Disinhibition and Undergraduate Drinking Behavior

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DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The proposed study is designed to assess the predictive utility of six primary risk factors for alcohol-related problems in a sample of 300 first-year undergraduates. Dependent variables to be assessed include drinking behavior (i.e., frequency and quantity of use) and alcohol-related problems. The six primary independent variables (risk factors) to be tested are family history of alcohol and drug abuse, friends' drinking pattern, stress (i.e., life events and daily hassles), perception of risk associated with alcohol use, valence of initial experience(s) with alcohol and drinking-induced disinhibition. All variables will be assessed through the use of a confidential questionnaire. As part of the proposed study, a scale designed to measure drinking-induced disinhibition will be constructed. Preliminary data suggests that this scale measures three types of drinking-induced disinhibition and two categories of effects related to disinhibition. Participants will be randomly assigned to one of two conditions: 1) completion of this and an unrelated questionnaire or 2) an open-ended interview followed by completion of the alcohol questionnaire only. The aim of the interview is to explore stability and change in students' drinking patterns over time and to serve as a validity check for the variables listed above. For the prospective component of the study, participants will be brought back one year later to complete a brief version of this questionnaire. There are two goals of the proposed study: to identify risk factors associated with alcohol-related problems in order to properly identify individuals who may be at risk and to determine which personal characteristics should be the target of intervention efforts.