BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSD) and problem alcohol use (ALC) commonly co-occur, but the nature of this co-occurrence is unclear. Self-medication explanations have been forwarded, yet traits such as tendency toward negative emotionality and behavioral disconstraint also have been implicated. In this study we test three competing models (Self-Medication, Trait Vulnerability, Combined Dual Pathway) of PTSD-ALC prospectively in a college sample. METHOD: Participants (N=659; 73% female, M age=18) provided data at college matriculation (Time 1) and 1 year later (Time 2). RESULTS: Structural equation models showed disconstraint to meditate the path from PTSD symptoms to alcohol problems, supporting a trait vulnerability conceptualization. Findings regarding negative emotionality and self-medication were more mixed. Negative emotionality played a stronger role in cross-sectional than in prospective analyses, suggesting the importance of temporal proximity. CONCLUSIONS AND SCIENTIFIC SIGNIFICANCE: Self-regulation skills may be an important focus for clinicians treating PTSD symptoms and alcohol misuse disorders concurrently.
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES:Posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSD) and problem alcohol use (ALC) commonly co-occur, but the nature of this co-occurrence is unclear. Self-medication explanations have been forwarded, yet traits such as tendency toward negative emotionality and behavioral disconstraint also have been implicated. In this study we test three competing models (Self-Medication, Trait Vulnerability, Combined Dual Pathway) of PTSD-ALC prospectively in a college sample. METHOD:Participants (N=659; 73% female, M age=18) provided data at college matriculation (Time 1) and 1 year later (Time 2). RESULTS: Structural equation models showed disconstraint to meditate the path from PTSD symptoms to alcohol problems, supporting a trait vulnerability conceptualization. Findings regarding negative emotionality and self-medication were more mixed. Negative emotionality played a stronger role in cross-sectional than in prospective analyses, suggesting the importance of temporal proximity. CONCLUSIONS AND SCIENTIFIC SIGNIFICANCE: Self-regulation skills may be an important focus for clinicians treating PTSD symptoms and alcohol misuse disorders concurrently.
Authors: Jeffrey S Simons; Raluca M Simons; Jessica A Keith; Kevin J Grimm; Scott F Stoltenberg; Carol O'Brien; Kate Andal Journal: J Abnorm Psychol Date: 2018-10-04
Authors: Kaitlin E Bountress; Frank Wendt; Renato Polimanti; Ananda Amstadter; Daniel Bustamante; Arpana Agrawal; Bradley Webb; Nathan Gillespie; Howard Edenberg; Christina Sheerin; Emma Johnson Journal: Alcohol Clin Exp Res Date: 2021-06-24 Impact factor: 3.928