Efficacy of Coping with Negative Affect via Alcohol Use Pre- and Post Acute Stress.

ABSTRACT: Alcohol use is common for emotional coping due to stress. However, it may not effectively mitigate negative emotions or the stressors. The current study sought to test if use predicts negative affect (NA) relief on days prior to acute stress as predicted by theories such as the stress-response-dampening hypothesis, particularly among those who use to cope. Undergraduates (N = 226) preparing for a premedical examination participated in a 14-day diary study (N_Days = 2920). Reports included morning and evening NA, evening alcohol consumption, and a baseline measure of substance-use-directed coping. Multilevel mediation models indicated that only substance-use-directed coping was positively associated with alcohol use on days prior to the exam. In contrast, post-exam,

SUBMITTER: Willis MA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12729561 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature