Objective Previous research has highlighted the role of cognitive and affective mediators in facilitating the effectiveness of pictorial warning labels (PWLs). This study examines smokers’ responses towards PWLs after 10 days of use and their associations with changes in quitting attitudes, beliefs, and intentions during this period. Methods Non-treatment-seeking, daily smokers completed a randomized

Background and Aims There is mounting evidence that opioid use disorder is experienced differently by people of different genders and race/ethnicity groups. Similarly, in the US access to specific medications for opioid use is limited by gender and race/ethnicity. This study aims to evaluate if gender or race/ethnicity is associated with different rates of treatment retention in the US, for each of

Background Loneliness is a widespread problem, with demonstrated negative health effects. However, prospective data on the relationship between loneliness and problematic substance use are lacking, and few studies have examined specific commonplace substances, such as alcohol and cannabis. This study used prospective data from a community sample of US adults with problematic alcohol or cannabis use

Background Pre-gaming, or drinking before going out, is common among young adults and associated with heavier drinking and negative consequences. However, findings have been mixed as to whether a unique, day-level association between pre-gaming and negative consequences exists independent of alcohol intake. It is also unknown whether young adults experience more positive consequences of alcohol use

Introduction Vaporised nicotine products (VNPs) may be useful smoking cessation aids for people in alcohol and other drug (AOD) treatment, a population with high tobacco-related morbidity and mortality rates. This qualitative study aimed to examine the barriers and facilitators of using VNPs as part of a clinical trial to reduce or quit smoking among people in AOD treatment. Methods Thirteen people

Introduction Recruiting racial/ethnic minorities in smoking cessation trials is a priority. This study described lessons learned from recruiting a diverse sample of African American, White, and Hispanic/Latinx smokers in a smoking cessation trial. Methods We implemented a 42-month recruitment campaign utilizing reactive (e.g., word-of-mouth, newspaper, radio, online ads, flyers, community partnerships)

Drinking motives are robustly related to alcohol use behavior from adolescence through young adulthood. Yet, examination of changes in motives during the first year of college, a transitional time associated with both onset of and increases in heavy drinking has been understudied. We examined (a) whether drinking motives change, (b) time-varying effects of motives on alcohol use and consequences, and

Background and aims Negative affect and alcohol craving are common features of Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD). Both independently contribute to AUD severity and poorer treatment outcomes, but their relationship is poorly understood. Multidimensional alcohol craving measures now allow for examination of key dimensions of craving. This study explored the relationship between depression, anxiety, stress,

Simultaneous alcohol and marijuana use (SAM) such that their effects overlap has emerged as a behavior that is riskier than using either substance separately. It has been associated with high-risk binge drinking and driving while intoxicated during young adulthood, and it has been demonstrated to cause greater physical and mental impairment than use of alcohol or marijuana separately. To identify intervention

Background E-cigarette device and liquid characteristics, such as electrical power output and liquid nicotine concentration, determine the rate at which nicotine is emitted from the e-cigarette (i.e., nicotine flux), and thus are likely to influence user nicotine dependence. We hypothesize that nicotine flux would be associated with the e-cigarette dependence scale (EDS) among pod-based and disposable

Introduction The Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB) describes how attitudes, norms and perceived behavioural control guide health behaviour, including alcohol consumption. Dual Process Theories (DPT) suggest that alongside these reasoned pathways, behaviour is influenced by automatic processes that are determined by the frequency of engagement in the health behaviour in the past. We present a computational

Drunkorexia is a behavior pattern marked by calorie restriction and/or compensation in relation to alcohol consumption. The aim of the present study was to examine the role of social norms (descriptive, injunctive) and social comparison orientation (SCO; global, alcohol-specific, eating disorder-related) in drunkorexia engagement. Specifically, our research aimed to examine a possible interaction between

Background Alcohol use varies throughout the year and often peaks on weekends or during celebrations (e.g., New Year’s). There is not a perfect correlation between alcohol use and negative consequences, and the extent to which one particularly risky consequence—an alcohol-related blackout—is more common during certain times of the year is unknown. Identifying when blackouts occur may help identify

Purpose This study estimated self-reported perceived negative marijuana use consequences among a national sample of U.S. young adults, examining consequence prevalence differences by use frequency, college attendance, living situation, employment, sex, and race/ethnicity; and use frequency/sociodemographic characteristic interactions. Methods A subsample of 1,212 respondents from the 2004–2018 class

Background This pilot study aimed to test the feasibility of providing varenicline in combination with nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) and motivational interviewing (MI) to adult male smokers attending a clinic in a hostel for homeless people. Methods A single group pre- and post-treatment (12 weeks following intervention commencement) design with embedded process evaluation (at weekly counselling

This study examines the relationship between personal networks and polysubstance use among people who use drugs (PWUD) in a medium sized city in the Midwest. A large body of work has demonstrated that personal relationships have an ambivalent association with substance use. On the one hand, a supportive network is associated with safer drug use practices and dramatically improves the outlook for recovery

Objective Previous literature finds an increase in depressive symptoms, substance use, and suicidal ideation following the COVID-19 pandemic in the US – suicides do not appear to increase. We examine whether 1) state lockdown policies in the US precede an increase in mental health symptoms; and 2) the extent to which using substances amplifies or attenuates the relation. Methods We specified, as our

Evidence has shown that smoking is a self-regulatory strategy to relieve negative affect and that metacognitions about smoking may play a role in addictive behaviors. Therefore, the present research was designed to examine the direct and indirect roles of emotion dysregulation and negative affect in predicting urge to smoke and nicotine dependence via metacognitions about smoking. In a cross-sectional

Isntroduction Cannabis use is highly common among military combat veterans, who are also inclined toward developing Cannabis Use Disorder (CUD). The present study examined the association between Moral Injury (MI), which may occur following combat-related acts that violate one’s deep moral beliefs, and CUD, as well as the mediating role of depression and the moderating role of perceived social support

Objective Harmful drinkers represent an important Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD) group in public health terms, accounting for significant health and social costs. However, harmful drinkers are characterized by low problem recognition; they tend to construct their drinking identity as positive and problem-free, actively setting themselves apart from the stigmatised ‘alcoholic other’. As such, harmful drinkers

Introduction Health literacy refers to an individual’s capacity to gather, process and understand health information, make appropriate health decisions, and engage adequately with healthcare services. Inadequate health literacy has been linked to an increase in acute healthcare utilisation. Research suggests that people living with substance use disorders also access acute healthcare services at high

Alcohol outcomes expectancies (AOEs) are robust predictors of alcohol initiation and escalation of drinking behavior among adolescents. Although measurement invariance is a prerequisite for inferring valid comparisons of AOEs across groups (e.g., age), empirical evidence is lacking. In a secondary data analysis study, we employed regularized moderated nonlinear factor analysis (MNLFA) to simultaneously

Social media use is on the rise among young adults (YA) and evidence suggests a positive association between social media addiction (SMA) and the psychological symptoms of depression and anxiety globally. However, the contribution of attachment and its transgenerational influence on YAs’ SMA and psychological symptoms have not been widely explored. Thus, we examined how parental reports of attachment

Online social networking is an intrinsic part of present life. However, if individuals believe that some basic psychological needs can only be fulfilled through social networking sites, an addictive pattern of usage may emerge. Problematic social media use (PSMU) is a growing concern in adolescence. The present study aimed at contributing to prior scientific literature by testing a model that considers

During the COVID-19 pandemic, people may use substances like cannabis for enhancement or coping purposes. Behavioral economic demand for a substance is a key determinant of its use and misuse and can be measured via hypothetical purchase tasks. Previous research suggests that motivations to use a substance play a mediational role between elevated substance demand and problems, but comparable mechanistic

Background Alcohol- and cannabis-related risk perceptions are strong predictors of use behavior. Studies suggest that attitudes toward cannabis are becoming increasingly permissive, however studies have yet to comprehensively a) compare time trends in cannabis-related attitudes to those of other commonly used substances, such as alcohol, and b) test whether trends significantly differ by age. Method

Student drinking during the college years can result in many adverse outcomes. Emotion-based decision-making (EBDM), or the use of emotional information to influence future plans and behavior, may lead to increased harmful consequences of alcohol. The current study examined both the number of types and total frequency of alcohol consequences as a function of EBDM. Undergraduate students from three

Background Marijuana is the most frequently used illicit drug among college students, and there is a need to understand the social processes that contribute to young adults’ marijuana use. Substance use behaviors tend to be more similar (homophilous) among individuals with social ties to one another. However, little is known about whether marijuana use homophily within young adult relationships is

Objective Previous tobacco consumption, and depression and anxiety symptoms are major predictors of women’s tobacco consumption during pregnancy and the postpartum period. However, the joint effect of these predictors is still unexplored. This study aimed to analyse the effects of previous tobacco consumption, and depression and anxiety symptoms on women’s tobacco consumption status and quantity from

Research has demonstrated that posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is associated with internet-related problematic behaviors. However, studies have not explored the linkage between PTSD symptoms and internet gaming disorder (IGD) symptoms. The current study aimed to investigate the relationship between posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) and IGD symptoms via network analysis. We conducted a cross-sectional

Background and aims Gaming Disorder (GD) is characterized by a pattern of persistent and uncontrolled gaming behavior that causes a marked impairment in important areas of functioning. The evolution of the worldwide incidence of this disorder warrants further studies focused on examining the existence of different subtypes within clinical samples, in order to tailor treatment. This study explored the

Objective Comorbidity between substance use disorders and eating disorders is common and related to severity of psychopathology. Parents’ eating disorder or substance use disorder have been examined independently and appear to be related to psychopathology in their children. However, no prior work has examined whether co-occurring substance use and eating disorder behaviors in parents relate to eating-disorder

Background: Gender-specific literature focused on gambling disorder (GD) is scarce, and women with GD have been understudied. Therefore, the aim of this study was to estimate the short-term effectiveness in women with GD (n = 214) of a group standardized cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) and to identify the most relevant predictors of the primary therapy outcomes (dropout and relapse). Methods: The

Studies show that more positive relationship satisfaction can mitigate the effects of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression severity on hazardous drinking in military samples. However, past studies were not circumscribed to female service members/veterans (SM/V), who represent the fastest growing demographic in the military. Moreover, studies did not examine moderators of specific symptom

Background Understanding the motivational determinants of drinking among college students is necessary to improve the identification of those at greatest risk and to inform prevention and treatment interventions. Alcohol craving, or the desire to use alcohol, is considered one important factor in the development and maintenance of drinking behaviors. Recent evidence suggests that the link between alcohol

Introduction Heavy episodic drinking poses a risk for HIV-infection, particularly among men who have sex with men (MSM). Previous research suggests implicit associations may play a role in heavy episodic drinking and that various executive functions (EF) may moderate the relation between implicit associations and heavy episodic drinking. This study investigated the role of two EF – working memory (maintaining

Background Simultaneous alcohol and marijuana use (SAM) may be linked to both short- and longer-term problems for young adults. Across two years of longitudinal data, we examined between- and monthly within-person associations of alcohol and marijuana use patterns, including SAM, with negative alcohol-related consequences, depressive symptoms, and general health. Methods 773 young adults (aged 18–23

Background and aims The simultaneous use of alcohol and cannabis (“simultaneous alcohol and marijuana [SAM] use”) is common among young adults and associated with negative substance-related consequences. SAM use may be tied to fluctuating mood states such as negative affect and individual characteristics including trait level of anxiety and sex. However, little is understood about their collective

Social anxiety is a common mental health problem that increases the risk of experiencing cannabis-related problems. In fact, social anxiety more than quadruples the risk of developing cannabis use disorder, yet it is inconsistently related to more cannabis use. Inconsistent findings may be due to lack of attention to protective behavioral strategies (PBS) among socially anxious cannabis users. PBS

The current study aimed to assess single product, dual, and polytobacco use in a young adult military population and how an enforced tobacco ban during training impacts these behaviors. Participants were 810 U.S. Airmen who reported tobacco use as civilians. Participants completed baseline and one-year follow-up surveys about their tobacco use from 2016 to 2019. Each product used by a participant was

A synthesis of existing evidence regarding the association of housing stress with later substance use outcomes can help support and inform housing interventions as a potential strategy to address problematic substance use. We conducted a comprehensive search of PubMed, Web of Science, PsycInfo, CINAHL, Social Work Abstracts, and Sociological Abstracts and systematically screened for articles examining

UK society has a complex relationship with alcohol; it is ever-present within social activities, yet alcohol problems are heavily stigmatised. As such, the nuance of acceptability is a key focus for understanding societal perceptions and understandings of alcohol. This research explored how the boundary between acceptable and problematic alcohol use was negotiated in justifying drinking behaviors.

Methamphetamine use disorder involves methamphetamine-related cues invoking intense craving leading to relapse. Such cue reactivity is thought to arise from Pavlovian conditioning that occurs during the drug-taking experience. Cue reactivity then should be selective to methamphetamine cues (and not other cues), and not observed in people who have never experienced methamphetamine. However, these premises

Craving is considered to be a vital contributor to the onset and maintenance of alcohol misuse. However, there is little known about its potential moderators and there are few interventions that specifically target these cravings. Exercise generates multiple psychological and physiological effects that in theory may reduce craving, and therefore we hypothesised that a short exercise circuit may potentially

Background Previous studies have suggested associations between maternal smoking during pregnancy (MSDP) and a range of adverse outcomes in offspring. However, evidence reporting adverse effects on poor academic performance in adolescence is scant. Methods This register-based cohort study used linked data obtained from New South Wales (NSW) educational and health registries in Australia. MSDP was assessed

Introduction An increase in electronic cigarette (EC) use among US youth has raised concerns that their use may increase conventional cigarette smoking. Methods Repeated cross-sectional data from two large nationally representative samples of US youth were drawn from the National Youth Tobacco Survey (NYTS) and Monitoring the Future (MTF). Students from grade 6–12 of the NYTS (N = 98,454–132,003) and

Aim We examine age-related trends in past-year cannabis use in a series of nationally representative surveys in Australia. Methods We analysed data from the largest nationally representative survey in Australia collected between 2001 and 2019 (National Drug Strategy Household Survey [NDSHS]; N = 157,151). Prevalence of past-year daily/occasional (non-daily)/non-use of cannabis use were estimated using

Smoking abstinence expectancies are beliefs about negative and positive short-term psychological and physiological consequences of not smoking. The Smoking Abstinence Expectancies Questionnaire (SAEQ) is a widely used Patient-Reported Outcome Measure (PROM) to assess smoking abstinence expectancies. It has four subscales: negative mood, somatic symptoms, harmful consequences, positive consequences

Aims Over the last ten years, several studies investigating the role of metacognitions in addictive behaviors, including technological addictions, have been published. Problematic Smartphone use has been conceptualized as a behavioural addiction and a psychometrically sound self-report measure to assess metacognitions about PSU has been recently published. The objective of this study was to evaluate

Value-based decision-making is thought to play an important role in drug dependency. Achieving elevated levels of euphoria or ameliorating dysphoria/pain may motivate goal-directed drug consumption in both drug-naïve and long-time users. In other words, drugs become viewed as the preferred means of attaining a desired internal state. The bias towards choosing drugs may affect one’s cognition. Observed

Introduction Patient-reported experience measures (PREMs) are recommended for use in evaluating person-centred care. To date, a PREM has not been validated for residential alcohol and other drug (AOD) treatment. Utilising items developed through a previously published qualitative study informing the development of the PREM for Addiction Treatment (PREMAT), the current study conducted a psychometric

Introduction There is limited information about longitudinal patterns of vaping during pregnancy and the postpartum. We describe the prevalence, frequency, and reasons for vaping throughout pregnancy and postpartum. We also describe temporal patterns in pregnant women’s vaping. Methods A longitudinal cohort study across England and Scotland, with questionnaires in early pregnancy (8–24 weeks gestation)

Objective Methamphetamine (METH) use and adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) has been associated with an increased risk of suicidal behaviour. However, whether METH use underlies the risk of suicide attributable to ACEs is unknown and warrants investigation to inform preventive interventions. In this study, we examined the mediating role of METH use in the relationship between attempted suicide and

Esports has become one of the major online entertainment activities around the globe. Different from the previously dominant massively multiplayer online role-playing games, esports gaming has its unique structural characteristics, which substantially reshape the motivations, experiences, and behaviors of game users while raising new questions for research on Internet gaming disorder. In addition to

Pathological Internet use (but only with respect to gaming) is classified as mental disorder in the ICD-11. However, there is a large group of adolescents showing excessive Internet use, which may rather be considered adolescent risk-behavior. The aim was to test whether pathological and excessive Internet use should be considered as “psychopathology” or “risk-behavior”. A representative, cross-sectional

Sex addiction, a term first coined in the early 80s, has always been met with controversy. Some say the label of addiction is an excuse used by those who have lost their moral compass or refuse to accept responsibility for their sexual choices. Others claim the label is used to pass moral judgement on those whose sex lives or internet viewing habits do not fit societally prescribed norms. The acceptance

Introduction Menthol cigarettes were banned in Ontario, Canada on January 1st, 2017. We used concept mapping, a mixed-method approach, to describe how menthol cigarette smokers quit smoking after the Ontario menthol ban. Methods Pre-ban daily and non-daily menthol cigarette smokers who reported smoking abstinence 24 months after the ban (n = 62; 53.2% women; mean age = 43.6, SD = 12.5) generated statements

As the vast majority of online videogames imply the immersion into an alternative reality where a virtual body is also involved, the current cross-sectional study aims to investigate the contribution of low body awareness (i.e. low attention to sensory cues indicating bodily state) and body dissociation (i.e. low emotional connection with one’s own body) in predicting Internet gaming disorder (IGD)

Background: Women experience greater health consequences of alcohol compared to their male counterparts. In recent years, rates of drinking and heavy alcohol use have increased in women while remaining relatively steady in men. Thus, our aim was to newly examine associations between sex, AUD, and the presence of medical conditions in a large nationally representative, cross-sectional dataset. Methods:

Background Benzodiazepines are the third most commonly misused drugs in the U.S. population. There is a growing public health concern related to recent increases in benzodiazepine-related overdose deaths, emergency department visits, and treatment admissions. Although benzodiazepine misuse often occurs along with other drug use, little is known about the association between benzodiazepine and cigarette