High-risk drinking behaviors are a significant health concern on college campuses. There are many negative consequences association with drinking however, alcohol use alone only accounts for a quarter to half of the variance in total consequences. These has led many to question what factors are associated with drinking consequences other than alcohol use. The unified theoretical model states that there are four constructs involved in willingness to experience negative consequences: individuals’ expectancies of experiencing a negative consequence, subjective evaluations of how negative a consequence is perceived, behavioral self-efficacy, and social norms. This study examines intra- and interpersonal predictors of willingness to experience negative consequences associated with alcohol use in college student drinkers.
The study’s sample consisted of 2024 first-year college students from a large, public northeastern university who completed a baseline survey (T1) in the fall of their freshman year and a follow-up survey in the spring (T2). The T1 survey assessed subjective evaluations of negative consequences, perceived likelihood of experiencing negative consequences in the next few months, perceived ability to avoid consequences, perceived peer approval of consequences, and number of drinks consumed during a typical week in the past month. This survey also assessed the following personality predictors: self-regulation, impulsivity, and sensation seeking. The T2 survey measured willingness to experience negative consequences. Data was analyzed using a structural path model.
Results of the data analysis showed that intrapersonal constructs (subjective evaluation and expectancies) and personality constructs (self-regulation, impulsivity, and sensation seeking) accounted for 37.8% of variance in willingness to experience consequences. There was a nonsignificant relationship between interpersonal predictors (descriptive and injunctive norms) and willingness to experience consequences. Heavier T1 drinking and being male were associated with higher willingness to experience consequences.
Takeaway: Subjective evaluations, expectancies, self-regulation, impulsivity, and sensation seeking may be correlated to willingness to experience consequences associated with drinking among college students.