Abstract
Objective: Black emerging adults are significantly impacted by substance misuse. Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is associated with heightened substance misuse among Black emerging adults. However, limited research has identified protective factors that may influence the strength of the relation between PTSD and substance misuse in this population. Addressing this important limitation, the present study examined the potential moderating role of perceived social support in the association between PTSD symptoms and substance (i.e., alcohol and drug) misuse. Methods: Participants were 182 trauma-exposed Black emerging adults (M age = 20.50; 71.3% women) who completed self-report measures assessing PTSD symptoms, alcohol and drug misuse, and perceived social support. Results: PTSD symptoms were significantly and positively correlated with both alcohol and drug misuse. Moderation analyses indicated that positive relations between PTSD symptoms and both alcohol and drug misuse were only significant among Black emerging adults with lower (but not higher) levels of perceived social support. Conclusions: These findings suggest the potential utility of addressing social support in the assessment and treatment of substance misuse in trauma-exposed Black emerging adults.
Correction Statement
This article has been corrected with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.
Acknowledgments
This study was presented virtually at the 54th Annual Convention of the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in November 2020. This study was also presented virtually at the 36th Annual Meeting of the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies in Atlanta, Georgia in November 2020.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s). The author(s) report no financial relationships with commercial interests.