Do drinking motives mediate the association between sexual assault and problem drinking?

Abstract

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.

Alcohol Consumption and Negative Sex-Related Consequences among College Women: The Moderating Role of Alcohol Protective Behavioral Strategies

“…This is particularly concerning because once a woman has been sexually victimized, a vicious cycle of revictimization exists (Abbey et al, 1996;Corbin et al, 2001), and the risk of revictimization is further exacerbated when a women engages in high-risk behaviors such as consuming alcohol. Researchers have examined proximal predictors of the alcohol consumptionnegative sex-related consequences link (e.g., alcohol expectancies (BedardGilligan et al, 2011;Corbin et al, 2001); and drinking motives (Lindgren, Neighbors, Blayney, Mullins, & Kaysen, 2012);-however, there is still much to learn about the impact of college women's use of safe drinking practices on the link between alcohol consumption and negative sex-related consequences (e.g., engaging in risky sexual behavior, experiencing sexual victimization).…”

Coping Expectancies, Not Enhancement Expectancies, Mediate Trauma Experience Effects on Problem Alcohol Use: A Prospective Study From Early Childhood to Adolescence

“…Earlier trauma studies have mostly concentrated on childhood sexual assault (Grayson & Nolen-Hoeksema, 2005;Lindgren et al, 2012;Simpson, 2003) or childhood maltreatment (Goldstein et al, 2010). Here we extend the base of potential applicability by examining children in homes with parental violence.…”

“…Initially investigators focused on the coping motive to explain that people consume alcohol to alleviate distress associated with trauma (Lindgren et al, 2012;Miranda et al, 2002;Ullman et al, 2005). This work was initiated to find support for the self-medication theory that posits that individuals with a trauma history will use substances to decrease negative affect (Khantzian, 1985).…”

Alcohol Expectancy, Drinking Behavior, and Sexual Victimization Among Female and Male College Students

“…In general, college women experience higher rates of sexual victimization compared with college men in the course of an academic year (7% vs. 3%; Hines, Armstrong, Reed, & Cameron, 2012). Moreover, approximately 25% to 30% of college women have experienced some form of sexual victimization that is related to problem drinking behaviors (Brahms, Ahl, Reed, & Amaro, 2011;Lawyer, Resnick, Bakanic, Burkett, & Kilpatrick, 2010;Lindgren, Neighbors, Blayney, Mullins, & Kaysen, 2012). Although the majority of research emphasizes the dichotomy of men as perpetrators (Abbey & McAuslan, 2004;Wells et al, 2014) and women as victims (Fisher, Cullen, & Turner, 2000), as many as 14% of college men have experienced some form of sexual assault as an adult (Aosved, Long, & Voller, 2011).…”