The Relationship of Expectancies to the Transtheoretical Model of Change in College Smokers

Abstract

Efforts on the part of the sci en tific com mu nity have resulted in in creased knowl edge about to bacco ad die tion and im proved treat ment ef fi cacy. De spite these gains, how ever, our un der stand ing of to bacco ad die tion re mains in com plete. Two el e ments that may help il lu-mi nate the knowl edge of this ad die tion pro cess and pro vide im pli ca tions for treat ment are the Transtheoretical Model of Change and the con cept of ex pec tan cies. This project is a be gin ning step in ex plor ing the re la tion ship be tween the transtheoretical model and fac ets of ex pec tan cies among col lege smokers.     

Women's Perceptions of Alcohol-Related Sexual Disinhibition: Personality and Sexually-Related Alcohol Expectancies

ABSTRACT

Scales assessing attitude toward condoms typically focus on their use for a specific context or outcome (sexually transmitted diseases/HIV prevention or pregnancy prevention) and not the characteristics of a condom itself. To assess the psychometrics of the Multi-Factor Attitude toward Condoms Scale, data from 1,832 U.S. men were analyzed. Internal consistency was acceptable (α= .816) with three factors accounting for 61.44% of the variance (affective, perceived effectiveness, and manageability). Additional validity assessments demonstrated construct validity for this new attitude toward condoms scale that focuses on the properties of the condom and not a specific behavioral or outcome-focused context.     

Grandiose and vulnerable narcissism: Associations with alcohol use,alcohol problems and problem recognition

Objective: This study fills a gap in the literature by examining the relationship between two types of narcissism, vulnerable and grandiose, and five alcohol-related outcomes (ie, alcohol use, alcohol problems, evaluation and expectancies of problems, and readiness to change).

Participants: 345 college students (28% men, 72% women) from a Midwestern university were recruited from undergraduate psychology courses from April 2015 to October 2016.

Methods: Participants completed an online survey with questionnaires measuring the variables of interest. Multiple regression analyses were used to test the hypotheses.

Results: Grandiose narcissism was a positive predictor of alcohol consumption and a positive (ie, good) evaluation of alcohol-related problems. Vulnerable narcissism was a positive predictor of alcohol-related problems, problem recognition (ie, readiness to change), and problem expectancies.

Conclusions: The results speak to the effects that different types of narcissism have on alcohol use, alcohol problems and attitudes towards alcohol problems among young adults.     

The experience of smoking in recovery settings: an ecological momentary assessment pilot study

ABSTRACT

Smoking continues to be the leading cause of preventable death in the United States, and people with substance use disorders (SUD) smoke at higher rates compared to their non-using counterparts. Individuals with SUDs may have different emotional experiences and expectancies than those without. The current study explored the relationship between smoking and emotional experiences among residents in recovery homes, a population that little is known about regarding their tobacco addiction. Using ecological momentary assessment (EMA), significant emotional differences were found between nicotine users and nonusers. Implications of these findings could help in the development of interventions directed toward reducing smoking cessation.     

Examining the effects of gambling-relevant cues on gambling outcome expectancies

There is a consensus in the addictions literature that exposure to addiction-relevant cues can precipitate a desire to engage, or actual engagement, in the addictive behaviour. Previous work has shown that exposure to gambling-relevant cues activates gamblers’ positive gambling outcome expectancies (i.e. their beliefs about the positive results of gambling). The current study examined the effects of a new, arguably more ecologically valid cue manipulation (i.e. exposure to a gambling lab environment vs. sterile lab environment) on 61 regular gamblers’ explicit and implicit gambling outcome expectancies. The authors first tested the internal consistency of their implicit reaction time measure of gambling outcome expectancies, the Affective Priming Task. Split-half reliabilities were satisfactory to high (.72 to .88), highlighting an advantage of this task over other characteristically unreliable implicit cognitive measures. Unexpectedly, no predicted between-lab condition differences emerged on most measures of interest, suggesting that peripheral environmental cues that are not the focus of deliberate attentional allocation may not activate positive outcome expectancies. However, there was some evidence that implicit negative gambling outcome expectancies were activated in the gambling lab environment. This latter finding holds clinical relevance as it suggests that presenting peripheral gambling-related cues while treating problem gamblers may facilitate processing of the negative consequences of gambling.     

The role of emotion dysregulation in the association between subjective social status and eating expectancies among college students

Abstract

Objective: Research suggests that college is a risky period for changes in eating behavior and beliefs. Although social health determinants relate to health behavior changes, research has not explored subjective social status, one’s societal standing, in terms of eating expectancies among college students. The present study examined the emotion dysregulation in association between subjective social status and eating expectancies among college students. Participants: Participants were a diverse sample of 1,589 college students (80.4% females; M_age?=?22.2?years, SD?=?5.27) from an urban university. Results: Results showed a significant indirect association of subjective social status via emotion dysregulation in relation to expectancies of eating to help manage negative affect, to alleviate boredom, and to lead to feeling out of control. Conclusion: These findings provide evidence that college students with lower subjective social status may have a higher risk for dysregulated emotions, and consequently, expressing maladaptive eating expectancies.     

Nonoffending Parent Expectations of Sexually Abused Children: Predictive Factors and Influence on Children's Recovery

This study examined the influence of parental expectations on the functioning of sexually abused children. Participants included 67 sexually abused youth and 63 of their nonoffending primary caregivers. Parental expectations about how sexual abuse will impact children were predictive of parents' ratings of children's behavior at pretreatment, while parental expectations of children's overall future functioning were not predictive of parents' ratings of children's behavior. Parental expectations about how sexual abuse will impact their children and about their children's overall future functioning were not predictive of parents' ratings of children's behavior at posttreatment. Results highlight the influential role the sexual abuse label has in shaping parental expectations about children's functioning. Recommendations for research and intervention are discussed.     

The Power of Perception: Children's Appearance as a Factor in Adults' Predictions of Gender-typical Behavior

We examined the influence of 3‐year‐olds’ facial characteristics on adults’ predictions of children's gender‐typical behaviors. Eighty‐nine adults viewed 12 photographs of children's faces differing in masculinity/femininity but matched for attractiveness. Half of the adults were told the sex of each child; half were not. Adults reported that masculine‐looking girls would be more likely to engage in masculine gender‐typical behavior and less likely to engage in feminine gender‐typical behavior compared with feminine‐looking girls. Adults also indicated that feminine‐looking boys would be more likely to engage in feminine gender‐typical behavior and less likely to engage in masculine gender‐typical behavior compared with masculine‐looking boys. When presented with both gender information and appearance cues, adults relied more heavily on the perceptual cue of appearance when predicting gender‐typical behaviors for both boys and girls.     

Social Facilitation Expectancies for Smoking: Psychometric Properties of a New Measure

Abstract

Objective: Expectancies about social outcomes for smoking are relevant to college student smokers, who frequently report “social smoking.” A new measure, the Social Facilitation Expectancies (SFE) scale, was developed to assess these beliefs. Participants: The SFE was administered to undergraduate college student smokers (N = 1,096; study completed in May 2011). Methods: Items were scored on a 5-point scale with a summed total score. The sample was randomly split and principle axis factoring and confirmatory factor analysis applied to determine scale structure. The structure was tested across sex and smoking groups and validation analyses were conducted. Results: A 9-item, 1-factor scale was replicated within each group. Higher SFE scores were observed among those with greater smoking experience and higher scores were associated with greater endorsement of other smoking-related beliefs. Conclusions: These preliminary findings provide support for the sound psychometric properties of this measure for use with young adult college students.     

No Fear,Just Relax and Play: Social Anxiety,Alcohol Expectancies,and Drinking Games Among College Students

Abstract

Objective: The authors examined the association between social anxiety and drinking game (DG) involvement as well as the moderating role of social anxiety–relevant alcohol outcome expectancies (AOE) in social anxiety and DG involvement among college students. Participants: Participants were 715 students (74.8% women, M _age = 19.46, SD = 1.22) from 8 US colleges. Methods: Data were collected via self-report survey from Fall 2005 to Spring 2007. Results: Tension Reduction and Liquid Courage AOE moderated the association between social anxiety and DG participation. Tension Reduction AOE and DG participation were positively related among those with high social anxiety, but were associated negatively for those with low social anxiety. Liquid Courage AOE were associated with increased DG participation for those with low social anxiety, but not for those with high social anxiety. Conclusions: Findings suggest that social anxiety acts as a protective or a risk factor for DG participation among college students, depending upon AOE.