Self-consciousness moderates the relationship between perceived norms and drinking in college students

The current research examines whether self-consciousness subscales have prognostic value in the relationship between perceived norms and drinking and if that differs among college men and women. Results indicate that self-consciousness moderates gender differences in the relationship between perceived social norms and drinking. A strong positive relationship was found between perceived norms (descriptive and injunctive) and drinking for men relative to women and this was more pronounced among individuals who were lower in public self-consciousness. Similarly, the relationship between perceived injunctive norms and drinking was significantly stronger among men than women and this was more pronounced among individuals who were higher in private self-consciousness or social anxiety. These results highlight the important influence of social factors in salient peer reference groups. This is promising information for future research attempting to identify useful indicators of candidates who would most benefit from social norms interventions. This also underscores the relevance of future norms based interventions using self-consciousness as a potential moderator of intervention efficacy.