Relationship between General and Sport-Related Drinking Motives and Athlete Alcohol Use and Problems. 2019

Michelle Pitts, and Graig M Chow, and Brad Donohue
a Department of Psychology, University of Nevada , Las Vegas , NV , USA.

Alcohol use (and adverse consequences due to alcohol use) among college student-athletes is a common occurrence and consequently garners attention as a health concern within athletic departments and the NCAA. One of the strongest predictors of alcohol use in athletes is motivation to drink. However, not much is known about the influence of alcohol use motivations on drinking in collegiate athletes. Therefore, this study examined the influence of sport-related and general drinking motives on alcohol use and alcohol-related problems. Participants were female collegiate softball players (N = 721) from 62 NCAA teams. Athletes completed the Athlete Drinking Scale (Martens et al., 2005), the Drinking Motives Questionnaire, revised (Cooper, 1994; Cooper et al., 1992), alcohol consumption measures, and the Rutgers Alcohol Problems Index (White & Labouvie, 1989). Multilevel modeling was used to analyze the data. Higher scores on Positive Reinforcement motives were associated with greater alcohol consumption, heavy episodic drinking, and alcohol-related problems. Enhancement motives were positively associated with heavy episodic drinking and alcohol-related problems, while Coping motives were positively associated with alcohol-related problems. Lower scores on Conformity motives were related to higher alcohol consumption, whereas higher scores were related to more alcohol-related problems. These results assist in understanding salient drinking motives among athletes while accounting for nesting effects of athletes within teams. Results demonstrate alcohol use as a perceived means of reward for hard work or good athletic performance, thus attempts to control alcohol use in college athletics should emphasize alternative methods to positively reinforce efforts or celebrate victories.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D008297 Male Males
D009042 Motivation Those factors which cause an organism to behave or act in either a goal-seeking or satisfying manner. They may be influenced by physiological drives or by external stimuli. Incentives,Disincentives,Expectations,Disincentive,Expectation,Incentive,Motivations
D011795 Surveys and Questionnaires Collections of data obtained from voluntary subjects. The information usually takes the form of answers to questions, or suggestions. Community Survey,Nonrespondent,Questionnaire,Questionnaires,Respondent,Survey,Survey Method,Survey Methods,Surveys,Baseline Survey,Community Surveys,Methodology, Survey,Nonrespondents,Questionnaire Design,Randomized Response Technique,Repeated Rounds of Survey,Respondents,Survey Methodology,Baseline Surveys,Design, Questionnaire,Designs, Questionnaire,Methods, Survey,Questionnaire Designs,Questionnaires and Surveys,Randomized Response Techniques,Response Technique, Randomized,Response Techniques, Randomized,Survey, Baseline,Survey, Community,Surveys, Baseline,Surveys, Community,Techniques, Randomized Response
D012054 Reinforcement, Psychology The strengthening of a conditioned response. Negative Reinforcement,Positive Reinforcement,Psychological Reinforcement,Reinforcement (Psychology),Negative Reinforcements,Positive Reinforcements,Psychological Reinforcements,Psychology Reinforcement,Psychology Reinforcements,Reinforcement, Negative,Reinforcement, Positive,Reinforcement, Psychological,Reinforcements (Psychology),Reinforcements, Negative,Reinforcements, Positive,Reinforcements, Psychological,Reinforcements, Psychology
D005260 Female Females
D006801 Humans Members of the species Homo sapiens. Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D000223 Adaptation, Psychological A state of harmony between internal needs and external demands and the processes used in achieving this condition. (From APA Thesaurus of Psychological Index Terms, 8th ed). Behavior, Adaptive,Healthy Adaptation,Positive Adaptation,Psychological Recovery,Adaptation, Psychologic,Adjustment,Psychological Adaptation,Adaptation, Healthy,Adaptation, Positive,Adaptive Behavior,Adaptive Behaviors,Healthy Adaptations,Positive Adaptations,Psychologic Adaptation,Psychological Recoveries,Recovery, Psychological
D000293 Adolescent A person 13 to 18 years of age. Adolescence,Youth,Adolescents,Adolescents, Female,Adolescents, Male,Teenagers,Teens,Adolescent, Female,Adolescent, Male,Female Adolescent,Female Adolescents,Male Adolescent,Male Adolescents,Teen,Teenager,Youths
D000428 Alcohol Drinking Behaviors associated with the ingesting of ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES, including social drinking. Alcohol Consumption,Alcohol Intake,Drinking, Alcohol,Alcohol Drinking Habits,Alcohol Drinking Habit,Alcohol Intakes,Consumption, Alcohol,Drinking Habit, Alcohol,Habit, Alcohol Drinking,Habits, Alcohol Drinking,Intake, Alcohol
D012307 Risk Factors An aspect of personal behavior or lifestyle, environmental exposure, inborn or inherited characteristic, which, based on epidemiological evidence, is known to be associated with a health-related condition considered important to prevent. Health Correlates,Risk Factor Scores,Risk Scores,Social Risk Factors,Population at Risk,Populations at Risk,Correlates, Health,Factor, Risk,Factor, Social Risk,Factors, Social Risk,Risk Factor,Risk Factor Score,Risk Factor, Social,Risk Factors, Social,Risk Score,Score, Risk,Score, Risk Factor,Social Risk Factor

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