Skip to main content

Research Repository

Advanced Search

Impulsivity and drinking motives predict problem behaviours relating to alcohol use in University students

Jones, Katy A.; Chryssanthakis, Alexandra; Groom, Madeleine J.

Impulsivity and drinking motives predict problem behaviours relating to alcohol use in University students Thumbnail


Authors

Profile Image

KATY JONES Katy.Jones@nottingham.ac.uk
Assistant Professor in Applied Psychology

Alexandra Chryssanthakis



Abstract

Aims: This study used a four-factor model of impulsivity to investigate inter-relationships between alcohol consumption, impulsivity, motives for drinking and the tendency to engage in alcohol-related problem behaviours.
Methods: 400 University students aged 18-25 completed an online survey consisting of the following measures: Urgency, Premeditation, Perseverance and Sensation Seeking Scale (UPPS) to measure impulsivity; Student Alcohol Questionnaire to assess drinking quantity, frequency and rates of problem behaviours; Drinking Motives Questionnaire to assess motives for drinking.
Results: The majority of the sample (94.5%) drank alcohol at least monthly. Path analysis revealed direct effects of urgency, sensation seeking and premeditation, as well as the quantity of alcohol consumed, on the tendency to engage in risky behaviours with negative consequences. The effect of urgency was mediated by drinking for coping motives and by a combined effect of drinking for social motives and consumption of wine or spirits. Conversely the effect of sensation seeking was mediated by the quantity of alcohol consumed, irrespective of drink type, and the effect of premeditation was mediated by the consumption of wine and spirits, in combination with enhancement motives.
Conclusions: Sensation seeking, urgency and lack of premeditation are related to different motives for drinking and also demonstrate dissociable relationships with the consumption of specific types of alcohol (beer, wine and spirits) and the tendency to engage in risky behaviours associated with alcohol consumption. Screening for high levels of urgency and for severe drinking consequences may be useful predictors of alcohol-related problems in UK University students aged 18 to 25 years.

Citation

Jones, K. A., Chryssanthakis, A., & Groom, M. J. (2014). Impulsivity and drinking motives predict problem behaviours relating to alcohol use in University students. Addictive Behaviors, 39(1), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addbeh.2013.10.024

Journal Article Type Article
Acceptance Date Oct 13, 2013
Online Publication Date Oct 17, 2013
Publication Date Jan 31, 2014
Deposit Date Apr 15, 2016
Publicly Available Date Mar 28, 2024
Journal Addictive Behaviors
Print ISSN 0306-4603
Electronic ISSN 1873-6327
Publisher Elsevier
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 39
Issue 1
DOI https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addbeh.2013.10.024
Keywords Alcohol, Impulsivity, Urgency, University Students, Drinking Motives
Public URL https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/720867
Publisher URL http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0306460313003262

Files





You might also like



Downloadable Citations