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In the present study, we used an experimental paradigm with subjective and objective assessments to further explicate the role of positive emotion dysregulation on risky behavior. Participants were 151 community women currently experiencing intimate partner violence and using substances (age: M = 40.81 years; 30.5% Black). Participants were randomly assigned to positive, negative, and neutral idiographic emotion inductions. Subjective (state self-report) and objective (high-frequency heart rate variability [hfHRV], skin conductance response, and salivary cortisol) markers of emotion dysregulation were assessed, following which participants completed subjective (state urges for substances) and objective (Balloon Analogue Risk Task) measures of risky behavior. Results showed that (a) greater self-reported state emotion dysregulation and lower hfHRV predicted more urges for substances in the positive (vs. negative and neutral) emotion-induction condition and (b) lower hfHRV predicted more behavioral risk-taking propensity in the positive (vs. neutral) emotion-induction condition. These findings provide additional support for the influence of positive emotion dysregulation on risky behavior.

Hazardous substance use is a major public health concern among individuals with a history of sexual victimization. Although increased religiosity has been known to serve as a protective factor against hazardous substance use, religious individuals with a history of sexual victimization may be at a greater risk for hazardous substance use due to difficulties reconciling sexual victimization with their religious beliefs. Individuals with greater trauma-related shame may engage in hazardous substance use as a means of coping with the traumatic event.The present study consisted of 614 participants (MResults suggested that organizational, nonorganizational, and intrinsic religiosity were positively associated with hazardous alcohol use at higher, but not lower, levels of trauma-related shame. Organizational and intrinsic religiosity were positively associated with hazardous drug use at higher, but not lower, levels of trauma-related shame.This is the first study to examine the role of trauma-related shame in the relationship between religiosity and hazardous substance use. The findings underline the importance of targeting trauma-related shame in religious individuals with a history of sexual victimization.

Research examining emotion dysregulation and alcohol use has increased exponentially over the past decade. However, these studies have been limited by their use of cross-sectional designs and narrow definitions of emotion dysregulation. To address these significant gaps in the extant literature, this study utilized state-of-the-art methodology (i.e., experience sampling) and statistics (i.e., dynamic structural equation modeling) to examine potential reciprocal associations between negative and positive emotion dysregulation and alcohol use at the momentary level.Participants were 145 community women (mean age = 40.56, 40.3% white) experiencing intimate partner violence (IPV) and using substances. Surveys assessing negative and positive emotion dysregulation and alcohol use (i.e., number of standard drinks) were administered three times a day for 30 days using phone-based interactive voice recording.Significant contemporaneous effects indicated that negative and positive emotion dysregulation both co-occurred with alcohol use. However, levels of negative and positive emotion dysregulation did not predict later alcohol use, nor did alcohol use predict later levels of negative or positive emotion dysregulation. There was significant variability among participants in cross-lagged effects.Findings showed that negative and positive emotion dysregulation co-occurred with alcohol use and that there was significant interindividual variability in the cross-lagged associations between negative and positive emotion dysregulation and alcohol use. Research using idiographic approaches may identify women experiencing IPV for whom negative and positive emotion dysregulation drive alcohol use and alcohol use drives negative and positive emotion dysregulation.

BACKGROUND: Rates of both depression and alcohol use are disproportionately higher among American Indian (AI) adolescents than adolescents in the general population. The co-occurrence of depression and alcohol use is highly comorbid and clinically relevant given reciprocal negative influences on outcomes. Family factors may be especially relevant for conferring some buffering effect in this relationship due to the importance of kinship and community in AI communities. The purpose of the current study is to examine the roles of family warmth and parent monitoring in the association between depressive symptoms and alcohol use in a large, nationally representative sample of AI adolescents. METHODS: Data collected from 2009–2013 included 3,498 AI 7(th)-12(th) graders residing on or near a reservation (47.8% female). Participants reported on their depressive symptoms, family factors, and alcohol use. RESULTS: Depressive symptoms were statistically significantly positively associated with alcohol use (r=.11, p

OBJECTIVE: Black emerging adults are significantly impacted by substance misuse. Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is associated with heightened substance misuse among Black emerging adults. However, limited research has identified protective factors that may influence the strength of the relation between PTSD and substance misuse in this population. Addressing this important limitation, the present study examined the potential moderating role of perceived social support in the association between PTSD symptoms and substance (i.e., alcohol and drug) misuse. METHODS: Participants were 182 trauma-exposed Black emerging adults (M age = 20.50; 71.3% women) who completed self-report measures assessing PTSD symptoms, alcohol and drug misuse, and perceived social support. RESULTS: PTSD symptoms were significantly and positively correlated with both alcohol and drug misuse. Moderation analyses indicated that positive relations between PTSD symptoms and both alcohol and drug misuse were only significant among Black emerging adults with lower (but not higher) levels of perceived social support. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest the potential utility of addressing social support in the assessment and treatment of substance misuse in trauma-exposed Black emerging adults.

OBJECTIVES: Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is characterized in part by negative alterations of cognition or mood, including alterations in emotional expressivity, or the extent to which one outwardly displays emotions. Yet, research in this area has relied on predominantly White samples and neglected to consider the potential role of gender, despite there being demonstrated gender differences in both PTSD symptom severity and emotional expressivity, separately. The goal of the current study was to fill a critical gap in the literature by examining the moderating role of gender in the relation between PTSD symptom severity and emotional expressivity in a sample of trauma-exposed Black adults. METHODS: Participants were 207 Black individuals enrolled in a historically Black university in the Southern United States (68.6% female; M(age) = 22.32 years). RESULTS: Findings provided support for the moderating role of gender in the association between PTSD symptom severity and emotional expressivity. Specifically, greater PTSD symptom severity was inversely related to emotional expressivity among trauma-exposed Black males and positively associated with emotional expressivity among trauma-exposed Black females. DISCUSSION: These results suggest the potential need for gender-specific assessment and treatment techniques for PTSD symptom severity among trauma-exposed Black college students.

Alcohol misuse is a serious and pervasive problem among US military Veterans. The commission or omission of acts that transgress important moral standards, known as potentially morally injurious events (PMIEs), has been theoretically and empirically linked to alcohol misuse in this population. Emotion dysregulation has been implicated in the pathogenesis of alcohol misuse and may be relevant in the context of PMIEs. The goal of this study was to examine the roles of negative and positive emotion dysregulation in the relation between PMIEs and alcohol misuse. Participants were a community sample of US military Veterans who were predominantly white (69.5%) and male (71.6%), with a mean age of 38.00. The interaction between PMIEs and both negative and positive emotion dysregulation (separately) significantly predicted alcohol misuse. Simple slopes tests revealed that the relation between PMIEs and alcohol misuse was only significant at high levels of negative and positive emotion dysregulation. Findings underscore the potential utility of targeting both negative and positive emotion dysregulation in alcohol misuse interventions for military Veterans experiencing PMIEs.

OBJECTIVE There are ethnic-racial differences in the prevalence of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). However, the factors underlying these differences are not well studied or understood. The goal of this study was to explore the relation of strength of ethnic-racial identity to PTSD. Specifically, we examined whether strength of ethnic-racial identity was indirectly related to PTSD symptom severity through positive and negative emotional avoidance. METHOD Participants were 401 trauma-exposed community individuals (Mage = 43.86 years; 70.1% female; 23.4% Asian, 23.7% Black, 25.1% Hispanic, 25.4% White). RESULTS Within the overall sample of ethnic-racial minorities, the indirect effect of strength of ethnic-racial identity on PTSD symptom severity through the pathways of both positive and negative emotional avoidance was significant. However, these findings were not replicated within each of the specific racial-ethnic subsamples. Specifically, while strength of ethnic-racial identity was indirectly associated with PTSD symptom severity through both positive and negative emotional avoidance in the Black subsample, this indirect effect was only significant through the pathway of positive emotional avoidance in the Hispanic subsample, and was nonsignificant in the Asian and White subsamples. CONCLUSIONS Results underscore ethnic-racial differences in the way in which strength of ethnic-racial identity impacts PTSD. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

BACKGROUND: Alcohol and drug misuse present significant public health concerns due to their high prevalence and deleterious outcomes. A growing body of research provides support for the role of difficulties regulating positive emotions in alcohol and drug misuse. However, research is needed to better understand for whom difficulties regulating positive emotions are most strongly associated with alcohol and drug misuse to inform assessment and treatment efforts. OBJECTIVES: The goal of the present study was to examine potential sociodemographic moderators (i.e., age, gender, ethnicity, race, income, and educational attainment) in the relations between difficulties regulating positive emotions and alcohol and drug misuse. METHODS: Participants were 373 trauma-exposed adults (57.1% female, 75.8% White) recruited from the community. RESULTS: Significant differences were identified across sociodemographic groups regarding difficulties regulating positive emotions (i.e., gender, ethnicity, race, and income) and alcohol use (i.e., gender). Moderation analyses revealed a significant interaction between difficulties regulating positive emotions and gender on drug misuse (b = 0.08, p < .001), such that the association was significant for females (b = 0.11, p < .001) but not males (b = .03, p = .05). CONCLUSIONS: Results suggest the importance of developing gender-sensitive recommendations for the assessment and treatment of substance misuse, and of incorporating techniques focused on addressing difficulties regulating positive emotions.

OBJECTIVE: Emotion regulation is a transdiagnostic mechanism with relevance to the etiology, maintenance, and treatment of a wide range of clinically relevant outcomes. The current study applied systematic review methods to summarize the existing literature examining racial and ethnic differences in emotion regulation. METHODS: We systematically searched four electronic databases (PsycINFO, Embase, MEDLINE, CINAHL Plus) using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines. RESULTS: Of the initial 1,253 articles, 25 met the inclusion criteria. Findings for emotion regulation strategies generally provide evidence for racial/ethnic differences (71% of reviewed studies), with ethnoracial minorities largely exhibiting greater use of emotion regulation strategies. Whereas the results for emotion regulation potential were slightly more mixed (63% of reviewed studies found racial/ethnic differences), ethnoracial minorities were also largely found to report lower emotion regulation potential. CONCLUSION: This review advances literature by providing additional support for racial and ethnic differences in emotion regulation.

Given the disproportionate rate of alcohol misuse among veterans and related outcomes as compared to the general population, the examination of predictors of alcohol misuse in this population is imperative. Potentially morally injurious events (PMIEs), defined as severe transgressions of a moral code, have been positively associated with alcohol misuse. Exposure to PMIEs may challenge one’s religious beliefs, which may, in turn, influence the strength of the association between PMIEs and alcohol misuse among military veterans. The goal of the current study was to examine the potential moderating role of religiosity in the association between PMIEs and alcohol misuse (i.e., alcohol consumption, drinking behaviors, adverse reactions to drinking, and alcohol-related problems). Participants were 496 military veterans in the community (M(age) = 37.80 years, SD = 11.42; 70.5% male). The results of moderation analyses indicated that overall religiosity, organizational religiosity, and intrinsic religiosity significantly moderated the association between PMIEs and alcohol misuse such that the positive relation between PMIEs and alcohol misuse was stronger at high versus low levels of religiosity, R(2)s = .01. Our findings highlight the importance of considering the role of religiosity in relation to alcohol misuse as a moral injury outcome and the potential utility of tailoring treatments for military veterans who have experienced moral injury.

Background: Military veterans are at greater risk for substance misuse. Positive emotional intensity is one well-established antecedent of substance misuse in this population. Positive emotional av...