Determining The Pathways To Alcohol Use Consequences

Research has attempted to explain how emotion dysregulation and impulsivity relate to alcohol use problems. This study extended the literature by testing different pathways to problem alcohol use. We hypothesized that approach impulsivity/disinhibition and alcohol use frequency would mediate the relationship between emotion dysregulation and negative alcohol use consequences. We also hypothesized that alcohol use frequency would mediate the relationship between sensation seeking/reward sensitivity and negative alcohol use consequences. A cross-sectional chained mediation effects model was tested using data from 508 Amazon Mechanical Turk workers who resided in the USA (mean age = 33.66, standard deviation = 11.70, 59.6% female). Significant simple mediation effects from emotion dysregulation to alcohol use consequences through approach impulsivity/disinhibition, and from sensation seeking/reward sensitivity to alcohol use consequences through alcohol use frequency were found. There were no chained mediation effects. Two distinct pathways to alcohol use consequences are identified: one from emotion dysregulation through approach impulsivity/disinhibition, and another from sensation seeking/reward sensitivity through alcohol use frequency. This study highlights the importance of understanding the different pathways to problem drinking, as it can be crucial for developing refined treatment techniques.