Reasons for not drinking and perceived injunctive norms as predictors of alcohol abstinence among college students.

Few studies have examined the association between reasons for not drinking and social norms among abstinent college students. Research suggests that drinking motives are associated with perceived injunctive norms and drinking. Therefore, it seems likely that reasons for not drinking may also be associated with perceived injunctive norms and abstinence. The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between reasons for not drinking and perceived injunctive norms on alcohol abstinence. Participants were 423 light-drinking and abstinent college students from a public northwestern university who completed online surveys at baseline, 3-, and 6-month follow-up. We examined abstinence as a function of all subscales of the Reasons for Not Drinking scale using logistic regression, as well as conducted two mediational analyses indicating: (1) perceived injunctive norms as a mediator of the relationship between reasons for not drinking and abstinence, and (2) reasons for not drinking as a mediator of the relationship between perceived injunctive norms and abstinence. The Disapproval/Lack of Interest subscale was the only subscale of the Reasons for Not Drinking scale that was significantly associated with 6-month abstinence. Further, Disapproval/Lack of Interest both directly predicted abstinence and indirectly predicted abstinence via perceived injunctive norms. Perceived injunctive norms indirectly predicted abstinence via Disapproval/Lack of Interest, but did not directly predict abstinence. Results suggest that self-defining personal values are an important component of keeping abstaining college students abstinent. These results are discussed with regard to implications for interventions designed specifically for maintaining abstinence throughout college.