantifiable measure of the reinforcing value of cannabis and comprises two latent-factors--amplitude (maximum consumption) and persistence (sensitivity to increasing costs). Cannabis demand and cannabis motives are important predictors of adolescent cannabis use and associated problems; however, little is known about how these two facets of motivation are causally related. Cannabis motives are thought to represent the final common pathway to cannabis use and may explain why elevated demand is associated with use and consequences. The present study tested whether internal cannabis motives (coping and enjoyment) mediated longitudinal associations between cannabis demand, use (hours high), and negative consequences. Method: Participants aged 15-18 years old (n = 89, Mage = 17.0, SD = 0.9) who reported lifetime cannabis use completed online assessments of cannabis demand, motives, use and negative consequences at baseline, 3-month, and 6-month follow-up. Results: PROCESS mediation models revealed that enjoyment motives mediated the association between amplitude and persistence and use. In addition, coping motives mediated the association between amplitude and negative consequences. Conclusions: These findings suggest that internal motives, while differentially related to aspects of demand and cannabis outcomes, are important in understanding adolescent cannabis use. Prevention efforts aimed at limiting access to cannabis and increasing access to substance-free activities may be important targets for adolescents. Further, cannabis interventions targeting specific motives for using (e.g., to cope with negative affect) may be important for reducing cannabis demand. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The inclusion of pathological gaming behavior in the most recent editions of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual and the International Classification of Diseases highlights the need for increased research on this emerging topic of public health concern. Behavioral economic theories have informed conceptual and treatment models of addictive behaviors and may have a similar impact on our understanding of video gaming. The current study used an online version of the Multiple-Choice Procedure (MCP) to measure the relative reinforcing value of hypothetical video game playing for different temporal magnitudes (i.e., 10, 30, and 90 min during which to play a video game) relative to alternative monetary reinforcers available immediately or after a 1-week delay. Participants completed the MCP and the Video Game Dependency Scale (VGDS) to assess problems associated with internet gaming disorder. Similar to other addictive behaviors measured with the MCP, mean crossover points increased as temporal magnitudes increased and as delay was introduced to the alternative monetary reinforcer. MCP crossover points also added to the variance accounted for in VGDS scores. Being male was a significant predictor of VGDS scores, even after accounting for their higher frequency of video game playing. The current study is the first to investigate a behavioral economics model of video game playing. The findings strengthen the notion that similar behavioral mechanisms account for a wide range of addictive behavior. Future research is needed to assess the treatment utility of the MCP and other behavioral economic measures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Use of electricity is a significant contributor to climate change. Results from several studies have demonstrated short ‐ term success but long ‐ term success is rarely assessed, and weather is rarely measured despite its effects on energy use. We evaluated the long ‐ term effects of a multi ‐ element intervention package including visual prompts, feedback, and incentives on energy usage in two sorority houses over two years (four semesters) using a multiple baseline with reversal design while also accounting for weather fluctuations over that time period. Although daily graphs suggested intervention houses reduced their relative energy use compared to baseline, functional control over behavior was not established because reductions in energy consumption were observed approximately halfway through baseline, due possibly to reactivity; control houses showed no such pattern. Moreover, bubble graphs accounting for weather suggested an increase in energy use for the intervention house during Semester 1. We discuss the limitations of this study, suggestions for future research, and use of innovative methods of graphing energy use to better understand usage patterns and account for weather fluctuations. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses a study of the retention in medication-assisted treatment among patients suffering from opiate dependence. Topics covered include the medication and behavioral therapy factors associated with retention, the difference in the retention rates of patients who received a placebo and those who were treated with naltrexone or buprenorphine, and the potential of contingency management to improve the retention.

Background: Research demonstrates that perceptions of others' attitudes toward drinking behaviors ( injunctive norms ) are strong predictors of alcohol consumption and problems. Personalized normative feedback (PNF) aims to reduce the discrepancy between one's perception of others' attitudes toward drinking and others' actual attitudes toward drinking. An implicit assumption of PNF is that self and (perceived) other attitudes toward drinking are aligned (thus, shifting one's perceptions of others' attitudes shifts one's own attitudes). However, there is minimal research on the extent to which alignment (or discrepancy) in self-other attitudes toward drinking is associated with alcohol-related outcomes., Methods: College students ( N  = 1,494; M age = 20.11, 61.0% female, 66.4% White) who endorsed past-month heavy episodic drinking reported injunctive norms toward drinking on weekends, drinking daily, drinking to black out, and drinking and driving. Participants reported their perceptions of attitudes toward these drinking behaviors for three reference groups: close friends, typical university-affiliated peers, and parents. Outcomes included weekly drinking, alcohol problems, and alcohol-related risk., Results: Response surface analyses indicated that alignment in approval (versus alignment in disapproval) of drinking demonstrated a linear association with alcohol-related outcomes. Discrepancies in self-peer and self-parent attitudes were associated with alcohol-related outcomes and one's own attitudes (versus one's ratings of others' attitudes) of drinking were more strongly associated with outcomes., Conclusions: Results provide evidence of how self-other discrepancies in attitudes toward drinking are associated with alcohol-related outcomes. Future work is needed to test whether self-other discrepancies in attitudes toward drinking impacts response to norms-based interventions.