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- All Subjects: psychology
- Genre: Masters Thesis
Description
The beginning of college is a period in which increased alcohol use often coincides with greater involvement in romantic relationships. Existing literature yields inconsistent findings regarding the influence of different relationship statuses on drinking behavior, perhaps because these studies have not accounted for recent changes in the way college students engage in dating/sexual relationships. In the current college environment, many students who define themselves as non-daters are nonetheless sexually active, a phenomenon referred to as the 'hook up' culture. The present study sought to address this issue by examining the effects of both relationship status and sexual activity on heavy episodic drinking (HED) among 1,467 college students over the course of their first three semesters. Results indicated that the effects of relationship status depended on whether or not an individual was sexually active. Non-dating but sexually active students reported rates of heavy drinking comparable to students who defined themselves as casual daters, but non-dating students who were not sexually active reported drinking behavior similar to those involved in committed relationships. Further, transitions between low and high risk relationship/sexual activity statuses were associated with corresponding changes in HED. Transitioning into a high risk status was associated with greater levels of heavy episodic drinking, whereas transitioning into a low risk status was associated with decreases in this behavior. Together, results indicate that engaging in nonexclusive dating or sexual relationships may play an important role in the development of problematic patterns of alcohol use during the early college years. These findings have potentially important implications both for future research and for prevention and intervention efforts targeting high risk college drinkers.
ContributorsZalewski, Suzanne (Author) / Corbin, Willaim (Thesis advisor) / Doane, Leah (Committee member) / Chassin, Laurie (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2012
Description
Research has suggested that lonely people demonstrate distinct differences from nonlonely people in their behaviors, mood, and interpersonal experiences. Lonely people who are also enduring a chronic pain condition may be at an especially high risk for negative outcomes because of simultaneous issues such as stigma, mood disturbances, and pain-related disability. The current study examined chronic and transitory loneliness in a sample of 123 chronic pain patients. Participants completed daily diaries assessing the occurrence of positive and negative interpersonal events, appraisals of interpersonal events, pain, and mood. Multilevel modeling was used to examine effects of being a lonely person as well as having a lonely episode on daily life. Results indicated that both chronic and transitory loneliness were associated with more frequent negative and less frequent positive interpersonal events, higher levels of pain, more negative and less positive affect, and more stress and less enjoyment from social interactions. Loneliness did not affect reactivity to negative interpersonal events, but did influence responsivity to positive interpersonal events such that lonely people had greater boosts in enjoyment when experiencing more positive interpersonal events than usual. These findings suggest that both lonely people and individuals experiencing a lonely episode experience more negative consequences in their daily lives than nonlonely people. However, they can benefit from engaging in more frequent positive interpersonal events, which can help to inform future clinical interventions for lonely, chronic pain patients.
ContributorsDempsey, Laurie (Author) / Davis, Mary (Thesis advisor) / Zautra, Alex (Committee member) / Doane, Leah (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2012
Description
Research on self-regulatory variables like mindfulness and effortful control proposes strong links with physical and mental health outcomes across the lifespan, from childhood and adolescence to adulthood and old age. One pathway by which self-regulation may confer health benefits is through individual differences in reports of and emotional responses to daily negative and positive events. Mindfulness is broadly defined as non-reactivity to inner experiences, while effortful control is broadly defined as attentional and behavioral regulation. Mindfulness and effortful control have both been conceptualized to exert their beneficial effects on development through their influence on exposure/engagement and emotional reactivity/responsiveness to both negative and positive events, yet few empirical studies have tested this claim using daily-diary designs, a research methodology that permits for examining this process. With a sample of community-dwelling adults (n=191), this thesis examined whether dispositional mindfulness (i.e., non-reactivity of inner experience) and effortful control (i.e., attention and behavioral regulation) modulate reports of and affective reactivity/responsiveness to daily negative and positive events across 30 days. Results showed that mindfulness and effortful control were each associated with reduced exposure to daily stressors but not positive events. They also showed that mindfulness and effortful control, respectively, predicted smaller decreases in negative affect and smaller increases in positive affect on days that positive events occurred. Overall, these findings offer insight into how these self-regulatory factors operate in the context of middle-aged adults’ everyday life.
ContributorsCastro, Saul (Author) / Infurna, Frank (Thesis advisor) / Doane, Leah (Committee member) / Davis, Mary (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2018