Loneliness and Alcohol-Related Problems among College Students Who Report Binge Drinking Behavior: The Moderating Role of Food and Alcohol Disturbance

Luke Herchenroeder (), Stacy M. Post, Michelle L. Stock and Ellen W. Yeung
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Luke Herchenroeder: Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, George Washington University, Washington, DC 20052, USA
Stacy M. Post: Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, George Washington University, Washington, DC 20052, USA
Michelle L. Stock: Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, George Washington University, Washington, DC 20052, USA
Ellen W. Yeung: Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, George Washington University, Washington, DC 20052, USA

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 21, 1-11

Abstract: Loneliness and alcohol misuse are common among college students and pose a threat to public health. To better understand the longitudinal association between these public health concerns we examined food and alcohol disturbance (FAD; i.e., restricting one’s caloric intake prior to drinking) as a moderator in the association between loneliness and alcohol-related problems. Participants were 456 college students from a mid-sized university who engaged in past 30-day binge drinking. The majority of participants identified as being White (67.1%), female (78.1%), and reported a mean age of 19.61 (SD = 1.54) years. Participants completed two surveys (3 weeks apart) over the course of an academic semester. Analyses revealed a significant interaction between loneliness and FAD, such that loneliness (T1) significantly and positively predicted alcohol-related problems (T2), but only among individuals who engaged in relatively higher levels of FAD (T1). FAD may be an appropriate target for interventions aimed at reducing alcohol-related problems among college students experiencing loneliness.

Keywords: loneliness; food and alcohol disturbance; alcohol; binge drinking; college students (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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