Trauma and alcohol characteristics related to high intensity binge drinking during college

Abstract

High intensity (HI) binge drinking has emerged as a high-risk drinking phenotype in young adult drinkers, yet few studies have evaluated clinically meaningful correlates of HI binge drinking among young adults at risk for co-occurring psychopathologies, such as interpersonal trauma-exposed drinkers. The present study compared three groups (i.e., HI binge, standard binge, non-binge drinkers) of interpersonal trauma-exposed college student drinkers (N = 221) on alcohol and interpersonal trauma characteristics. Results of one-way ANOVAs indicated that the HI binge group endorsed significantly greater negative alcohol-related consequences relative to the other two groups. The HI binge group endorsed significantly greater enhancement motives compared to the non-binge group, and no group differences were detected for PTSD and interpersonal trauma characteristics. Individuals who engage in HI binge drinking may experience greater alcohol problems due to their use of alcohol to enhance positive mood. HI binge drinking does not differentiate individuals on the basis of interpersonal trauma experiences or related psychopathology.

Keywords:

• Alcohol
• binge drinking
• drinking motives
• PTSD
• trauma

Disclosure statement

The authors have no conflicts of interest to report. The authors confirm that the research presented in this article met the ethical guidelines, including adherence to the legal requirements, of the United States, and received approval from the Institutional Review Board of University of Illinois at Chicago.

Additional information

Funding

The study was funded by National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA; R00AA022385) PI: Dr. Erin Berenz, Ph.D.