Problem drinking in this study is defined as “a continuum encompassing symptoms of alcohol use disorder, heavy binge drinking, and drinking in hazardous ways.” Parental problem drinking (PPD) is a well-known risk factor for problem drinking. Motivational factors have the potential to disrupt the correlation between PPD and adolescent alcohol use disorder (AUD). This study examines motivation to abstain from alcohol as a moderator of associations between PPD and problem drinking in college students. College students were picked for this study population due to the high prevalence of problem drinking.
This study comprised 377 college students enrolled in a Southeastern United States public university. Most participants were under 21 and in their first year of university. Personal problem drinking was measured by having the students complete the Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test(AUDIT). Parental problem drinking was measured via the Children of Alcoholic Screening Test. Motivation to abstain from alcohol and covariates, such as participants’ demographics, were also measured. Demographics included participant racial/ethnic identity, sex, and subjective family socioeconomic status.
Results of this study suggested that motivation to abstain from drinking to dispositional risk did moderate the associations between mother problem drinking and offspring AUDIT scores between father problem drinking and offspring AUDIT scores. Those who had low motivation to abstain based on dispositional risk were more at risk from the intergenerational transmission of problem drinking. Conviction-related motivation could be a more powerful motivation to refrain from drinking due to their association with lower problem drinking scores regardless of an individual’s exposure to PPD.
Takeaway: Individuals with low motivation to abstain based on dispositional risk were more at risk from the intergenerational transmission of problem drinking