The present study examined factors associated with engaging in oral and vaginal sex and condom use during the most recent hookup, a term that refers to a range of physically intimate behaviors outside of a committed relationship, among college students. In addition, this research aimed to evaluate factors associated with experiencing positive and negative affect resulting from the most recent hookup. A random sample (N = 1,468) of undergraduates (56.4% female) completed a Web-based survey that was comprised of measures of drinking and sexual behavior. Participants (n = 824; 56.1%) who indicated they had ever hooked up were included in data analysis. Findings indicated that sex, partner type, alcohol use, attitudes towards hooking up, and attitudes towards sexual activity during hookups explained significant variance for oral sex, vaginal sex, condom use, and positive and negative affect related to the most recent hookup experience. Clinical implications regarding the role of situational stressors, such as the impact on affect following a hookup, and ways to reduce risks associated with stressors are discussed.

The self-medication hypothesis has been proposed to explain comorbidity between PTSD and drinking, whereupon problem drinking develops as an attempt to modulate negative affect and ameliorate PTSD symptoms. Studies have begun utilizing daily monitoring methodologies to refine our understanding of proximal relations between PTSD, affect, and alcohol use. 136 female college drinkers with a past history of sexual victimization and 38 female college drinkers with no past trauma history, completed electronic monitoring of PTSD symptoms, affect, alcohol use, and alcohol cravings, daily for 4 weeks. A two-part mixed hurdle model was used to examine likelihood of drinking and amount of alcohol consumed on drinking days. We did find significant relationships between daily PTSD symptoms, affect, and drinking. On days women experienced more intrusive and behavioral avoidance symptoms of PTSD they experienced stronger urges to drink and were more likely to drink on that day. On days where women experienced more negative affect than their average, they experienced stronger urges to drink whereas on days where women experienced more of the dysphoric symptoms associated with PTSD than their average, they drank less. On days with higher positive affect women reported stronger urges to drink and were more likely to drink. Results suggest the need to examine both aspects of affect and specific PTSD symptoms as they may differentially predict drinking behavior. Differences in the ways in which PTSD symptoms and affect influence drinking suggest that interventions more specifically address the function of drinking behaviors in reducing alcohol use among college women.

Objective The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of personalized normative feedback (PNF) on college student alcohol-related risky sexual behavior (RSB). Method In a randomized controlled trial, 480 (57.6% female) sexually-active college students were stratified by gender and level of drinking and randomly assigned to an alcohol only intervention, an alcohol-related RSB only intervention, a combined alcohol and alcohol-related RSB intervention, or control. All assessment and intervention procedures were web-based. Results Results indicated a significant reduction in drinking outcomes for the alcohol only and the combined alcohol and alcohol-related RSB interventions relative to control. Findings further demonstrated a significant reduction in alcohol-related RSB outcomes for the alcohol-related RSB only and the combined alcohol and alcohol-related RSB interventions relative to control. There were no significant intervention effects on alcohol-related negative consequences. These findings demonstrate that the combined alcohol and alcohol-related RSB intervention was the only intervention successful at reducing both drinking and alcohol-related RSB outcomes relative to control. There were no significant differences when comparing the combined alcohol and alcohol-related RSB intervention to the alcohol only intervention or the alcohol-related RSB only intervention. Finally, results suggested that the intervention effects on high-risk behaviors were mediated by reductions in descriptive normative perceptions. Conclusions These findings demonstrate that PNF specific to drinking in sexual situations was needed to reduce alcohol-related RSB. Furthermore, this study highlights the potential utility of a brief intervention that can be delivered via the Internet to reduce high-risk drinking and alcohol-related RSB among college students.

Sexual minorities have higher rates of depression and anxiety than their heterosexual counterparts. This elevated risk of psychological distress has generally been hypothesized to be a result of the effects of discrimination including internalized negative beliefs about sexual minorities. However, little research has examined the role of various types of coping in mediating between internalized homophobia and mental health. We tested the direct relationship between internalized homophobia and psychological distress and evaluated general and sexual minority-specific coping strategies as potential mediators using structural equation modeling. Data are from a national sample of 1,099 young adult sexual minority women who were on average 20.86 (SD= 2.12) years old, participating in a study on mental health and substance use. The model demonstrated acceptable fit, χ2 (83) = 402.9, p <.001, CFI=.94, TLI=.92, SRMR= .07, and RMSEA=.06, accounting for 73% of variance in psychological distress. Greater use of maladaptive coping and less use of sexual minority-specific coping were associated with higher psychological distress. Although maladaptive coping mediated the relationship between internalized homophobia and psychological distress, sexual minority-specific coping did not. Our findings support previous studies that have demonstrated the impact of internalized homophobia on psychological distress as well as the role of coping as a protective/risk factor in this relationship.

Previous research suggests that sexual minorities are at greater risk for trauma exposure, mental health problems, and substance use. To date, few studies have examined racial/ethnic differences among sexual minorities in relation to health-related behaviors and outcomes. Furthermore, studies of racial/ethnic differences among young adult sexual minority women (SMW) are virtually non-existent. The current study adds to the previous literature by exploring differences in trauma exposure, sexual identity, mental health, and substance use in a non-probability national sample of young adult SMW. A total of 967 self-identified lesbian and bisexual women were recruited via the internet using social networking sites to participate in a larger longitudinal study on young women’s health behaviors. The present study included 730 (76%) White, 108 (10%) African American, 91 (9%) Latina, and 38 (4%) Asian women ages 18 to 25. Results revealed differences in socioeconomic variables, degree of outness to family, childhood sexual assault, and forcible rape, but not overall lifetime trauma exposure. Among mental health and health-related behavior variables, few differences between groups emerged. Our findings indicate that both researchers and clinicians should turn their attention to processes of resilience among young SMW, particularly young SMW of color.

Research has demonstrated ambiguity about the definition of hooking up among college students. The current research examined whether there were multiple hooking up definitions among college students and how different definitions might be associated with participant's own hooking up behavior and normative perceptions of peer hooking up behavior. A random sample (N = 1,468) of undergraduates (56.4% female) completed a Web-based survey that was comprised of measures of drinking and sexual behavior. Open-ended definitions of hooking up were content coded and analyzed using a mixture model to explore discrete definitions of hooking up among college students. Findings indicated three clusters of student definitions of hooking up. Cluster 1 had the broadest definition, referring to sex in general, not specific sexual acts, and to making out. Cluster 2 placed an emphasis on interpersonal and social aspects. Cluster 3 defined hooking up as sex with notable references to specific sexual acts. Results further indicated that hooking up behavior and normative perceptions differentiated these three groups of definitions. Clinical implications regarding the inconsistency of student definitions of hooking up and how they may impact negative consequences associated with hooking up are discussed.

BACKGROUND Alcohol and marijuana are commonly used by young adults, and use of both substances, particularly at the same time, is prevalent among this population. Understanding the prevalence, patterns, correlates, and consequences of simultaneous alcohol and marijuana (SAM) use is important to inform interventions. However, this literature is complicated by myriad terms used to describe SAM use, including use with overlapping effects and same-day co-use. OBJECTIVES This scoping review identifies and describes the peer-reviewed literature focused on SAM use by young adults and distinguishes simultaneous use from same-day co-use of alcohol and marijuana. This review also provides a narrative summary of the prevalence of SAM use, patterns of SAM and other substance use, psychosocial correlates, and consequences of SAM use. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA This review is limited to papers written in English and published in peer-reviewed journals between January 2000 and August 2021. It includes papers assessing simultaneous use or same-day co-use of alcohol and marijuana among young adults ages 18 to 30. Review papers, qualitative interviews, experimental lab studies, policy work, toxicology or medical reports, and papers focused on neurological outcomes are excluded. SOURCES OF EVIDENCE PubMed, PsycINFO, and Web of Science databases were searched. Databases were selected and the search strategy developed in consultation with an information specialist. CHARTING METHODS A data charting form was utilized to specify which information would be extracted from included papers. Eight categories of data were extracted: (1) research questions and hypotheses; (2) sample characteristics; (3) study procedures; (4) definition of SAM use; (5) prevalence of SAM use; (6) patterns of SAM and other substance use; (7) psychosocial correlates of SAM use; and (8) consequences of SAM use. RESULTS A total of 1,282 papers were identified through initial search terms. Through double-blind title/abstract screening and full-text review, the review was narrowed to 74 papers that met review inclusion criteria. Review of these papers demonstrated that SAM use was prevalent among young adults, particularly among those who reported heavier quantities and more frequent use of alcohol and marijuana. Enhancement-related motives for use were consistently positively associated with SAM use. SAM use was associated with greater perceived positive and negative consequences of alcohol and/or marijuana use. Inconsistencies in prevalence, patterns, correlates, and consequences were found between studies, which may be due to large variations in measurement of SAM use, populations studied, methodological design (e.g., cross-sectional vs. intensive longitudinal), and the covariates included in models. CONCLUSIONS The literature on simultaneous use and same-day co-use of alcohol and mari...

Sexual assault and problem drinking are both prevalent in college women and are interrelated. Findings from cross-sectional research indicate that motives to drink to decrease negative affect (coping motives) or to increase positive affect (enhancement motives) are partial mediators of the sexual assault-problem drinking relation. However, no published longitudinal studies have examined these relations. The current study tests a longitudinal model and examines coping and enhancement motives as potential mediators. Participants were 131 female undergraduates who completed baseline measures of self-reported sexual assault victimization and problem drinking. Coping and enhancement motives were measured at three-month follow up; problem drinking was measured at six-month follow-up. Analyses using structural equation modeling (SEM) indicated direct and indirect paths in the sexual assault-problem drinking relation. Zero-order correlations indicated significant, positive relations between among drinking motives, sexual assault, and drinking variables. Longitudinally, mediation was evident for coping but not enhancement motives. Ultimately, findings were most consistent with self-medication hypotheses -- i.e., drinking in order to gain relief from symptoms or problems -- regarding the sexual assault-problem drinking relation.