A Psychometric Evaluation of the Approach and Avoidance of Alcohol Questionnaire (AAAQ) in Alcohol Dependent Outpatients

The Approach and Avoidance of Alcohol Questionnaire (AAAQ; McEvoy et al. in Addiction 99:482–497, 2004) was administered to a clinical sample of 138 alcohol dependent men and women. An exploratory factor analysis was used to determine the AAAQ factor structure and a confirmatory analysis run on a second administration of the AAAQ. Convergent validity was examined by conducting an alcohol cue reactivity test and by administering the Timeline Follow-Back (TLFB), a retrospective calendar method for assessing alcohol consumption, and several measures of alcohol-related problems. The factor analysis supported a two-factor solution representing approach and avoidance dimensions. Regressions predicting measures of alcohol cue reactivity, alcohol consumption, and other alcohol-related constructs with the AAAQ provide support for its convergent validity. The results suggest that alcohol craving may be viewed as a multi-dimensional construct that includes both approach and avoidance inclinations which may vary depending on the population under examination.

Description of a Behavioral Intervention to Reduce Substance Use and Related Risk and Increase Positive Parenting among Urban Mothers with Alcohol and Other Drug Problems

The abuse of alcohol and other substances by mothers raising adolescent children has serious adverse effects on family functioning and youth outcomes, and on mothers’ own health and adaptation. Mothers who are also HIV-infected face additional challenges. In the present report, we describe a multi-session intervention conducted in individual sessions for mothers with alcohol and other substance use problems who are raising adolescent children. We outline the primary components of the intervention and include case studies and examples of exercises and tools. We found that engagement with the intervention and high rates of attendance were facilitated by tapping into mothers’ desires to improve their relationships with their adolescent children, the use of a harm reduction approach toward substance use, and intensive outreach. We also discuss lessons learned in the course of implementing and evaluating the intervention.     

Associations between aspects of spiritual well-being, alcohol use, and related social-cognitions in female college students

This research explores relationships between aspects of spiritual well-being, alcohol use and related social-cognitions in college women. The sample included 151 female college students ranging in age from 18 to 25 years. Participants read a behavioral vignette depicting alcohol use by a student and completed a survey that included measures of alcohol use, counterfactual attributions and beliefs about drinking, as well as religious and existential aspects of spiritual well-being. Results suggested religious- and existential well-being to be inversely associated with indices of alcohol use and the likelihood of attending a social event where alcohol is present. Further, religious well-being was found to be negatively associated with beliefs concerning the social-effects of alcohol, while existential well-being was observed to be a significant predictor of a composite set of attributions related to alcohol prevention. Importantly, these data suggest religious and existential aspects of spiritual well-being as moderators of behavior as well as causal attributions and beliefs that represent a cognitive mechanism of alcohol prevention in college women. Use of counterfactual exercises as an educational technique, and potential barriers of religious and existential oriented prevention programs are briefly discussed.     

Can mismatch negativity be linked to synaptic processes? A glutamatergic approach to deviance detection

This article aims to provide a theoretical framework to elucidate the neurophysiological underpinnings of deviance detection as reflected by mismatch negativity. A six-step model of the information processing necessary for deviance detection is proposed. In this model, predictive coding of learned regularities is realized by means of long-term potentiation with a crucial role for NMDA receptors. Mismatch negativity occurs at the last stage of the model, reflecting the increase in free energy associated with the switching on of silent synapses and the formation of new neural circuits required for adaptation to the environmental deviance. The model is discussed with regard to the pathological states most studied in relation to mismatch negativity: alcohol intoxication, alcohol withdrawal, and schizophrenia.     

A Protective Factors Model for Alcohol Abuse and Suicide Prevention Among Alaska Native Youth

This study provides an empirical test of a culturally grounded theoretical model for prevention of alcohol abuse and suicide risk with Alaska Native youth, using a promising set of culturally appropriate measures for the study of the process of change and outcome. This model is derived from qualitative work that generated an heuristic model of protective factors from alcohol (Allen et al. in J Prev Interv Commun 32:41–59, 2006; Mohatt et al. in Am J Commun Psychol 33:263–273, 2004a; Harm Reduct 1, 2004b). Participants included 413 rural Alaska Native youth ages 12–18 who assisted in testing a predictive model of Reasons for Life and Reflective Processes about alcohol abuse consequences as co-occurring outcomes. Specific individual, family, peer, and community level protective factor variables predicted these outcomes. Results suggest prominent roles for these predictor variables as intermediate prevention strategy target variables in a theoretical model for a multilevel intervention. The model guides understanding of underlying change processes in an intervention to increase the ultimate outcome variables of Reasons for Life and Reflective Processes regarding the consequences of alcohol abuse.     

Women who use exercise as a compensatory behavior: How do they differ from those who do not?

ObjectivesThis research examined group differences between women who reported using exercise as a compensatory behavior (ECB; n = 73) and women who did not report using exercise as a compensatory behavior (NECB; n = 133) on alcohol and exercise behavior, drinking and exercise motivation, and several related constructs.DesignA cross-sectional design was used.MethodsUndergraduate women (M age = 19.5 years, SD = 3.01 years) completed self-report measures regarding their alcohol use, alcohol-related problems, exercise behavior, alcohol and exercise motivations, impulsivity, body dissatisfaction, and dietary restraint.ResultsResults indicated that women in the ECB group reported consuming more alcohol, more binge drinking episodes, more alcohol-related problems, higher alcohol and exercise motivations, more exercise, and greater impulsivity, body dissatisfaction, and dietary restraint than women in the NECB group (p's ranging from <.0001 to .017).ConclusionsInterestingly, women who use exercise as a compensatory behavior consumed higher amounts of alcohol, but did not drink more frequently than women who did not use exercise as a compensatory behavior. Women who use exercise as a compensatory behavior also endorse drinking and exercise motives more strongly than women who did not use exercise as a compensatory behavior.     

A Preliminary Investigation of the Relationship Between Emotion Dysregulation and Partner Violence Perpetration Among Individuals with PTSD and Alcohol Dependence

This study examines the link between emotion dysregulation and intimate partner violence (IPV) among 77 individuals with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and alcohol dependence. Participants were recruited from a residential substance abuse treatment program as part of the eligibility screening for an institutional review board approved clinical trial examining the efficacy of an exposure-based intervention in individuals dually diagnosed with alcohol dependence and PTSD. Participants reported on PTSD symptoms, alcohol use disorder symptoms, emotion dysregulation, and physical and verbal aggression in their intimate relationships during the past year. Findings demonstrated that difficulties with emotion regulation are associated with physical and verbal IPV perpetration in a clinical sample. Although facets of emotion regulation emerged as significant predictors of IPV in the models, alcohol and PTSD symptom severity did not emerge as predictors of IPV. These findings suggest targeted emotion regulation skills training could benefit substance abusers who engage in IPV and that emotion dysregulation might be an important target for future research aimed at understanding elevated rates of IPV perpetration in mental health samples.     

The Relation Between Compulsive Sexual Behaviors and Aggression in a Substance-Dependent Population

Research supports a high comorbidity between compulsive sexual behaviors (CSBs) and substance use disorders (SUDs), which are both classified by increased impulsivity. Literature has also indicated that increased impulsivity and substance use are associated with aggression. However, no known research has examined the relationship between CSBs and aggression among a substance-dependent population. The purpose of this study was to examine this relationship. Participants included 349 male patients in treatment for SUDs. Results indicated that after controlling for alcohol and drug use and problems and age, CSBs were significantly associated with total aggression, aggressive attitudes, physical aggression, and verbal aggression. This is the first known study to examine this relationship; thus continued research is needed to extend and replicate these findings.     

Adaptation of the Children's Friendship Training Program for Children with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders

ABSTRACT

Previous research attests to the marked impairments in social functioning exhibited by children with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD), suggesting that such children are in need of social skills intervention. Recently, an existing evidence-based manualized behavioral treatment for improving children's friendships was implemented and demonstrated to be effective with children aged 6–12, diagnosed with FASD. In the present report, we describe methods for adapting this behavioral intervention in line with the specific cognitive and behavioral deficits seen in children with FASD and other developmental disabilities to enhance treatment efficacy.     

Alcohol increases hypnotic susceptibility

One approach to hypnosis suggests that for hypnotic experience to occur frontal lobe activity must be attenuated. For example, cold control theory posits that a lack of awareness of intentions is responsible for the experience of involuntariness and/or the subjective reality of hypnotic suggestions. The mid-dorso-lateral prefrontal cortex and the ACC are candidate regions for such awareness. Alcohol impairs frontal lobe executive function. This study examined whether alcohol affects hypnotisability. We administered 0.8 mg/kg of alcohol or a placebo to 32 medium susceptible participants. They were subsequently hypnotised and given hypnotic suggestions. All participants believed they had received some alcohol. Participants in the alcohol condition were more susceptible to hypnotic suggestions than participants in the placebo condition. Impaired frontal lobe activity facilitates hypnotic responding, which supports theories postulating that attenuation of executive function facilitates hypnotic response, and contradicts theories postulating that hypnotic response involves enhanced inhibitory, attentional or other executive function.