ABSTRACT

Background: Heavy episodic drinking (HED) and negative drinking consequences represent prevalent and serious health concerns for college students. Depressive symptoms may elevate students’ risk for engaging in HED and experiencing negative consequences, but levels of risk may vary by executive function (EF) capabilities. Growing evidence suggests that EF deficits are associated with comorbid depressive symptoms and alcohol misuse. Nevertheless, little is known about unique and shared risks that depressive symptoms and EF may interactively pose for HED and negative drinking consequences. Methods: To address these gaps, the study assessed depressive symptoms, multiple domains of EF via multimethod approach, HED, and negative drinking consequences in a sample of 446 undergraduate students. Mediated moderation models were conducted to examine associations between depressive symptoms and alcohol use behaviors and modulating roles of EF. Results: Depressive symptoms, poor planning, and self-reported executive dysfunction were significantly associated with HED and negative drinking consequences. HED mediated the effect of depressive symptoms and executive dysfunction on negative consequences. A significant interaction indicated that better EF (i.e. low or average self-reported executive dysfunction) may buffer the risk depressive symptoms present for negative drinking consequences. Conclusions: The current findings suggest that among college students, risk and resilience factors for HED and negative drinking consequences may vary. Effective EF capabilities may be especially helpful for reducing students’ risk for more serious drinking consequences.

摘要

背景：大量间歇性饮酒 (HED) 和不良饮酒后果代表了大学生普遍存在的严重健康问题。抑郁症状可能会增加学生参与 HED 和经历负面后果的风险，但风险水平可能因执行功能 (EF) 能力而异。越来越多的证据表明，EF 缺陷与共存的抑郁症状和酒精滥用有关。然而，人们对抑郁症状和 EF 可能相互作用导致 HED 和消极饮酒后果的独特和共同风险知之甚少。方法：为了解决这些差距，该研究评估了 446 名本科生样本中的抑郁症状、EF 的多个领域、HED 和负面饮酒后果。进行了中介调节模型以检查抑郁症状与酒精使用行为和 EF 调节作用之间的关联。结果：抑郁症状、不良计划和自我报告的执行功能障碍与 HED 和消极饮酒后果显着相关。HED 介导了抑郁症状和执行功能障碍对负面后果的影响。一个显着的相互作用表明，更好的 EF（即低或平均自我报告的执行功能障碍）可以缓冲因消极饮酒后果而出现的风险抑郁症状。结论：目前的研究结果表明，在大学生中，HED 的风险和恢复力因素以及不良饮酒后果可能会有所不同。有效的 EF 能力可能特别有助于降低学生遭受更严重饮酒后果的风险。