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Background: Descriptive alcohol norms refer to the perception of how frequently and how much peers consume alcohol. University students frequently overestimate descriptive norms, which is positively associated with their own alcohol consumption. Exposure to alcohol-related content on social networking sites (SNS) is also predictive of alcohol-related problems. Objectives: The purpose of this study is to investigate the role of descriptive norms as a potential mediator of the relationship between alcohol exposure via SNS and problematic alcohol consumption. Methods: A total of 175 students in a Canadian university completed the Alcohol and Social Networking Practice Questionnaire to assess activity on SNS, the degree of exposure to alcohol-related content on SNS via peers, and perceptions of the estimated frequency and quantity of alcohol consumed by other students. The Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test was administered to assess a participant’s alcohol consumption patterns. Results: Both frequency and quantity norms partially mediated the relationship between alcohol exposure on SNS and drinking behavior. Conclusion: These results suggest that SNS may be useful to identify at-risk students and may serve as an effective platform for personalized normative feedback interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Despite the widespread rise of online poker playing, there is a paucity of research examining potential predictors for excessive poker playing. The aim of this study was to build on recent research examining motives for Texas Hold'em play in students by determining whether predictors of other kinds of excessive gambling apply to Texas Hold'em. Impulsivity, negative mood states, dissociation, and boredom proneness have been linked to general problem gambling and may play a role in online poker. Participants of this study were self-selected online poker players ( N = 179) who completed an online survey. Results revealed that participants played an average of 20 hours of online poker a week and approximately 9% of the sample was classified as a problem Gambler according to the Canadian Problem Gambling Index. Problem gambling, in this sample, was uniquely predicted by time played, dissociation, boredom proneness, impulsivity, and negative affective states, namely depression, anxiety, and stress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]