ASU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
This collection includes most of the ASU Theses and Dissertations from 2011 to present. ASU Theses and Dissertations are available in downloadable PDF format; however, a small percentage of items are under embargo. Information about the dissertations/theses includes degree information, committee members, an abstract, supporting data or media.
In addition to the electronic theses found in the ASU Digital Repository, ASU Theses and Dissertations can be found in the ASU Library Catalog.
Dissertations and Theses granted by Arizona State University are archived and made available through a joint effort of the ASU Graduate College and the ASU Libraries. For more information or questions about this collection contact or visit the Digital Repository ETD Library Guide or contact the ASU Graduate College at gradformat@asu.edu.
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- Creators: Chassin, Laurie
Description
Anxiety disorder diagnosis is a risk factor for alcohol use disorders (AUDs), but mechanisms of risk are not well understood. Studies show that anxious individuals receive greater negative reinforcement from alcohol when consumed prior to a stressor, but few studies have examined whether anxious individuals receive greater negative (or positive) reinforcement from alcohol in a general drinking context (i.e., no imminent stressor). Previous studies have also failed to examine possible moderating effects of specific drinking contexts (e.g., drinking in a group or alone). Finally, no studies have investigated mediating variables that might explain the relationship between anxiety and reinforcement from alcohol, such as physiological response to alcohol (e.g., cortisol response). Data for this study were drawn from a large alcohol administration study (N = 447) wherein participants were randomized to receive alcohol (target peak BAC: .08 g%) or placebo in one of four contexts: group simulated bar, solitary simulated bar, group sterile laboratory, solitary sterile laboratory. It was hypothesized that anxiety would be associated with positive subjective response (SR) under alcohol (above and beyond placebo), indicating stronger reinforcement from alcohol. It was also hypothesized that social and physical drinking context would moderate this relationship. Finally, it was hypothesized that anxiety would be associated with a blunted cortisol response to alcohol (compared to placebo) and this blunted cortisol response would be associated with stronger positive SR and weaker negative SR. Results showed that anxiety was not associated with positive SR in the full sample, but drinking context did moderate the anxiety/SR relationship in most cases (e.g., anxiety was significantly associated with positive SR (stimulation) under placebo in solitary contexts only). There was no evidence that cortisol response to alcohol mediated the relationship between anxiety and SR. This study provides evidence that anxious drinkers expect stronger positive reinforcement from alcohol in solitary contexts, which has implications for intervention (e.g., modification of existing interventions like expectancy challenge). Null findings regarding cortisol response suggest alcohol’s effect on cortisol response to stress (rather than cortisol response to alcohol consumption) may be more relevant for SR and drinking behavior among anxious individuals.
ContributorsMenary, Kyle Robert (Author) / Corbin, William (Thesis advisor) / Chassin, Laurie (Committee member) / Meier, Madeline (Committee member) / Grimm, Kevin (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2018
Description
Family disruption, or the separation of children from caregivers, has been well-established in prior literature as a risk factor for child maladjustment; however, little is known about how family disruption impacts youth into adulthood, particularly how it influences children’s later parenting of their own offspring. The present study examined whether cumulative family disruption (i.e., parental hospitalization, death, incarceration, divorce) in childhood exerts effects on children’s parenting of their own offspring in adulthood, beyond other demographic characteristics and risk factors. Further, several potential mechanisms were hypothesized to underlie the association between family disruption in the first and second generation (G1-G2) family and later parenting provided from second-generation (G2) adults to third-generation (G3) children. Mediators included conflict and disorganization in the G1-G2 family and dysregulation in the G2 child.
Participants (N = 236 in models that included multiple G2 siblings; N = 110 in models without siblings) were drawn from a larger sample of at-risk (i.e., alcoholic) and comparison families followed longitudinally for over 30 years and across three generations. Four mediation models were estimated to examine effects of two separate G1-G2 family disruption components (deviance-related and health-related disruption) on parenting of G3, mediated by family conflict, family disorganization, and G2 dysregulation. Results indicated that health-related disruption impairs consistency of parenting provided to G3 offspring through conflict in the G1-G2 family. A direct effect of health-related disruption was also seen on parental monitoring. There were no direct or mediated effects of deviance-related disruption on parenting. Implications and future directions will be discussed.
Participants (N = 236 in models that included multiple G2 siblings; N = 110 in models without siblings) were drawn from a larger sample of at-risk (i.e., alcoholic) and comparison families followed longitudinally for over 30 years and across three generations. Four mediation models were estimated to examine effects of two separate G1-G2 family disruption components (deviance-related and health-related disruption) on parenting of G3, mediated by family conflict, family disorganization, and G2 dysregulation. Results indicated that health-related disruption impairs consistency of parenting provided to G3 offspring through conflict in the G1-G2 family. A direct effect of health-related disruption was also seen on parental monitoring. There were no direct or mediated effects of deviance-related disruption on parenting. Implications and future directions will be discussed.
ContributorsBlake, Austin Joy (Author) / Chassin, Laurie (Thesis advisor) / Meier, Madeline (Committee member) / Wolchik, Sharlene (Committee member) / McNeish, Daniel (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2019
Description
Alcohol use disorder (AUD) causes immense global burden and has a significant impact on economic and societal functioning. Efficacious treatments for AUDs have been well-established within the literature, however the most commonly accessed treatments for AUD are alcohol-related services, such as self-help groups, outpatient clinics, and detoxification centers. Though studies suggest these services are effective at treating AUDs, there are numerous differences between individuals who receive alcohol-related services and individuals who do not, causing selection bias. Furthermore, current studies of alcohol-related services frequently define recovery outcomes as abstinence, which reduces variability in viable recovery outcomes, such as reduction of drinking behaviors. In addition, reduction in drinking and alcohol-related problems should theoretically have an impact on broader aspects of functioning, such as familial functioning. Improved familial context may reduce risk to family members, who are otherwise at heightened risk for emotional and behavioral problems when living with a family member with AUD. The current study investigated the effect of alcohol-related services on binary and continuous drinking outcomes after eliminating selection bias using multiple propensity score approaches, to identify the best methodology for a high-risk community sample of individuals with AUD. Propensity scores were created using logistic regression approaches and boosted regression trees. Matching, weighting, and subclassification were used, and matching was performed both using greedy and global approaches. Results suggested subclassification was the most successful method for real world alcohol-related services samples with moderate sample size. Moreover, findings demonstrated that boosted regression approaches were less successful than logistic regression approaches at minimizing the effects of selection bias on known confounding variables that are highly related to group selection. In addition, after removing the effects of selection bias, there were no significant difference between participants who received alcohol-related services and the comparison control group on drinking or family functioning, though both groups reduced drinking from pre- to post-alcohol-related services receipt. Findings suggest careful selection of quasi-experimental methods is warranted in real-world samples, to ensure optimal removal of selection bias. Moreover, future studies should continue to clarify the profile of individual that benefits from alcohol-related services to inform intervention efforts.
ContributorsSternberg, Ariel (Author) / Chassin, Laurie (Thesis advisor) / Corbin, William (Committee member) / Meier, Madeline (Committee member) / Grimm, Kevin (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2021
Description
Despite the established co-prevalence of substance use (SU) and disordered eating (DE), few longitudinal studies have sought to examine their shared development. Findings have been inconsistent within the extant literature. This may be attributable in part to several methodological aspects, including overlooking distinct psychopharmacological properties of common substances of abuse, examining only between-person relations, and failing to account for shared risk factors. The current study sought to address these gaps by applying latent curve models with structured residuals (LCM-SR) to a preexisting, national sample of adolescent girls followed into adulthood, Add Health. In Aim 1, between-person effects examined the simultaneous development of alcohol, tobacco, and marijuana use and DE behaviors in substance-specific models. In Aim 2, bivariate latent curve models were expanded to account for within-person effects (LCM-SR) in order to examine the potentially bidirectional, prospective relationship between use of a specific substance and DE. Lastly, models accounted for shared developmental risk factors. Findings of the current study demonstrate preliminary evidence of substance-specific effects with DE emerging in adolescence. Across model-building steps, DE engagement in early adolescence was significantly associated with growth in tobacco use and marginally associated with marijuana use. Appetitive side-effects of both substances may link use with DE behaviors and enhance instrumental use for weight control. Significant associations did not emerge between alcohol and DE, and results of the conditional model indicate this co-occurrence is best explained by third variable mechanisms. Implications for prevention are discussed.
ContributorsBruening, Amanda B (Author) / Corbin, William (Thesis advisor) / Chassin, Laurie (Committee member) / Meier, Madeline (Committee member) / McNeish, Daniel (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2021