Reinforcement expectancies for studying predict drinking problems among college students: approaching problem drinking from an expectancies choice perspective.

Molar behavioral choice theories point to the important role reinforcement for alternative behaviors may play in reducing problem drinking [Psychol. Addict. Behav. 9 (1995) 223.]. A similar molar choice perspective may apply to a cognitive mediational level of analysis: the molecular link between alcohol expectancies and drinking behavior depends on expectancies for alternative behaviors. In this study, 82 college students completed the Alcohol Effects Questionnaire (AEFQ), the Rutgers Alcohol Problem Index (RAPI), a self-report measure of drinking quantity and frequency, and a five-item studying expectancies questionnaire devised for the current study. Analyses indicated that, among students who hold high alcohol expectancies, those who reported high studying expectancies drink less and develop significantly fewer drinking problems than those who hold low studying expectancies. Future research may address the possibility of reducing drinking problems among college students by enhancing studying expectancies.