Specificity in Personality and Cognitive Factors Associated with Drinking and Depressive Symptoms

Abstract

The purpose of this investigation was to demonstrate whether personality and cognitive factors associated with depression and drinking were behavior-specific or general to problem behavior in youth. High school students aged 14-18 completed measures of trait disinhibition, trait inhibition, alcohol expectancies, and generalized outcome expectancies. Linear regression determined the relative contribution of each set of personality and cognitive variables in predicting drinking symptoms and symptoms of depression in youth. In the case of depression, depression factors, particularly cognitive factors, predicted 42% of the variance above and beyond background and alcohol variables. In the case of drinking, drinking risk factors predicted 42% of the variance in drinking symptoms above and beyond demographic variables and variables associated with depression. Despite small cross over in prediction (e.g., alcohol variables accounting for 4% unique variance in depression), personality and cognitive factors associated with drinking and depression were largely specific in this adolescent sample.

To drink or not to drink: Motives and expectancies for use and nonuse in adolescence

“…Motives not to drink varied as a function of grade, sex, and race, somewhat consistently with the findings from Study 1, and mirrored drinking behavior. Consistent with previous investigations (Anderson & Smith, 2006; Brown et al, 1987), positive alcohol expectancies were associated with greater alcohol consumption and problems. However, this picture was complicated by interaction effects for drinking status.…”

Middle School Drinking: Who, Where, and When

“…Endorsing positive alcohol expectancies and reporting that more friends drink were associated with higher mean levels of drinking, binge-like episodes, and maximum drinks per occasion. These findings are consistent with those for children in late elementary school age (grade 5) and in high school whereby positive alcohol expectancies predicted lifetime drinking (Anderson et al, 2005; Anderson & Smith, 2006). However, in these investigations of youths ranging from 10 years through high school, negative expectancies were not always predictive of drinking.…”