This study focused on the alcohol use of college freshmen. It was designed to explore an area of student alcohol use that has not been well researched. An extensive amount of research has been done on reasons students use alcohol, the consequences of alcohol use, patterns of alcohol use, and the expected effects of alcohol consumption. However, very little is known about students’ expected use of alcohol. The study focused on student expectations for the use of alcohol prior to starting college and their actual use of alcohol in their first year of college. A qualitative research method was used to collect and analyze the data. Data were collected via individual and group interviews, and analyzed by gender, residency status, and living environment. This structure was used to identify differences and similarities between males and females, in-state and out-of-state students, and students assigned to small and large halls. The use of interviews proved to be a good way of gaining information on students’ expectations verses actual experiences with alcohol in college. Study findings indicated that students come to the college environment with some strong, deeply embedded preconceived notions about alcohol and its role on campus and that these expectations did, to some extent, influence student behaviors regarding their use of alcohol. Students in this sample held the expectation that alcohol would be very accessible and was just a part of college life. Findings about actual behaviors with alcohol indicated that students drink more during their first semester in college than in later semesters. Students reported their use of alcohol is influenced by a number of factors, including: peers, academic stress, the accessibility of alcohol, and the need to relax and become more sociable. / Master of Arts

Maladaptive habits, such as substance use, that are highly ingrained and automatized behaviors with negative long-term health consequences need effective interventions to promote change towards more healthful behaviors. Implementation intentions, the structured linking of critical situations and alternative, healthier responses, have been shown to improve health-benefiting behaviors such as eating more fruits and vegetables and being more physically active (Sheeran, Milne, Webb, and Gollwitzer, 2005). Here, a laboratory analogue for smoking relapse and a pilot clinical trial of alcohol use are assessed using implementation intention interventions to reduce these health risk behaviors. In Study 1, heavy smokers completed a smoking resistance task that is a candidate analogue for smoking relapse. Participants were exposed to an in-laboratory implementation intention and/or monetary incentive condition during each of four experimental sessions. The combined implementation intention and monetary incentive condition resulted in the greatest delay to smoking initiation. In Study 2, individuals with alcohol use disorder completed an active or control implementation intention treatment condition. Remotely, both treatment groups received a daily ecological momentary intervention, thrice daily biologic breath alcohol ecological momentary assessments, and once daily self-report ecological momentary assessment of alcohol consumption during the intervention period. The active implementation intention group was associated with a greater reduction in alcohol consumption compared to the control group. Together, these studies provide experimental and initial clinical evidence for implementation intentions, in conjunction with other effective treatments (Study 1) and technological advancements (Study 2), to intervene on and reduce substance use. This project is the first to use implementation intentions in a laboratory evaluation of smoking resistance and in an initial clinical trial to reduce alcohol consumption in a naturalistic community sample using both ecological momentary assessments and ecological momentary interventions. / Ph. D.

A dietary survey of male volunteers, both drinkers, and nondrinkers of alcohol, on free choice diets, was conducted in Blacksburg, Virginia in the spring and summer of 1981. The survey was conducted to assess the relationship between the consumption of alcohol and the intake of selected nutrients on both a mean daily basis and on a per kilogram body weight basis. One hundred seventy-one subjects ages 18 through 56 kept food and beverage intake records for five consecutive days, including Saturday and Sunday. The food and beverage records were hand coded and processed by computer for nutrient analysis. Subjects were grouped, according to the amount of alcohol consumed, into nondrinkers, low, moderate or high drinkers. Regression and correlation analysis revealed that there was little difference among the groups of subjects in the effects of alcohol intake on intake of the traditional energy supplying nutrients, protein, fat, and carbohydrate expressed as mean daily intake and expressed on a per kilogram body weight basis. The expression of nutrient intake based on a per kilogram body weight basis made no difference in the significance of results when considering the relationship between the consumption of alcohol and calcium, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, vitamin A, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, vitamin B6, vitamin B12, and vitamin C. The need for further investigation into the relationship between alcohol consumption and nutrient intake of social drinkers has been documented. / M.S.

Alcohol use among international students in a U.S. community college setting was explored in regard to the interrelationships with acculturation stress and drinking motivations. Misuse of alcohol has been acknowledged as a serious problem on American college campuses. A positive relationship between stress and alcohol use has been documented among those who lack internal and external resources and support systems. International students have been recognized as higher-risk than other college students due to acculturation stress. However, very few studies have investigated the drinking behaviors of this population. To fill this research gap, a survey was conducted with non-immigrant international students (F-1 students) (N = 126) and immigrants international students (non-F-1 students) (N = 136) enrolled in English as a Second Language (ESL) programs in a U.S. community college. The results, which were derived from responses to three published instruments, Index of Life Stress (ILS), Core Alcohol and Drug Survey (CADS) Community College Long Form, and Revised Drinking Motivation Questionnaire (DMQ-R), as well as the researcher-made demographic information sheet, indicated that these groups were not engaged in abusive drinking behavior. This finding may reflect the support systems available to these students in an ESL setting and their family/friend networks. However, moderately strong zero-order correlations between acculturation stress and drinking motives to control negative affects were revealed. Further discussions and implication are provided. / Ph. D.

This study examines the relationship of role parenting behaviors and adolescent depression in adolescent outcomes. Parenting behaviors considered were authoritative parenting, parental monitoring, and parental care. Adolescent outcomes considered were depression, alcohol use, tobacco use, and grades. A path model was employed to examine these variables together. A sample of (n=3,174) of 9th -12th grade high school students from seven contiguous counties in rural Virginia were examined on these variables. Logistic regression analysis revealed parental monitoring and adolescent depression predicted all outcome variables tested. Authoritative parenting predicted adolescent alcohol use and grades and parental care only predicted adolescent depression. Logistical regression also reveled gender difference with parental care, authoritative parenting and male and female alcohol use and grades. Authoritative parenting predicted female alcohol use, and female grades were predicted by parental care. For males, authoritative parenting predicted male grades, and parental care predicted male alcohol use. / Master of Science

A model of social stressor variables, social integration variables and demographic control variables was tested to assess their impact on alcohol use among the elderly. A secondary analysis of a survey on alcohol use among the elderly in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, was conducted to test the major hypotheses of the study. Contingency table analysis, using gamma and partial gamma as correlation coefficients, was utilized in the data analysis. The first hypothesis, in regard to the positive relationship of social stressors with alcohol use, was confirmed. The best predictors of alcohol use among the social stressor variables were usual occupation, length of retirement, annual income, and subjective health status. The second hypothesis, that the social integration variables would be negatively related to alcohol use, received only moderate support. The results of the analysis indicated that six of the ten social integration variables were negatively related to alcohol use. Only three of these variables, retirement status, religious participation, and marital status, were statistically significant. Hypothesis three also was not confirmed. The introduction of the social integration variables did not substantially decrease the strength of the relationship between social stressors and alcohol use. Gender and age were also introduced as control variables for the relationship between social stressors and alcohol use. Age had only a limited impact on the zero-order relationships. Gender demonstrated a strong relationship with alcohol use. Statistical analyses indicated that gender was the strongest predictor of alcohol use of all the variables in the analysis. The nature of the zero-order relationships of four of the six stressor variables changed when gender was controlled, and the partial relationships decreased in strength. It was suggested that future research on alcohol use among the elderly should focus on gender differences.

Adolescent alcohol abuse increases across the adolescent years. If left unchecked, alcohol abuse can give rise to delinquency, poor grades, and risky sexual behavior (Stueve & O’Donnell, 2005; Ellickson, Tucker, & Klein, 2003). Past research suggests that minimal parental oversight increases the risk for adolescent alcohol abuse. There is also evidence, however, that parents withdraw from oversight in the face of adolescent problem behaviors (Barber & Olsen, 1997; Hafen & Laursen, 2009). Each may vary according to the child’s physical development. Parents may respond to pubertal maturation with reduced supervision and early maturing girls may be sensitive to parent supervision because of the additional pressures and attention they receive from older, possibly deviant, peers (Stattin, Kerr, & Skoog, 2011). / Includes bibliography. / Thesis (M.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2014. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

Alcohol consumption, the third largest contributing risk factor towards global morbidity, has increased in the past 5 years despite global calls for action to reduce its significant impact on public health. Compared to most developed nations, Hong Kong has been shown to have lower levels of alcohol consumption by previously conducted research. However, Hong Kong’s low alcohol taxes, wide availability of alcohol, and lax restrictions on marketing practices have the potential to increase the prevalence of alcohol use and binge drinking particularly among young adults 18-25 of age, lending them towards increased risks of neurological damage, unsafe sex, intentional and unintentional injuries, and impacts on school and work performance in addition to chronic health harms in the future. This thesis employs a mixed-methods approach to comprehensively examine the behavioral and environmental contexts of Chinese young adult drinking behavior, as well as to generate feasible, effective strategies at the health promotion and policy levels to reduce alcohol-related harm among this population subgroup. / Cantonese-speaking young adults of Hong Kong (n=684) were invited between April and September 2011 to participate in a cross-sectional random telephone survey, during which they were asked about their drinking patterns and perceptions on a set of alcohol expectancy statements. Twelve focus groups (n=63) were then conducted between June 2012 – May 2013 to explore individual motivations to drink as well as possible environmental and social facilitating factors. A series of interviews conducted in January – April 2014 with key policy stakeholders, including representatives of law enforcement, education, government, food and beverage sectors, non-governmental organizations, and the alcohol industry, (n=16) then aimed to produce appropriate, actionable policies and interventions which can be undertaken as a means to reduce alcohol-related harm among young adults in Hong Kong. / At the behavioural level, positive outcome expectancies were found to be significantly associated with various levels of alcohol use. Those who held social facilitation of drinking to a high regard were significantly more likely (OR=6.67; 95% CI: 2.87,15.49) to have had at least one binge drinking episode in the past month. Qualitative investigations also illustrated drinking among Hong Kong young adults as heavily focused on planned socializing and self-presentation in personal and business situations, and further enabled by the availability of local drinking games and granting and losing face, a Chinese cultural concept based on dignity with competitive undertones. Drinking occasions were also facilitated by the convenience of bars and lounges, viewed as accommodating alternatives to homes for social gatherings. Point-of sale promotions providing inexpensive or free drinks further strengthened alcohol use as a convenient and normal practice among young adults. / Instead of adopting strategies to limit access to alcohol as recommended by global alcohol experts, key policy stakeholders of alcohol issues in Hong Kong expressed preference for softer approaches such as health education campaigns to properly inform young adults about the physical harms of alcohol. For legislative actions, only those that aim to limit alcohol’s physical availability, restrictions on discounted drink specials, and bans on event-centric promotions were favored as viable options. / This series of studies marks the first attempt in alcohol research to comprehensively establish a profile of drinking behavior of Chinese young adults at individual, social, and environmental levels. Based on these findings, a deeper understanding of the previously unexplored cultural context of Chinese drinking, particularly those involving face-based interactions and business situations, is warranted in future behavioral research on alcohol use among this ethnic subgroup. Health campaigns and community interventions challenging the perceives social benefits of drinking among young adults may be useful at the community level in reducing alcohol-relates harms among Chinese youth, but further research is required to ascertain their actual effectiveness in Hong Kong. The government-endorsed Liquor Licensing Board may also expand its current role in limiting the physical availability of alcohol in Hong Kong by imposing a licensing system on outlets that sell alcohol for consumption outside of their premises (off-premise sales), and restricting point-of-sale promotions of alcoholic beverages at licensed venues. / 飲酒為全球發病率的第三大危險因素。儘管酒精危害對公共衛生的影響何其嚴重，世界在過去五年飲酒量始終持續上升的趨勢。傳統來說，香港飲酒的份量與大多數發達國家相對較低。然而，香港針對酒類飲品的價格、供應、和營銷的限制極為寬鬆，這種情況有機會增加18-25歲青少年飲酒和暴飲的流行性，神經損傷、不安全性行為、和蓄意及非蓄意的傷害的風險亦有機會因此增加，在學校和工作表現也會受到影響。有見及此，本論文內描述的研究旨在採取混合研究方式，分析青少年飲酒行為的個人和環境因素，導出在健康促進和政策層面內可行、有效的措施，從而減少香港青少年酒精相關危害。 / 本研究首先採用電話問卷方式於2011年四月至九月之間對本地青少年作一項橫斷式調查(n=684)，主要調查他們的酒精使用頻率以及對使用效果的期望。此外亦於2012年六月至2013年九月之間經十二組的焦點團體訪談(n=63)探討青少年使用酒精飲品的個人動機，以及任何社會或環境層面的促進因素和影響。最後是項研究於2014年一月至四月之間進行一系列的採訪(n=16)，了解相應持份者對在香港實施減少青少年酒精相關危害的社區或政策行動的可行性與預期影響。。 / 在行為層面上，飲酒正向使用效果的期望與各級酒精頻率顯著相關。對酒精在社交帶來的正面效果抱著頗高期望的人士更有較大機會於一個月內有暴飲的情況(OR = 6.67; 95% CI: 2.87,15.49)。質性調查亦顯示，香港青少年飲酒行為很大程度上圍繞於酒精在社交場面上的表現和自我映照所需的正面影響，並透過本地式飲酒遊戲和面子的基礎上進一步引生出競爭式暴飲行為。飲酒場合（例如酒吧及類似的休憩場所）的方便及舒適程度，更令他們取代住所成為社交聯歡的主要地點。酒精飲品的特惠和特別促銷活動亦經常提供廉價或免費的飲料，進一步加強了酒精使用於青少年群組當中成為一種方便及正常行為。 / 相對於國際酒精使用研究專家提出的適當策略來限制人們和酒精的接觸，相應持份者傾向採取較柔和的應對方法，例如健康教育活動以正確地告知青少年酒精對身體的危害。使用法律手法當中，只有管制酒精供應和禁止特惠及特別促銷活動是被看好為本地可行的選擇。 / 這一系列的研究代表了學術界中首次在個人、社會、和環境層面上探究中國的年輕人飲酒行為。根據是項研究的結果，未來中國人飲酒行為的研究可針對未曾探索的文化背景作更深層的了解，特別是涉及面子和為工作而需應酬的飲酒場合。針對青年人認為飲酒的社交效果的健康及社區教育計劃也可能是有效的干預方向，但仍需作進一步研究以確定在香港的有效性。政府認可的酒牌局也能擴大現有的管制系統來限制零售店舖的酒精供應，以及任何售酒處所的銷售方式。本論文亦基於研究結果對未來行為的研究、健康促進的實踐、和政策發展的影響作進一步的討論。 / Wong, Ho Cheuk Alvin. / Thesis Ph.D. Chinese University of Hong Kong 2014. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 194-230). / Abstracts and appendixes also in Chinese. / Title from PDF title page (viewed on 18, October, 2016). / Wong, Ho Cheuk Alvin. / Detailed summary in vernacular field only. / Detailed summary in vernacular field only. / Detailed summary in vernacular field only. / Detailed summary in vernacular field only. / Detailed summary in vernacular field only.

The way in which adolescents perceive themselves and interact with peers, teachers and caregivers could determine whether they would drink alcohol and smoke dagga or not. Without positive self-concept amongst adolescents and experiencing of positive communication with caregivers, it can be said, there is a likelihood of drinking alcohol and smoking of dagga by adolescents. A 52-item questionnaire was constructed on the basis of current international and South African research on the adolescents who drink alcohol and smoke dagga. The biographical data was used as independent variables in the questionnaire. These independent variables included questions on age, gender, grade and the person who takes care of adolescent. The questionnaire was completed by 443 adolescents in grade 9 and 11 from one secondary school in Soweto. Of this total, 48,1% were males (N=213) and 51,9% were females (N=230). A factor analysis of the questionnaire revealed two statistically significant constructs and they were termed “Experience of locus of control with respect to school” (Chronbach alpha of 0.900) and “Experience of communication with caregivers by adolescents (0.892). With respect to the bivariate analysis of the relationships between (1)the gender of adolescents (2)the age of adolescents and who is the caregiver to the adolescent and the (1)drinking of alcohol and the (2)smoking of dagga, the following was found: • adolescents who lived with stepparents are more inclined to drink alcohol than adolescents who lived with both mother and father, single parents and other. • a significantly higher proportion of males drink alcohol man females who drink alcohol. • a significantly higher proportion of older adolescents (17 years, 18 years and older) drink alcohol than younger adolescents (16 years, 15 years and younger). The impact of this research would indicate that adolescents with negative self-concept about themselves display a significantly greater inclination towards drinking alcohol and smoking of dagga. Also, adolescents who live with stepparents display a significantly more negative experience of drinking alcohol and smoking of dagga than adolescents who live with both mother and father, single parents and other. / Prof. C.P.H Myburgh

Problem alcohol use has far-reaching economic, intra-, and interpersonal consequences. One particularly hazardous form of drinking pertains to the consumption of alcohol as a means of regulating stress, or drinking to cope. As such, it is critical to identify pathways through which stress-related alcohol use occurs, as well as protective factors which may mitigate the aforementioned consequences. To achieve this, I conducted three studies examining these topics at multiple levels of analysis among two at risk populations for engaging in problematic drinking: College students and military service members. Study 1 is a published manuscript examining the association between personality, a known vulnerability factor, and daily alcohol use among college students. This study tested whether these associations were mediated by the utilization of daily coping behaviors. Study 2 is an exploration of the association between of post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) and alcohol involvement among employed service members. I conducted conditional process analysis to determine whether the indirect association of PTSS on alcohol involvement through coping motivations was conditional on one's perceived level of social support. Finally, Study 3 examined how daily experiences of occupational stressors influence alcohol consumption using a subsample of married and cohabiting participants from Study 2. I tested the moderating roles of coping motives and more adaptive, support-based coping strategies on work stress-daily drinking associations. Together, these studies help elucidate why individuals typically drink when stressed, who may be more apt to do so, and under what conditions these effects hold true.