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Binge drinking is a relatively common pattern of alcohol use among youth with normative frequency trajectories peaking in emerging and early adulthood. Frequent binge drinking is a critical risk factor for not only the development of alcohol use disorders (AUDs) but also increased odds of alcohol-related injury and death, and thus constitutes a significant public health concern. Changes in binge drinking across development are strongly associated with changes in impulsive personality traits (IPTs) which have been hypothesized as intermediate phenotypes associated with genetic risk for heavy alcohol use and AUD. The current study sought to examine the extent to which longitudinal changes in binge drinking and intoxication frequency across adolescence and early adulthood are associated with genetic influences underlying dual-systems IPTs (i.e., top-down [lack of self-control] and bottom-up [sensation seeking and urgency] constructs) alongside genetic risk for alcohol consumption and AUD. Associations were tested using conditional latent growth curve polygenic score (PGS) models in three independent longitudinal samples ( N =10,554). Results suggested consistent significant and independent associations across all samples between sensation seeking PGSs and model intercepts (i.e., higher frequency of binge drinking at first measurement occasion) and alcohol consumption PGSs and model slopes (i.e., steeper increases toward peak binge drinking frequency). Urgency PGSs were not significantly associated with changes in binge drinking or intoxication frequency. Collectively, these findings highlight the role of unique but correlated IPT and alcohol-specific genetic factors in the emergence and escalation of binge drinking during adolescence and early adulthood.

Limited data exists on mechanisms contributing to elevated risk for alcohol use disorder (AUD) in bipolar disorder. Variation in subjective response to alcohol may relate to alcohol use and risk for AUD. This study used a randomized, placebo-controlled, cross-over, within-subjects design to investigate differences in subjective response to alcohol in 50 euthymic young adults (n = 24 with and n = 26 without bipolar disorder type I). Eighty-three percent of participants with bipolar disorder were medicated. Participants completed assessments of clinical history, alcohol expectancies, and recent alcohol use. Participants were dosed to a .08 g% breath alcohol concentration. The placebo condition occurred on a separate counter-balanced day. Subjective response to alcohol was investigated at similar time points during both conditions. Group, condition, and group-by-condition interactions were modeled, with condition and time of subjective response assessment as repeated within-subject variables, and subjective response to alcohol as the dependent variable. Greater stimulating effects and liking of alcohol were reported in people with bipolar disorder (group-by-condition interactions, p < .05) than healthy young adults. While young adults with bipolar disorder reported anticipating feeling less "mellow/relaxed" when drinking (p = .02), during both beverage conditions they reported feeling more "mellow/relaxed" (main effect of group, p = .006). Feeling more "mellow/relaxed" during the alcohol condition related to greater recent alcohol use in bipolar disorder (p = .001). Exploratory analyses suggested anticonvulsants and sedatives/antihistamines may relate to differences in subjective response to alcohol in bipolar disorder. Results suggest young adults with bipolar disorder may differ in alcohol expectancies and experience alcohol intoxication differently-with distinct relations between subjective response to alcohol and alcohol use-compared to healthy young adults., (© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

Bipolar disorder co-occurs with alcohol use disorder at a rate 3-5 times higher than the general population. We recently reported that individuals with bipolar disorder differ in the positive stimulating and anxiolytic effects of alcohol compared with healthy peers. This study used a randomized, placebo-controlled, cross-over, within-subject alcohol administration design to investigate neurobiological mechanisms within ventral prefrontal cortical (vPFC) systems that may underlie altered sensitivity to alcohol in bipolar disorder (NCT04063384). Forty-seven young adults (n = 23 with bipolar disorder, 64% women) completed clinical assessment and two beverage administration sessions (alcohol and placebo, counter-balanced). Participants were dosed to 0.08 g% breath alcohol concentration during the alcohol condition and completed measures of subjective response to alcohol and an emotional processing fMRI task during the ascending limb. Timing during the placebo condition mirrored the alcohol session. Acute alcohol was associated with reduced functional connectivity between the insula - subcallosal cingulate cortex, and increased connectivity between the left nucleus accumbens - ventromedial PFC in bipolar disorder, but with no change in functional connectivity between these regions in healthy peers. Alcohol-related increases in nucleus accumbens - ventromedial PFC functional connectivity was associated with greater positive stimulating effects of alcohol in bipolar disorder and heavier recent alcohol use. Results suggest vPFC brain systems respond differently to acute alcohol during emotional processing in young adults with bipolar disorder compared with healthy peers, and that vPFC system responses relate to the subjective experience of intoxication and recent alcohol use., (© 2023. American College of Neuropsychopharmacology.)

Early life stress, specifically childhood maltreatment, and parental risk for mood and substance use disorders (SUDs) are associated with increased risk for alcohol use disorder (AUD). There is limited data on how these factors interact to contribute to alcohol-related outcomes. Prior work has suggested early life stress may increase sensitivity to psychostimulants and that subjective response to alcohol is heritable. It is unclear if early life stress alters sensitivity to alcohol and interacts with parental risk for mood/SUDs, which in turn may act as a risk factor for AUD. The current study uses within-subjects placebo-controlled alcohol administration methods to investigate the effects of childhood maltreatment on subjective response to alcohol in young adults with and without parental risk of mood/SUDs. Additionally, we explored interactions with drinking context (i.e., drinking in a bar vs. non-bar context). Within individuals with parental risk for mood/SUDs, there was a positive relation between total Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ) score and how drunk individuals reported feeling across both alcohol and placebo conditions (parental risk group-by-CTQ interaction p = .01; main effect of CTQ within individuals with parental risk for mood/SUDs p = .005). When exploring interactions with drinking context (bar vs. non-bar context), we observed a significant drinking context-by-parental risk-by-CTQ interaction (p = .03), with CTQ score positively associated with greater positive valence/positive arousal feelings in the parental risk group if they consumed their beverages in the bar context (p = .004) but not if they consumed their beverages in the non-bar context. Results suggest childhood maltreatment may contribute to variation in subjective response to the positive effects of alcohol-possibly mediated by alcohol cues and/or expectancies-in young adults with parental risk for mood/SUDs., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest We do not believe this relationship could influence the reported results, but we report them for transparency. ETCL received funding for a Janssen-sponsored study through University of Texas at Austin. All other authors report no conflicts of interest., (Copyright © 2023. Published by Elsevier Inc.)

Objective: The beginning of college is a period in which increased alcohol use often coincides with greater involvement in romantic relationships. Existing literature yields inconsistent findings regarding the influence of relationship types on drinking behavior, perhaps because these studies have not accounted for recent changes in the way college students engage in dating/sexual relationships., Methods: The present study sought to address this issue using a longitudinal study design by examining the effects of both relationship type and sexual activity on heavy episodic drinking (HED) among 1,847 college students over the course of the first 3 semesters of college., Results: Results indicated that the effects of relationship type depended on whether an individual was sexually active. Nondating but sexually active students reported rates of HED comparable to students who defined themselves as casual daters. Conversely, nondating students who were not sexually active reported drinking behavior similar to those involved in exclusive relationships. Further, transitions between low- and high-risk relationship/sexual activity types were associated with corresponding changes in HED. Transitioning into a high-risk relationship was associated with significant increases in levels of HED, whereas transitioning into a low-risk relationship was associated with significant decreases in HED., Conclusions: Together, results indicate that engaging in nonexclusive dating or casual sexual relationships may play an important role in the development of problematic patterns of alcohol use during the early college years. These findings have potentially important implications both for future research and for prevention and intervention efforts targeting high-risk college drinkers., (© 2020 by the Research Society on Alcoholism.)

Objective: College athletes are a high-risk group for heavy drinking and related risky behaviors and consequences. However, most prior work examining drinking behavior in college athletes has been cross-sectional. Drinking norms predict drinking among athletes, but other potential risk factors, including personality traits have received limited attention., Method: Using data from a large sample ( n = 2,245) of college students, we examined athletic participation, high-risk personality traits (i.e., impulsivity, sensation seeking), and perceptions of peer drinking behavior (descriptive and injunctive norms) as predictors of binge drinking from prior to college entry through 2 years postcollege. Negative binomial latent growth models were used to examine these predictors of patterns of drinking across the college years., Results: Binge drinking increased through the first 3 years of college before leveling off and decreasing postcollege. Controlling for significant effects of sensation seeking and perceptions of peer attitudes and drinking behaviors, athletic participation at T1 was associated with greater binge drinking at matriculation and greater athletic participation was associated with greater risk across the college years. Normative perceptions and sensation seeking also predicted concurrent drinking in Year 4 of college and impulsivity emerged as an additional predictor. Sensation seeking emerged as a significant predictor of greater postcollege binge drinking. Athletic participation in Year 4 of college indicated no significant risk for greater binge drinking during Year 4 or following graduation., Conclusions: Early participation in competitive athletics was associated with risk for binge drinking, even when accounting for several social and personality factors. Future studies using momentary assessment may be fruitful for identifying within-subject pathways of risk, including athlete specific factors. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Background: Rates of alcohol use disorders in individuals with bipolar disorder are 3 to 5 times greater than in the general population and exceed rates of alcohol use disorders reported in other affective and anxiety disorders. Despite this high rate of comorbidity, our understanding of the psychosocial and neural mechanisms that underlie the initiation of alcohol misuse in young adults with bipolar disorder remains limited. Prior work suggests that individuals with bipolar disorder may misuse alcohol as a coping mechanism, yet the neural correlates of coping drinking motives and associated alcohol use have not been previously investigated in this population., Methods: Forty-eight young adults (22 bipolar disorder type I, 26 typically developing; 71% women; average age ± standard deviation = 22 ± 2 years) completed the Drinking Motives and Daily Drinking Questionnaires, and a Continuous Performance Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) Task with Emotional and Neutral Distracters. We calculated the relative difference in anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) functional coupling with the anterior insula and amygdala in response to emotional distracters compared with neutral stimuli and investigated the relations with coping drinking motives and alcohol use., Results: Across all participants, coping drinking motives were associated with greater quantity of recent alcohol use. In individuals with bipolar disorder, greater ACC-anterior insula functional coupling was associated with greater coping drinking motives, and greater quantity and frequency of recent alcohol use. The relative difference in ACC-anterior insula functional coupling was not associated with coping drinking motives or alcohol use in the typically developing group. Greater ACC-anterior insula functional coupling in individuals with bipolar disorder was also associated with greater anxiety symptoms and recent perceived psychological stress. Exploratory analyses suggest that the relations between ACC-anterior insula functional coupling and coping drinking motives may be confounded by anticonvulsant use., Conclusion: Results suggest that a difference in ACC-anterior insula functional coupling during emotion processing may underlie alcohol use as a maladaptive coping mechanism in young adults with bipolar disorder., (© 2022 Research Society on Alcoholism.)

(1) Background: Alcohol use in the course of mood disorders is associated with worse clinical outcomes. The mechanisms by which alcohol use alters the course of illness are unclear but may relate to prefrontal cortical (PFC) sensitivity to alcohol. We investigated associations between alcohol use and PFC structural trajectories in young adults with a mood disorder compared to typically developing peers. (2) Methods: 41 young adults (24 with a mood disorder, agemean = 21 ± 2 years) completed clinical evaluations, assessment of alcohol use, and two structural MRI scans approximately one year apart. Freesurfer was used to segment PFC regions of interest (ROIs) (anterior cingulate, orbitofrontal cortex, and frontal pole). Effects of group, alcohol use, time, and interactions among these variables on PFC ROIs at baseline and follow-up were modeled. Associations were examined between alcohol use and longitudinal changes in PFC ROIs with prospective mood. (3) Results: Greater alcohol use was prospectively associated with decreased frontal pole volume in participants with a mood disorder, but not typically developing comparison participants (time-by-group-by-alcohol interaction; p = 0.007); however, this interaction became a statistical trend in a sensitivity analysis excluding one outlier in terms of alcohol use. Greater alcohol use and a decrease in frontal pole volume related to longer duration of major depression during follow-up (p’s < 0.05). (4) Conclusion: Preliminary findings support more research on alcohol use, PFC trajectories, and depression recurrence in young adults with a mood disorder including individuals with heavier drinking patterns.

Objective: The current project aims to enhance our understanding of the well-established relation between fraternity membership and sexual aggression on college campuses. Most prior research has been cross-sectional and unable to distinguish selection and socialization accounts of the relation, and only one prior longitudinal study has simultaneously examined selection and socialization effects., Method: Fraternity membership, sexual aggression, binge drinking, sociosexual attitudes and behaviors, and perceived peer sexual aggression were assessed for 772 male participants ( n = 116 fraternity members) in a longitudinal survey study from the summer prior to college through Year 2 of college., Results: Longitudinal path analyses revealed three key findings. First, fraternity membership was prospectively correlated with sexual aggression in Years 1 and 2 of college (socialization effect), controlling for selection effects, when the two prospective paths were constrained to be equivalent. Second, more frequent binge drinking and sociosexual attitudes prior to college prospectively correlated with an increased likelihood of joining a fraternity (selection effect), and both selection variables indirectly correlated with future sexual aggression via fraternity membership. Third, fraternity membership was associated with increased binge drinking and perceived peer sexual aggression (socialization effects)., Conclusions: These findings identify critical targets for the prevention of sexually aggressive behavior that are linked to fraternity membership: Binge drinking and sociosexual attitudes. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

Prior research demonstrates contextual influences on drug responses in both animals and humans, although studies in humans typically focus on only one aspect of context (e.g., social) and examine a limited range of subjective experiences. The current study sought to address these limitations by examining the impact of both social and physical context on the full range of subjective alcohol effects. The sample included 448 young adult social drinkers (57% male, 66.5% White) randomly assigned to consume alcohol (target blood alcohol concentration of .08 g%) or placebo in 1 of 4 contexts (solitary lab, group lab, solitary bar, group bar). Results indicated that high arousal positive (HAP) effects of alcohol (e.g., talkative, lively) were stronger in nonbar relative to bar contexts and that low arousal positive (LAP) effects (e.g., relaxed, calm) were only present in the group lab context. There were also main effects of social context such that high arousal effects (both positive and negative) were stronger in group contexts, regardless of beverage condition. These findings highlight the importance of considering context when examining alcohol effects. Studies designed to isolate pharmacological HAP effects may benefit from a nonbar setting, and studies of LAP effects might be most effective in a simulated living room or home environment, although future studies are needed to directly address this possibility. Further, studies with an explicit focus on expectancies or that need strong control for expectancies might benefit from a group context, particularly when studying high arousal effects. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

There are startling rates of sexual coercion across college campuses, underscoring the importance of identifying risk factors and intervening early to prevent perpetration of these unwanted sexual events. The aim of this study was to examine the effects of impulsivity, sensation seeking, and alcohol use on the odds of perpetrating unwanted sexual advances (i.e., forced fondling, kissing, or petting) and sexual coercion (i.e., sexual intercourse through arguments, pressure, or physical force) during the subsequent 6 years. Male participants ( N = 901) were part of a 6-year longitudinal study, which explored alcohol use and associated behavioral risks throughout emerging adulthood. Participants provided self-reported surveys across 6 years, starting the summer before their start of college. Using logistic regression models, these analyses examined the main effects and interactions of impulsivity, sensation seeking, and alcohol use, measured during the summer before the start of college, on the odds of perpetrating one or multiple instances of unwanted sexual advances and sexual coercion across the subsequent 6 years. Results indicated that higher levels of sensation seeking and heavier drinking on drinking days during high school contributed to greater odds of being a one-time perpetrator of unwanted sexual advances during the next 6 years. Conversely, impulsivity, but not alcohol use, was associated with greater risk of perpetrating multiple instances of both unwanted sexual advances and sexual coercion. Alcohol use did not significantly moderate the influence of personality on perpetration. These results underscore the importance of early intervention and using impulsivity and sensation seeking to tailor current prevention efforts to decrease the likelihood of sexual coercion perpetration during college.

Background: Alcohol use disorders (AUDs) are highly prevalent in bipolar disorder, however the developmental etiology of this comorbidity remains unknown. Structural differences in the orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) have been linked to problematic drinking in bipolar disorder and typically developing youth, with evidence implicating variations in OFC in differential subjective response to alcohol in typical development., Methods: Subjective response to alcohol, recent alcohol use, impulsivity, and variation in OFC gray matter volume were investigated in 48 emerging adults (24 with bipolar disorder, 24 typically developing). On average 1.5 years later, drinking patterns were reassessed and relations between subjective response and changes in alcohol use were explored., Results: Groups did not differ in baseline alcohol use or subjective response. At baseline, decreased subjective response to alcohol was associated with increased alcohol use in both groups. Lower gray matter volume in medial OFC in bipolar disorder was associated with increased subjective response to alcohol, whereas lower gray matter volume in OFC in typically developing participants was associated with decreased subjective response to alcohol. Increase in alcohol use (baseline to follow-up) was associated with increased baseline subjective response to alcohol in bipolar disorder, and decreased baseline subjective response in the typically developing group., Limitations: Preliminary study with a small sample size., Conclusion: Underlying OFC biology may contribute to differences in alcohol sensitivity in bipolar disorder which may also relate to prospective changes in alcohol use patterns. Future studies are needed to examine how these factors prospectively relate to development of AUDs in bipolar disorder., (Copyright © 2020. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

Childhood maltreatment is associated with adverse effects on the brain, and an increased risk for psychopathology, including mood and substance use disorders. Individuals vary on the degree to which they exhibit neurobiological and clinical differences following maltreatment. Individuals with bipolar disorder exhibit greater magnitude of maltreatment-related prefrontal-paralimbic gray matter volume (GMV) deficits compared to typically developing individuals. It is unclear if greater structural differences stem from greater neural vulnerability to maltreatment in bipolar disorder, or if they relate to presence of other clinical features associated with childhood maltreatment, e.g., elevated prevalence of comorbid substance use disorders. To investigate this, we compared young adults with a family history of bipolar disorder (n = 21), but who did not fulfill diagnostic criteria for bipolar disorder, with typically developing young adults without a family history of bipolar disorder (n = 26). Participants completed structural neuroimaging, clinical and family history interviews, and assessment of childhood maltreatment and recent alcohol and cannabis use patterns. We examined relations between childhood maltreatment and prefrontal-paralimbic GMV by modeling main effects of maltreatment and family history group by maltreatment interactions on prefrontal-paralimbic GMV. We also examined relations between maltreatment and associated GMV changes with recent alcohol and cannabis use. Childhood maltreatment correlated with lower ventral, rostral and dorsolateral prefrontal and insular cortical GMV across all participants regardless of the presence or absence of familial history of bipolar disorder. However, exploratory analyses did reveal greater maltreatment-related GMV differences in individuals with prodromal symptoms of depression. Lower insula GMV was associated with greater frequency of cannabis use across all participants and greater quantity of alcohol use only in those with familial risk for bipolar disorder. Results suggest familial risk for bipolar disorder, and presumably genetic risk, may relate to outcomes following childhood maltreatment and should be considered in prevention/early intervention strategies.

Dating violence presents a serious threat for individual health and well-being. A growing body of literature suggests that starting in adolescence, individuals with sexual minority identities (e.g., individuals who identify as gay, lesbian, or bisexual) may be at an increased risk for dating violence compared with heterosexuals. Research has not, however, identified the mechanisms that explain this vulnerability. Using a diverse sample of young adults ( n = 2,474), the current study explored how minority stress theory, revictimization theory, sex of sexual partners, and risky sexual behavior explained differences in dating violence between sexual minority and heterosexual young adults. Initial analyses suggested higher rates of dating violence among individuals who identified as bisexual, and individuals who identified as gay or lesbian when compared with heterosexuals, and further found that these associations failed to differ across gender. When mediating and control variables were included in the analyses, however, the association between both sexual minority identities and higher levels of dating violence became nonsignificant. Of particular interest was the role of discrimination, which mediated the association between bisexual identity and dating violence. Other factors, including sex and number of sexual partners, alcohol use, and childhood maltreatment, were associated with higher rates of dating violence but did not significantly explain vulnerability among sexual minority individuals compared with their heterosexual peers. These findings suggest the importance of minority stress theory in explaining vulnerability to dating violence victimization among bisexuals in particular, and generally support the importance of sexual-minority specific variables in understanding risk for dating violence within this vulnerable population.

The present study examined the acute effect of alcohol and its cues on autonomic and cardiovascular physiology, as indexed by changes in heart rate (HR), in a relatively large sample of healthy young adult men and women. Participants (27-31 years old, final N = 145) were administered an alcoholic beverage ( n = 88; 52 women) or a placebo beverage ( n = 57; 35 women) in a simulated bar. Target breath alcohol concentration (BrAC) was .08 g%. HR was recorded while participants were seated alone during an initial baseline assessment in a lab room; seated with others during preparation and administration of 2 beverages in a simulated bar; and seated alone in the lab room at ascending, peak, and descending BrAC. HR increased over time for participants in both beverage groups during beverage preparation. During beverage consumption, HR decreased over time in those who drank placebo whereas HR increased over time in those who drank alcohol, increasing at a faster rate in women compared to men. HR remained elevated at the ascending, peak, and descending limb assessments only in participants who drank alcohol with HR increasing over time at ascending BrAC in the women but not men. Sex differences in HR under alcohol were not explained by sex differences in body mass index, BrAC, recent alcohol use, or subjective stimulation. Our findings suggest that women may be more sensitive to alcohol-induced increases in HR, especially in environments where alcohol cues are abundant. This may have implications for cardiovascular risks associated with alcohol. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

Research indicates that lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) youth are at increased risk for heavy drinking relative to their heterosexual peers. One possible contributing factor is that religiosity fails to provide the significant protection for LGB youth that it provides in general population samples. Although prior studies provide some support for this hypothesis, there is little research on the reasons that religiosity may fail to protect against heavy drinking among LGB youth. The current study addressed this question by examining relations among religiosity, age of self-identification as LGB, and alcohol use in a sample of 162 young adults self-identified as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or questioning. Age of self-identification was conceptualized as an indicator of stress or internal conflict between religious beliefs and self-identification. We hypothesized that higher levels of religiosity would be associated with a later age of identification as LGB, which, in turn, would contribute to heavier drinking. Path analyses conducted in Mplus provided support for this hypothesis, with higher levels of religiosity indirectly contributing to increased alcohol use through later age of self-identification. Whereas additional studies directly assessing stress associated with the self-identification process are needed, the results of this study suggest that religiosity may serve as a risk, rather than protective, factor among LGB youth. The development of religious support groups specifically for LGB youth may help these individuals reconcile their religious beliefs with their emerging sexual identities, thereby allowing them to derive some of the same benefits that heterosexual youth derive from religious beliefs and practices. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

The development of online dating has created a cultural shift in how emerging adults approach dating. The present study examined retrospective and event-level associations between alcohol, online dating, and sexual hookups among a sample of single, postcollege women. Participants completed baseline and 24 electronic daily diary surveys on alcohol use, sexual behavior, and method for meeting their sexual partners. We examined the influence of alcohol on sexual hookups, and how method of meeting a partner, and location prior to the hookup influenced level of intoxication during a sexual hookup. There was a within-person effect of alcohol on likelihood of engaging in a sexual hookup whereby hookups were more likely on days when women reported higher levels of intoxication relative to their average drinking. Spending time at bar/party prior to a sexual hookup was associated with higher levels of intoxication prior to a sexual hookup relative to being at other locations. Measured in the daily diary surveys, meeting a sexual hookup partner online was associated with lower levels of intoxication during the hookup relative to when meeting at bars/parties, even when including location just prior to the hookup in the model. The baseline retrospective analyses also indicated that meeting a partner online was associated with drinking less frequently before a sexual hookup relative to meeting a partner at a bar/party. Interventions to address alcohol use, method for meeting a partner, and location prior to hookups could be effective in decreasing potential negative consequences of alcohol-related sexual behavior in emerging adult women. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

Background: Emerging adulthood is a peak period of risk for alcohol and illicit drug use. Recent advances in psychiatric genetics suggest that the co-occurrence of substance use and psychopathology arises, in part, from a shared genetic etiology. We sought to extend this research by investigating the influence of genetic risk for schizophrenia on trajectories of four substance use behaviors as they occurred across emerging adulthood., Method: Young adult participants of non-Hispanic European descent provided DNA samples and completed daily reports of substance use for 1 month per year across 4 years (N = 30 085 observations of N = 342 participants). A schizophrenia polygenic score was included in two-level hierarchical linear models designed to test associations between genetic risk for schizophrenia, participant age, and four substance use phenotypes., Results: Participants with a greater schizophrenia polygenic score experienced greater age-related increases in the likelihood of using substances across emerging adulthood (p < 0.005). Additionally, our results suggest that the polygenic score was positively associated with participants' overall likelihood to engage in illicit drug use but not alcohol-related substance use., Conclusions: This study used a novel combination of polygenic prediction and intensive longitudinal methods to characterize the influence of genetic risk for schizophrenia on patterns of age-related change in substance use across emerging adulthood. Results suggest that genetic risk for schizophrenia has developmentally specific effects on substance use behaviors in a non-clinical population of young adults.

Several decades of research have experimentally investigated the influence of alcohol on gambling. However, there has been only minimal experimental exploration of how gambling influences alcohol use. The aim of the current project was to evaluate how gambling influenced mood state and alcohol cravings through randomized experimental design when analyzed with comparison conditions.College students (N = 76) who reported regular alcohol use, gambling within the past year, and being college basketball fans were randomly assigned to watch a video of an exciting basketball game, watch a nondysphoric basketball game, watch a movie, or engage in slot machine gambling. Participants who watched exciting sports or engaged in gambling to reported more energized mood states and higher urges to drink compared to those who watched nondysphoric sports or a movie. These results suggest that the context of gambling may prime individuals to want to consume alcohol., (© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

Background: Language is a fundamental aspect of human social behavior that is linked to many rewarding social experiences, such as social bonding. Potential effects of alcohol on affiliative language may therefore be an essential feature of alcohol reward and may elucidate pathways through which alcohol is linked to social facilitation. Examinations of alcohol's impact on language content, however, are sparse. Accordingly, this investigation represents the first systematic review and meta-analysis of alcohol's effects on affiliative language. We test the hypothesis that alcohol increases affiliative verbal approach behaviors and discuss future research directions., Methods: PsycInfo and Web of Science were systematically searched in March 2023 according to our preregistered plan. Eligible studies included social alcohol administration experiments in which affiliative verbal language was assessed. We present a random-effects meta-analysis that examines the effect of alcohol compared to control on measures of affiliative verbal behavior., Results: Our search identified 16 distinct investigations (comprising 961 participants) that examined the effect of alcohol on affiliative verbal behavior. Studies varied greatly in methods and measures. Meta-analytic results demonstrated that alcohol is modestly associated with increases in affiliative verbal behavior (Hedges' g = 0.164, 95% CI [0.027, 0.301], p = 0.019). Study quality was rated using an adapted version of the Quality Assessment Tool for Quantitative Studies and did not significantly moderate alcohol's effects., Conclusions: This study provides preliminary evidence that alcohol can increase affiliative verbal behaviors. This effect may be an important feature of alcohol reward. Given heterogeneity in study features, low study quality ratings, and limited reporting of effect size data, results simultaneously highlight the promise of this research area and the need for more work. Advances in language processing methodologies that could allow future work to systematically expand upon this finding are discussed., (© 2024 The Authors. Alcohol, Clinical and Experimental Research published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of Research Society on Alcohol.)

Sexual assault is a troubling epidemic that plagues college campuses across the United States, and is often proceeded by drinking by the perpetrator and/or victim. The goal of this study was to examine the effect of level of intoxication, history of alcohol-related blackouts, and childhood sexual abuse (CSA) on the likelihood of being a victim or perpetrator of coercive sexual activities. Participants (N = 2,244) were part of a 6-year longitudinal study which explored alcohol use and associated behavioral risks during college. A subsample (N = 1,423) completed 30 days of daily diary surveys across four years of college. Participants provided daily reports of their alcohol consumption, sexual coercion perpetration, and sexual coercion victimization. Using hierarchical linear models, results indicated that increases in daily estimated blood alcohol concentration (eBAC) were associated with a greater likelihood of being a victim and a perpetrator of sexual coercion. In addition, main effects of CSA and history of blackouts predicted a greater likelihood of being coerced into sexual activity, but blackouts were not associated with being a perpetrator. A significant interaction between blackouts and event-level eBAC indicated that individuals with a history of blackouts had a greater likelihood of sexual coercion victimization relative to those without prior blackouts. Finally, having a history of blackouts and CSA was predictive of a lower likelihood of being a perpetrator of sexual coercion at higher eBACs relative to those without a history of blackouts. Thus, prevention efforts should integrate the impact of blackouts and CSA on sexual coercion victimization and perpetration. (PsycINFO Database Record, ((c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).)

Objective: We prospectively examined whether subjective intoxication serves as a risk factor for experiencing alcohol-induced blackouts. We then examined whether subjective intoxication and/or blackouts predicted motivation to decrease their drinking, and whether this motivation to change would promote future changes in drinking behavior., Method: Participants (N=1854, 62.1% female, 53.2% Caucasian, M age =21.8) were recruited the summer prior to matriculating into a large, public university to complete a 6-year longitudinal study. Self-reported motivation to decrease their drinking behavior, their frequency of blackouts, quantity of alcohol consumption, and subjective intoxication (i.e., feeling drunk) were assessed annually during the transition out of college (Years 4-6)., Results: In a cross-lagged model, subjective intoxication (i.e., feeling drunk) prospectively predicted experiencing blackouts (p<0.001). Controlling for both objective (e.g., quantity) and subjective intoxication, blackouts at Year 4 predicted greater motivation to decrease drinking behavior at Year 5 (p<0.01), but this motivation did not predict less quantity of alcohol use by Year 6 (p=0.076)., Conclusions: Subjective intoxication is a robust predictor of blackouts across time. Additionally, blackouts are modest, developmentally-limited predictors of motivation to change drinking behavior, but blackouts do not predict future behavior change., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

GABRA2, the gene encoding the α2 subunit of the GABAA receptor, potentially plays a role in the etiology of problematic drinking, as GABRA2 genotype has been associated with subjective response to alcohol and other alcohol-related reward processes. The GABRA2 gene has also been associated with illicit drug use, but the extent to which associations with drug use are independent of associations with alcohol use remains unclear, partly because most previous research has used a cross-sectional design that cannot discriminate comorbidity at the between-person level and co-occurrence within-persons. The present study used a daily monitoring method that assessed the effects of GABRA2 variation on substance use as it occurred in the natural environment during emerging adulthood. Non-Hispanic European participants provided DNA samples and completed daily reports of alcohol and drug use for 1 month per year across 4 years (N = 28,263 unique observations of N = 318 participants). GABRA2 variants were associated with illicit drug use in both sober and intoxicated conditions. Moreover, the effect of GABRA2 variation on drug use was moderated by an individual's degree of intoxication. These findings are consistent with recent genetic and neuroscience research, and they suggest GABRA2 variation influences drug-seeking behavior through both alcohol-related and alcohol-independent pathways. (PsycINFO Database Record, ((c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).)

Background: Negative urgency (NU), the tendency to act rashly during negative emotional states, is a robust risk factor for alcohol misuse that is posited to function in part through alcohol-related cognitions. Nonetheless, relatively little research has examined mood-based fluctuations in such cognitions, which could help to explain how the trait of NU translates to impulsive alcohol-related behaviors. We examined how NU impacted several alcohol cognitions (positive/negative alcohol expectancies, positive/negative alcohol valuations, and alcohol craving for positive/negative emotional reinforcement) before and after negative, neutral, or positive mood inductions. We hypothesized that NU would predict greater and more favorable endorsement of alcohol and its effects following negative (vs. positive or neutral) mood induction., Methods: Participants (N = 428) were southern-midwestern college students recruited for an online experiment. Following the provision of consent, participants rated NU and preinduction alcohol cognitions, and were then randomly assigned to one of three (negative, neutral, or positive) mood inductions; subsequently, postinduction alcohol-cognition ratings were immediately obtained. We conducted six robust multilevel linear models (one per DV) examining NU's influence on within-person changes in alcohol cognitions across each mood induction., Results: No three-way interactions were identified and only one two-way interaction involving NU was identified. There were main effects across mood induction conditions and time points for NU predicting greater endorsement of positive and negative alcohol outcome expectancies, and greater alcohol craving for positive and negative emotional reinforcement., Conclusions: Greater NU predicts greater perceived likelihood of alcohol's effects, alongside greater desire for mood improvement from alcohol. The absence of three-way interactive effects indicates NU's influence on mood-dependent fluctuations in alcohol cognitions may manifest over longer timescales (e.g., months and years), involve alternative cognitive processes (e.g., drinking motives and implicit alcohol cognitions), and apply more broadly to desires for mood improvement than purely negative emotional reinforcement., (© 2024 Research Society on Alcohol. This article has been contributed to by U.S. Government employees and their work is in the public domain in the USA.)

Numerous contextual factors contribute to risky sexual decision-making among men who have sex with men (MSM), with experimental laboratory-based studies suggesting that alcohol consumption, sexual arousal, and partner familiarity have the potential to impact condom negotiations during sexual encounters. The purpose of the current study was to extend this line of inquiry outside of the laboratory and into the everyday lives of MSM. We collected six weeks of daily data on alcohol consumption and sexual behaviors from 257 moderate- and heavy-drinking MSM to examine the within- and between-subjects effects of alcohol consumption, average daily sexual arousal, and partner familiarity on condom negotiation processes during sexual encounters. We hypothesized that alcohol consumption, higher levels of average daily sexual arousal, and greater partner familiarity would all contribute to a reduced likelihood of condom negotiation prior to sexual activity, and that they would also affect the difficulty of negotiations. Contrary to hypotheses, none of these three predictors had significant within-subjects effects on condom negotiation outcomes. However, partner familiarity and average daily sexual arousal did exert significant between-subjects effects on the incidence of negotiation and negotiation difficulty. These findings have important implications for risk-reduction strategies in this population. They also highlight the challenges of reconciling results from experimental laboratory research and experience sampling conducted outside of the laboratory on sexual risk behavior., (© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.)

Objective: Previous studies have found preliminary evidence for associations between common single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the cannabinoid receptor gene CNR1 and cannabis use and dependence. The present study examined a set of eight independent SNPs in or near CNR1 in relation to cannabis use measured longitudinally across emerging adulthood., Method: Using latent growth curve modeling of 10 waves of longitudinal data spanning mean ages 18.4-23.8 years in a sample of non-Hispanic White individuals (n = 334), we tested if genotype at each CNR1 SNP was associated with both level and growth of cannabis use over time. Peer group drug use, a known correlate of individual use, was evaluated as a time-varying predictor of cannabis use and as a moderator of the relationship between SNPs and individual use., Results: After correction for multiple comparisons, one SNP, rs806374, was significantly associated with individual differences in level-but not growth-of cannabis use over time, such that C carriers were more likely to use cannabis more frequently at study onset (around age 18). Peer drug use was a predictor of individual cannabis use that grew in terms of effect size with time, but did not significantly moderate the effect of rs806374 genotype., Conclusions: C carriers at rs806374 may be at specific risk for increased odds of use during the transition out of high school (around age 18). Future studies should investigate potential mechanisms at this developmental stage, including individual differences in subjective response, innate tolerance, reinforcement mechanisms, or general liability for substance misuse.

Objective: This study examined how freshman year substance use prospectively predicted time to college graduation, and whether delayed graduation predicted postponed adoption of adult roles and future substance use., Participants: Participants were part of a longitudinal study that began in 2004. The first analyses focused on freshman year (N = 2,050). The second analyses corresponded to a subset of participants at age 27 (N = 575)., Methods: Measures included self-reported substance use, adult role adoption, and university reported graduation dates., Results: Results indicated that frequent binge drinking and marijuana use during freshman year predicted delayed college graduation. Those who took longer to graduate were more likely to have lower incomes and were less likely to obtain a graduate degree. Taking 5-6 years to graduate was associated with greater likelihood of alcohol-related problems., Conclusions: Findings support the importance of interventions during freshman year of college to decrease substance use and promote timely graduation.

Background: The concurrent use of alcohol and tobacco has a multiplicative effect on both social and physical consequences. While it is known that alcohol and tobacco use are strongly correlated in emerging adulthood, there is significant individual variability in use. However, little research has examined how patterns of concurrent use are related over time., Objectives: The current study explores these longitudinal conjoint trajectories, as well as the associated sociodemographic factors., Methods: We used sequential latent class growth analysis to explore the co-occurring longitudinal patterns of recent alcohol and tobacco use across emerging adulthood (10 data collection periods, 2004-2009) with a diverse sample of 2,244 college students (60% female; 54% White)., Results: Twenty distinct patterns of conjoint alcohol and tobacco use were found. There was more variation in tobacco use trajectories among alcohol users than variation in alcohol trajectories among tobacco users. Using multinomial logistic regression models we determined the impact of sociodemographic characteristics on classification into each conjoint pattern versus the normative trajectory (Abstaining tobacco/Low alcohol). Male gender, White race, fraternity/sorority affiliation, and higher family income were significantly associated with riskier conjoint trajectory patterns. Conclusions/Importance: Findings highlight the diversity of alcohol and tobacco use behaviors across emerging adulthood. The low variation in alcohol use among tobacco users indicates that tobacco use is a significant risk factor for heavier drinking. A better understanding of the covarying use of these two ubiquitous substances may provide new avenues for preventing and reducing the use of both.