OBJECTIVE:Theoretical models of alcohol use disorder recovery highlight the importance of the social environment, but there is a dearth of longitudinal empirical research investigating bidirectional associations between interpersonal dynamics and outcomes. The present study used longitudinal models to examine between- and within-person associations between both negative (perceived hostility and rejection) and positive (friendship and emotional support) interpersonal dynamics in relation to recovery outcomes (alcohol problems, percent heavy drinking days, percent days abstinent, and quality of life). METHOD:Adults reporting a new alcohol use disorder remission attempt (N = 501, Mage = 41.42, 57.50% female) were assessed at baseline and 1.5, 3, 6, 9, and 12 months later. Bivariate latent curve models with structured residuals were used to investigate between- and within-person associations over time. RESULTS:Reductions in negative interpersonal dynamics were associated with reductions in alcohol problems. Greater reductions in negative interpersonal dynamics over time were associated with a greater increase in percent days abstinent. Greater increases in percent days abstinent over time were associated with declines in perceived hostility over time. Most models did not support the inclusion of cross-lagged associations. CONCLUSIONS:These results highlight that interpersonal dynamics, particularly negative interpersonal dynamics, may change dynamically alongside recovery outcomes, and that perceived hostility may be a critical process that precedes changes in recovery outcomes. Studies using greater temporal resolution (e.g., ecological momentary assessment) may be better suited for establishing cross-lagged associations. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).
OBJECTIVE:Urgency, the tendency to act impulsively in response to emotions, is associated with a wide range of risk behavior. This study tested whether urgency is associated with individual differences in emotional dynamics and whether emotional dynamics account for associations between urgency and alcohol use and condomless anal intercourse (CAI) among sexual minority men. METHOD:We conducted a secondary analysis of data from 248 moderate-to-heavy drinking sexual minority men who completed two 3-week periods (bursts) of the experience sampling method separated by a 3-week rest interval. Two dynamic structural equation models tested urgency's associations with intoxication and CAI. RESULTS:The negative affect (NA) model showed that negative urgency at baseline was associated with higher NA innovation variance (e.g., reactivity or lability) and higher mean NA, but not inertia (i.e., autoregression) during Burst 1. Mean NA and reactivity were correlated with mean intoxication during Burst 2. Negative urgency was indirectly associated with intoxication and CAI during Burst 2 via mean NA during Burst 1. The positive affect (PA) model found that positive urgency was linked to PA innovation variance but not mean PA or PA inertia. PA reactivity during Burst 1 predicted mean intoxication during Burst 2. However, indirect effects of positive urgency on Burst 2 mean intoxication and CAI were nonsignificant. CONCLUSIONS:Associations between urgency and PA and NA innovation variance (e.g., reactivity or lability) are consistent with the conceptualization of urgency as reflecting rash action when aroused and suggest that urgency is associated with more volatile emotional experience. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).
OBJECTIVE:Assessment reactivity refers to the extent to which repeated measurement of behavioral and psychological phenomena influences subsequent behavior change. The present study used ecological momentary assessment (EMA) to evaluate whether frequent self-report influences Alcoholics Anonymous (AA)-related processes and alcohol-related outcomes. METHOD:Participants (N = 192; 63% female, Mage = 42.95) were assigned to either a 6-month EMA condition (n = 133), completing twice-daily surveys in addition to baseline and 3- and 6-month follow-up assessments, or a minimal assessment condition (n = 59), completing only baseline and 3- and 6-month follow-up assessments. Mean differences were examined using t tests, covariance comparisons using multigroup path analysis, and longitudinal trajectory differences using linear mixed-effects models. RESULTS:Across 30 mean and 210 covariance comparisons, only one mean difference (spiritual step work) and seven covariance differences were statistically significant between groups, a pattern consistent with chance variation (<5% of differences expected by chance). No significant group or group-by-time effects emerged for key behavioral outcomes, including proportion days abstinent, AA meeting attendance, or drinks per drinking day. CONCLUSIONS:Despite frequent assessments over a uniquely long EMA sampling period (6 months), EMA participation was not associated with systematic changes in alcohol use, AA involvement, or related mechanisms. These findings suggest little evidence that EMA procedures meaningfully influence the processes they are intended to measure (i.e., limited evidence of assessment reactivity) in the context of the present study. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).
OBJECTIVE:Assessment of cigarette smoking withdrawal is critical to treatment research and clinical care. This study aimed to develop and evaluate the psychometric properties and construct validity of brief and long versions of the new Wisconsin Smoking Withdrawal Scales Version 3 (WSWS3), which include new items to assess anhedonia. The Minnesota Tobacco Withdrawal Scale-Revised and WSWS3 were compared. METHOD:This study was a single-arm clinical trial of 232 adults attempting to stop smoking without using pharmacotherapy during the first week of their quit attempt. Treatment included 8 weeks of nicotine patch and minilozenge initiated 1 week after the target quit date and four counseling calls. The WSWS3 long version (WSWS3-L) includes 21 items and seven subscales, and the WSWS3 brief version (WSWS3-B) includes seven items, one for each subscale. RESULTS:The WSWS3-L and WSWS3-B demonstrated good-to-excellent internal consistency and acceptable confirmatory factor analysis model fit for a seven-factor higher order model (WSWS3-L) and one-factor model (WSWS3-B). The WSWS3 and Minnesota Tobacco Withdrawal Scale-Revised displayed convergent validity with one another. The WSWS3-L subscales demonstrated convergent validity with measures of related constructs (e.g., stress, depression, and urge). The WSWS3-L and WSWS3-B total scale and subscale scores displayed sensitivity to withdrawal during early quitting. In contrast to the MSWS-R, the WSWS3-L and -B scores were predictive of the time-to-first cigarette dependence measure, and withdrawal-related increases in WSWS3-L and -B scores were predictive of 1-week postquit abstinence. CONCLUSIONS:The WSWS3 brief and long versions display reasonable psychometric properties and construct validity for assessing cigarette smoking withdrawal. The stronger prediction of clinical outcome by the WSWS3 versus the MSWS-R scale may be due to its assessment of craving. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).
OBJECTIVE:Alcohol consumption is widely recognized for its complex effects on social behavior, simultaneously fostering social connections in some individuals while heightening aggression in others. However, the underlying mechanisms for this effect, including emotion recognition, remain disputed among researchers. This study examined how alcohol influences the accuracy of emotion recognition, with particular attention to sex differences. METHOD:Individuals who regularly consume alcohol (n = 390; 180 females; Mage = 23; 48.97% White) were randomly assigned to either an alcohol (targeting a breath alcohol concentration of 0.08%) or control condition. They were assessed using the shortened version of the Geneva Emotion Recognition Test which evaluates recognition of 14 emotions through dynamic videos. RESULTS:Alcohol consumption significantly reduced overall emotion-recognition accuracy, b = 0.038, SE = 0.012, p = .002. Males exhibited significantly lower emotion identification accuracy than females, regardless of beverage condition, M = 0.511, SD = 0.123. Regarding individual emotions, alcohol significantly impaired the recognition of anger and irritation across both sexes, and specifically impaired interest, pride, and relief among male participants. CONCLUSIONS:Our findings indicate that alcohol impairs the ability to interpret emotional expressions, with potential implications for impaired social interactions and heightened aggression. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).
OBJECTIVE:This study examined whether automatic and reflective neurocognitive processes differ as a function of alcohol use risk, sex, and cue type among young adult binge drinkers. METHOD:Eighty healthy young adults (71% female; Mage = 20.8 years) who reported at least two binge drinking episodes in the past month completed alcohol-cued Oddball and Go/NoGo tasks while electroencephalography was recorded. Event-related potentials indexing alcohol cue reactivity (P3) and inhibitory control (NoGo N2) were analyzed. Participants were stratified into higher and lower risk groups using k-means cluster analysis based on typical alcohol use, binge frequency, alcohol sensitivity, and Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test scores. Linear mixed models examined effects of risk group, sex, and task condition on event-related potential and behavioral outcomes. RESULTS:Cluster analysis yielded two distinct risk groups. Inhibitory control, but not cue reactivity, differed by risk status and cue type. Higher risk individuals demonstrated reduced NoGo accuracy and faster false-alarm reaction times to alcohol cues. In addition, larger NoGo N2 amplitudes were observed during alcohol-cued trials among higher risk individuals, suggesting increased conflict-related neural processing. CONCLUSIONS:Findings highlight alcohol-cued inhibitory control conflict as a potential neurocognitive marker of vulnerability to alcohol use disorder. While cue reactivity did not differ across risk groups, differences in reflective control processes underscore the value of event-related potential markers for identifying mechanisms of alcohol-related risk. Person-centered approaches may enhance risk stratification and clarify how cognitive control systems operate in at-risk drinkers. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).
OBJECTIVE:Despite increased naturalistic psychedelic use in the United States, limited studies explore factors currently contributing to use among ethnically and racially diverse psychedelic and cannabis-using adults. This study employs thematic analysis using qualitative data to explore the factors contributing to contemporary psychedelic use. METHOD:Qualitative interviews (conducted in 2022-2023) from a subsample of cannabis-using emerging adults who endorsed psychedelic use (N = 33) within a longitudinal mixed methods study were analyzed. Descriptive data were also collected via survey. Transcripts were analyzed, and thematic analysis was implemented using a multiphase coding process until consensus was reached to explore the myriad factors influencing psychedelic use among people who use cannabis within previous motivational models of substance use. RESULTS:Four domains that dynamically influence psychedelic practices were identified: (a) context, such as norms, attitudes, and stigma; (b) expectancies, including perceived benefits and risks; (c) motives for use, including self and/or spiritual exploration, social connection, and self-treatment; and (d) practices, including microdosing, goal setting/intentional use, and experimentation. CONCLUSIONS:The current analysis identified factors influencing psychedelic use among U.S. adults who use cannabis in our current society and considered these findings within the context of historical models of substance use, including psychedelic use and motivational models. This study reflects a crucial step in furthering our knowledge around the growing zeitgeist of psychedelic use, including the role of motives, expectancies, and context. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).
OBJECTIVE:Mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) have demonstrated efficacy in treating substance use disorders (SUDs). To further optimize MBIs, there is a need to identify the mechanisms of behavior change (MOBC) that underlie their efficacy. The current preregistered systematic review provides an overview of existing research on the MOBC in MBIs for SUD while attending to the sociocultural contexts in which these mechanisms were tested. Further, the review evaluates the variety and quality of methods used to operationalize and measure MOBC within this literature. METHOD:Inclusion criteria were focused on studies that explicitly tested MOBC associated with treatment outcomes. Further, only studies focused on MBIs for individuals with diagnosed SUD, or individuals with substance misuse, were included. Studies that did not examine SUD populations or did not explicitly focus on MOBC were excluded. The review was conducted from July to September 2023 and updated in December 2025. A total of 23 studies met criteria for review. RESULTS:Current evidence supports a variety of complementary MOBC, such as greater awareness and acceptance and reductions in craving, as key drivers of change in MBIs for SUD. Very little attention has been paid to contextual factors. Critically, only one study was a replication of prior work. CONCLUSIONS:While there are salient mechanisms relevant to MBIs for SUD, much of this literature requires replication. There is a critical need for attention to the contexts in which MOBC of MBIs are effective, including more rigorous methodologies to test the validity of these mechanisms across populations. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).
OBJECTIVE:Sports betting is a common activity for emerging adults (ages 18-29) and is associated with financial harm, academic decline, and psychological distress. Responsible gambling (RG) messages aim to mitigate such harms, but generic slogans like "gamble responsibly" often lack actionable guidance and credibility, particularly when sponsored by gambling operators. Drawing from Cialdini's theoretical framework of persuasion, this study experimentally examined how RG advertisement message framing (generic vs. self-appraisal) and sponsor type (sportsbook vs. State Department of Health) influenced perceived trust in the advertisement, behavioral intentions, and gambling desire among emerging adult sports bettors. METHOD:A total of 255 crowdsourced participants (Mage = 24.77; 47.8% men, 48.2% women) were randomly assigned to view one of four 20-s RG video advertisements varying by sponsor type and framing. Measures included perceived trustworthiness, personal responsibility toward RG, intentions to sports bet and engage in RG, and gambling desire. RESULTS:Sponsor type significantly influenced the perceived trustworthiness of the advertisement, with Department of Health-sponsored ads rated as more trustworthy than sportsbook-sponsored ads. There was no significant interaction between sponsor type and message framing, and message framing did not significantly influence trust. Additionally, neither sponsor type nor framing significantly affected personal responsibility toward RG, intentions to sports bet or engage in RG, or gambling desire. CONCLUSIONS:Findings indicate that while Department of Health advertisements enhance perceived trustworthiness, these effects did not translate into changes in behavioral intentions or gambling desire. Results highlight the importance of message source within RG communications. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).
OBJECTIVE:Substance use (SU) is often characterized as an affect regulation strategy. Yet, evidence is mixed for SU's acute affect regulation function, particularly in clinical populations and substances beyond cannabis and alcohol. We examined the affective antecedents and consequences surrounding use of alcohol, cannabis, and other substances among a high-risk clinical population. METHOD:Recently suicidal adults receiving psychiatric inpatient care (N = 95) completed baseline measures followed by 28 days of ecological momentary assessment after discharge. Seven daily surveys assessed current negative affect (NA) and positive affect and SU. RESULTS:Within-person increases in affective intensity predicted any SU; any SU then predicted decreased affective intensity. When alcohol, cannabis, and other SU were analyzed separately, elevated NA predicted cannabis and other SU, while decreased NA predicted alcohol use. Further, alcohol use predicted subsequent increased NA, while cannabis use predicted decreased NA, and other SU predicted decreased positive affect. Sensitivity analyses were mixed, wherein the relationship between any SU and affect became somewhat more robust, while results considering each substance separately became nonsignificant. CONCLUSIONS:Although affective antecedents are consistent with SU as an attempt at affect regulation, use itself did not reliably improve affect in this high-risk clinical sample, highlighting the value of other affect regulation strategies as intervention targets given the risks of SU. Future research should examine real-time changes in affect to understand the reinforcement properties of various substances and to explore the drivers and outcomes of the potential affect regulatory function of cannabis use in high-risk adults. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).
OBJECTIVE:Food and alcohol disturbance (FAD; caloric restriction before or during drinking alcohol to enhance alcohol's effects [FAD-intoxication] and/or to compensate for calories from alcohol [FAD-calories]) is common and poses concerns for public health. However, little is known regarding day-level risk factors of FAD. To address this gap, we applied the prototype willingness model to examine which cognitions (i.e., perceived vulnerability, social norms, attitudes, prototypes, intentions, and willingness) predict FAD at the within- and between-person levels. METHOD:Participants were college students (n = 72) who reported weekly alcohol use and past-month FAD engagement. Participants identified primarily as female (73.8%), White non-Hispanic (51.4%), with a mean age of 19.64 (SD = 1.35). Participants completed a baseline survey as well as two daily surveys for 5 weeks. RESULTS:At the within-person level, intentions and willingness predicted FAD-intoxication and FAD-calories. Further, willingness mediated the association between descriptive norms and prototype similarity with daily FAD-calories engagement. At the between-person level, attitudes as well as prototype similarity, positively associated with FAD-intoxication and FAD-calories. CONCLUSIONS:Overall, this study represents one of the most comprehensive multilevel examinations of risk factors for FAD to date, with implications for theory development and intervention efforts aimed at reducing FAD engagement. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).
OBJECTIVE:Substance use expectancies are beliefs about the anticipated effects of substance use, serving as key developmental precursors to adolescent substance use. However, the longitudinal trajectories of these expectancies, both substance-specific and higher order cognitive schemas, remain understudied. This study examined the developmental patterns of positive and negative substance use expectancies about alcohol, marijuana, and nicotine use as well as the time-varying influence of deviant peer affiliation and peer intolerance of substance use as environmental correlates of expectancies. METHOD:Adolescent self-reports were drawn from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development Study (N = 11,499; ages 9-13 years). Parallel process and second-order latent growth curve modeling were used to examine trajectories of substance-specific and higher order schemas for expectancies during early adolescence. RESULTS:Positive substance use expectancies increased across all substance types. Negative expectancies showed distinct developmental patterns by substance: increasing for alcohol, decreasing for marijuana, and remaining stable for nicotine. Deviant peer affiliation was associated with increased positive expectancies, whereas peer intolerance of substance use predicted lower positive and higher negative expectancies across time. CONCLUSIONS:These findings highlight the dynamic development of substance use expectancies in adolescence and support peer influence as a critical factor shaping cognitive vulnerability to future substance use. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).
OBJECTIVE:This study examined day-level effects of pregaming on same-day drinking outcomes among young adults who report high-intensity drinking (8+/10+ drinks for females/males). We hypothesized that pregaming days would be associated with heavier drinking and greater odds of alcohol-induced memory loss and other consequences. Effects of pregaming on drinks consumed outside of the pregaming context, total drinking duration, and pace within a drinking episode were explored. Additionally, differences by student status (currently in 4-year college or not) were tested. METHOD:Between 2021 and 2023, participants (n = 203; 57% female, age 18-29, Mage = 22.06) completed 28 days of daily surveys. RESULTS:Pregaming was significantly associated with more total drinks, greater odds of high-intensity and heavy episodic (4+/5+ drinks for females/males; vs. moderate [fewer than 4/5 drinks for females/males]) drinking, higher estimated blood alcohol concentration, greater odds of both en bloc and fragmentary blackouts (vs. no memory loss), and greater odds of any other negative consequence. These effects were not moderated by student status. Pregaming was more strongly associated with faster paced drinking among those in 4-year college than those not, and pregaming was only associated with fewer drinks consumed outside of the pregaming context among those in 4-year college. Conversely, pregaming was more strongly associated with longer drinking duration among those not in 4-year college. CONCLUSIONS:Pregaming presents a distinct high-risk drinking behavior. To reduce alcohol-related harm, targeted prevention efforts (including those addressing the timing and context of drinking episodes) are needed for both students and those not in 4-year college. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).
OBJECTIVE:This study examined the relationship between depression symptoms and co-use of cannabis and binge drinking by establishing substance use patterns in a sample of Black men. Center for Epidemiologic Studies-Depression Scale scores were compared across four mutually exclusive categories of past-30-day use: cannabis only, binge-drinking only, co-use, and nonuse. We hypothesized that men who engaged in both binge drinking and cannabis use would report the highest depression scores compared to other user groups. METHOD:Past 30-day substance use data were collected between 2015 and 2016 from 786 Black adult men (Mage = 30.4, SD = 8.0, range = 18-44) as part of Menhood, a cross-sectional observational study assessing the effects of neighborhood and individual-level factors on Black men's HIV risk. RESULTS:Using both analysis of covariance and linear regression models, we found a significant main effect of depression scores regressed on substance user types (nonusers, cannabis only, binge-drinking only, and co-users; F = 12.96, df = 3, p < .001), controlling for age, employment status, previous incarceration, education, and income. Compared to nonuse, mean depression scores were statistically highest among past 30-day co-use (M = 1.02, SE = 0.05), followed by cannabis only (M = 0.84, SE = 0.04) and binge-drinking only (M = 0.75, SE = 0.06). Higher frequency of use of either substance, and co-use, was linked to greater depressive symptoms. CONCLUSIONS:As a between-subjects analysis, findings offer insight into population-level affect regulation patterns and may reconcile mixed evidence from within-person studies by highlighting stable risk associations in a structurally disadvantaged group. Results further underscore the need for culturally tailored mental health screening and intervention strategies for minoritized adult populations reporting co-use. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).
OBJECTIVE:Benzodiazepine (BZ) use concerns have escalated in the wake of the opioid crisis, including increased overdose risk from co-use of BZ and opioids. Research evidence to inform clinical management of this issue is currently lacking. METHOD:This pilot trial examined acceptability, feasibility, and preliminary efficacy of an intervention approach to reduce BZ use in adults who simultaneously take opioids. Forty participants with concomitant BZ and opioid prescriptions and significant anxiety symptoms were randomized to BZ taper with a cognitive-behavioral therapy protocol (BZT + CBT; n = 20) or BZ taper with a health education control (BZT + HE; n = 20). RESULTS:Both conditions were rated as logical (MBZT + CBT = 6.20; MBZT + HE = 7.29) and useful (MBZT + CBT = 6.78; MBZT + HE = 5.64), but treatment engagement was modest but similar between conditions. Approximately 60% of participants in both treatment conditions achieved at least a 50% reduction in BZ dose by the 2-month follow-up, reducing the risk of adverse drug-related outcomes. Differences between groups did not reach significance, but effect sizes indicated advantages for BZT + CBT over BZT + HE for anxiety severity at posttreatment (d = 0.86) and follow-up (d = 0.33), with similar findings for pain catastrophizing and anxiety sensitivity. CONCLUSIONS:The promising effect sizes obtained, along with evidence of adequate feasibility and acceptability, encourage further examination of the BZT + CBT approach. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).
OBJECTIVE:Little research has tested the within-person processes that are thought to underlie alcohol use disorder as depicted in Koob and Le Moal's allostatic model of addiction in humans, specifically the associations between alcohol consumption, withdrawal, and negative affect. METHOD:We examined the temporal dynamics among these constructs over time using data from two samples that tracked undergraduate students across their college experience (n = 3,138 and 417). We estimated a random-intercept cross-lagged panel model to parse between- and within-person associations across time. RESULTS:At the between-person level, there was moderate-to-high overlap between withdrawal and negative affect, whereas there was little-to-weak overlap between alcohol consumption and negative affect. At the within-person level, there was no strong evidence of bidirectional prospective associations for withdrawal and negative affect or consumption and negative affect. Within-person cross-sectional associations were also negligible, with some weak but inconsistent evidence that withdrawal and negative affect became increasingly coupled over time. These findings were robust across numerous study design features that included conditioning on heavier, more chronic drinking; focusing on participants with a family history of alcohol problems; and examining differing subforms of negative affect, varied assessment methods for withdrawal and negative affect, and varied timescales of negative affect. CONCLUSIONS:Our findings offer weak support for the within-person associations proposed by Koob's allostatic model and suggest that negative affect may function more robustly as a weak trait-level risk factor for alcohol consumption. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).
OBJECTIVE:Although compulsive buying-shopping disorder (CBSD) has over 100 years of clinical history, its nosology remains a topic of debate. In 2021, Müller and colleagues published a set of diagnostic criteria for the disorder based on a Delphi consensus study. The present study evaluated these criteria among 51 participants who reported a lived experience of CBSD and examined whether their experiences aligned with the components model of addiction. METHOD:Participants were interviewed using a semistructured interview. Transcripts were analyzed using directed content analysis. RESULTS:Most participants reported a persistent and excessive pattern of buying/shopping, diminished control over buying/shopping, buying/shopping for mood modification, experiencing clinically significant distress and impairment, and continuation despite negative consequences. We recommend these symptoms be considered essential features of CBSD, along with ruling out other explanations for the buying/shopping behavior. Intrusive thoughts and preoccupation with buying/shopping, tolerance, and withdrawal were less common, and we recommend these be considered additional, but not required, features of CBSD. CONCLUSIONS:Given these findings and evidence that tolerance and withdrawal are not necessary or sufficient components of addiction, we recommend that CBSD be considered a behavioral addiction. Future research should use these empirically informed criteria to develop and validate a structured diagnostic interview to be used in field studies to formally recognize CBSD as a mental disorder. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).
OBJECTIVE:This study examined heterogeneity in the prevalence estimates of mental health, alcohol, and drug use outcomes across cisgender heterosexual subgroups and sexual and gender minority subgroups using a national probability sample. METHOD:We conducted a secondary data analysis with the U.S. Transgender Population Health Survey (n = 1,436). We calculated prevalence estimates of serious psychological distress, suicidal ideation and attempts, elevated posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms, hazardous alcohol use, hazardous drug use, and co-occurring outcomes across subgroups using cutoffs from common screening measures (e.g., three-item Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test). We then assessed disparities between sexual and gender minority subgroups and cisgender heterosexual men and women across outcomes and co-occurring outcomes. RESULTS:Suicidality was significantly higher across all sexual and gender minority subgroups compared with cisgender heterosexual subgroups. Cisgender sexual minority women, transgender sexual minority men and women, and nonbinary sexual minority people-subgroups with both oppressed sexual and gender identities who likely experience both sexual- and gender-based forms of oppression (e.g., homophobia, transphobia, sexism)-were significantly more likely than cisgender heterosexual subgroups to report most outcomes, including serious psychological distress, elevated posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms, and hazardous drug use. Nonbinary sexual minority people and cisgender sexual minority women consistently exhibited the largest disparities compared with cisgender heterosexual subgroups across most outcomes and co-occurring outcomes. CONCLUSIONS:Findings highlight the importance of disaggregating across sexual and gender identity in probability samples to understand heterogeneity in prevalence estimates of mental health, alcohol, and drug use outcomes and identify subgroups in need of targeted health equity efforts. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).
OBJECTIVE:University students engage in heavy episodic drinking more frequently than nonuniversity peers. While social activities unique to the university experience likely contribute to heavy episodic drinking, drastic lifestyle changes during the transition to university elicit stress. Students typically report drinking alcohol to reduce stress (i.e., coping motives); however, experimental research that attempts to emulate stress-induced consumption is mixed. Using the biopsychosocial model, it was expected those who perceive they have sufficient resources to overcome stressors experience challenge, associated with positive affect and self-control, while students who perceive stress as too demanding exhibit threat, linked to negative emotions and anxiety that facilitate alcohol use. METHOD:Experiment 1 (N = 55) examined how social stressors influence consumption and cardiovascular activity compared to control tasks (i.e., reading magazine), while Experiment 2 (N = 72) compared cognitive reappraisal with ineffective coping strategies often adopted by university students (e.g., ignoring stress). RESULTS:Contrary to expectations, stressors incidentally promoted cardiovascular challenge and did not promote consumption in Experiment 1. Yet, reappraisal promoted cardiovascular challenge in Experiment 2, while ignoring stress facilitated threat and alcohol consumption. Across both experiments, cardiovascular reactivity mediated consumption. Drinking motives were also analyzed; however, drinking to reduce negative emotions was unrelated to stress-induced consumption. CONCLUSIONS:Findings provide support for the role of physiology in facilitating alcohol use, suggesting potential mechanisms (i.e., threat appraisals) that may increase consumption following maladaptive coping. Results also highlight limitations and generalizability of common social stressors used to induce laboratory consumption. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).
OBJECTIVE:The internet has transformed communication and entertainment. Population-level studies typically find that higher problematic internet use (PIU) is associated with lower well-being. We explored how well that average describes individuals using an idionomic (within-person-first) design. METHOD:Over 10 days, 84 young adults (Mage = 23.5) completed five daily surveys assessing four Young's (1998) PIU-related behaviors (two time control/compulsivity; two emotion dysregulation/avoidance) and six bipolar mood states. We estimated within-person associations using idiographic autoregressive integrated moving average with exogenous inputs, summarized heterogeneity with random-effects and Bayesian multilevel meta-analysis, and explored subgroups via partitioning around medoids and growing self-organizing Maps. RESULTS:At the within-person level, being above one's own PIU baseline generally linked to lower immediate mood, though effects varied: For some, higher-than-usual PIU coincided with better mood, for others, with worse mood. At the between-person level, individuals with habitually higher PIU reported lower average mood. CONCLUSIONS:Findings support measurement-based tailoring: If higher-than-usual PIU lifts mood now but carries later costs, practitioners might emphasize delay-of-gratification strategies; if it dampens mood immediately, they may use awareness/functional mapping approaches. Future studies should test whether person-specific measures improve intervention choice. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).
