title: One of these things is not like the others: Testing trajectories in drinking frequency, drinking quantity, and alcohol-related problems in undergraduate women.
abstract: Alcohol misuse is an increasingly common problem in undergraduate women. Building upon research suggesting that maturing out of risky patterns of alcohol use can occur, our study tested how three facets of alcohol use change differentially over time in undergraduate women. A sample of 218 undergraduate women (M age=20.6years) participated in a four-wave, 18-month longitudinal study measuring frequency of alcohol consuming occasions, quantity of alcohol consumed per occasion, and alcohol-related problems. Growth curve analyses showed that alcohol frequency remained stable over 18months, whereas alcohol quantity and problems decreased over time. Results indicate undergraduate women are drinking with similar frequency over time, but they are drinking a smaller quantity of alcohol per drinking occasion and they are experiencing fewer alcohol-related problems. Findings help clarify the maturity principle by showing a different pattern of drinking as undergraduate women age that involves lower quantities of alcohol per drinking occasion and less problematic alcohol use, but not necessarily less frequent drinking.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Dalhousie University, 1355 Oxford Street, PO Box 15000, Halifax, Nova Scotia B3H4R2, Canada.
authors.forename: Logan J
authors.initials: LJ
authors.lastname: Nealis
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Dalhousie University, 1355 Oxford Street, PO Box 15000, Halifax, Nova Scotia B3H4R2, Canada.
authors.forename: Jamie-Lee
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Collins
authors.affiliation: Nova Scotia Health Authority, Central Zone and the Department of Family Medicine, Dalhousie University, 1276 South Park Street, Halifax, NS B3H2Y9, Canada.
authors.forename: Dayna L
authors.initials: DL
authors.lastname: Lee-Baggley
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Dalhousie University, 1355 Oxford Street, PO Box 15000, Halifax, Nova Scotia B3H4R2, Canada; Department of Psychiatry, Dalhousie University, 5909 Veterans Memorial Lane, Halifax, Nova Scotia B3H2E2, Canada.
authors.forename: Simon B
authors.initials: SB
authors.lastname: Sherry
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Dalhousie University, 1355 Oxford Street, PO Box 15000, Halifax, Nova Scotia B3H4R2, Canada; Department of Psychiatry, Dalhousie University, 5909 Veterans Memorial Lane, Halifax, Nova Scotia B3H2E2, Canada. Electronic address: sstewart@dal.ca.
authors.forename: Sherry H
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Stewart
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D000067292:Alcohol Drinking in College; D019973:Alcohol-Related Disorders / Q000209:etiology*; D000434:Alcoholic Beverages / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D013334:Students / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Alcohol consumption; Alcohol-related problems; Stability; Undergraduates; Women