Emotion Regulation Interventions for Preventing Collegiate Escalations in Drinking

In the most recent National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), college aged respondents between 18 and 25 years old reported the highest alcohol use rates (over 58%) as well as the highest rates of binge drinking of any age group. High alcohol use/abuse in college students is associated with myriad negative consequences, including fatal and nonfatal injuries and overdoses, impaired academic and vocational performance, violence and other crime, legal problems, unintended pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases, and social problems. The National Comorbidity Survey underscores that use initiated in this period is not just experimental and recreational but may have lasting effects on consumption trajectories: For the majority of adults diagnosed alcohol use disorders, onset occurred during emerging adulthood. During this stage of development, vast changes in emotion regulation (ER) take place, particularly age-related shifts in the strategies used to manage distress that may lead to alcohol use/abuse (i.e., emotion suppression, inhibitory control, and cognitive reappraisal. Substantial evidence suggests that deficits in ER are strongly related to patterns of alcohol use in young adults. In particular, deficits in the self regulation of discomfort and distress, called distress tolerance, predict alcohol use - specifically, motivation and urgency for use, escalations in consumption, and the development of dependence that may be indicative of alcohol use disorders. Emerging adults who turn to alcohol as a way of coping with distressing emotions are most at risk for heavy alcohol use into adulthood and more severe negative alcohol consequences. Given the variable effectiveness of existing approaches for reducing college students' alcohol use, The investigators contend that interventions may be differentially effective depending on individual characteristics. In particular, students with difficulties in managing distress and discomfort may benefit from more intensi