Momentary patterns of impulsivity and alcohol use: A cause or consequence?

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Neuroscience
• Public Health

Background:

• Impulsivity is a known risk factor for alcohol use and related harms.
• Previous research primarily focused on between-person differences, neglecting momentary, within-person variability.
• The bidirectional association between momentary impulsivity and alcohol use remains underexplored.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the bidirectional relationship between impulsivity and alcohol use.
• To examine how momentary fluctuations in impulsivity relate to alcohol consumption and problems.
• To understand the daily processes underlying alcohol use in heavy-drinking college students.

Main Methods:

• Employed a 14-day ecological momentary assessment (EMA) design.
• Recruited 89 heavy-drinking college students (mean age 19.80 years).
• Collected daily morning, afternoon, and evening reports, plus event-contingent reports during drinking occasions.

Main Results:

• No significant association was found between daytime impulsivity and nighttime alcohol use or problems.
• Higher alcohol consumption and greater alcohol-related problems predicted increased impulsivity on the subsequent day.
• Results support conceptualizing impulsivity as a state construct influenced by prior alcohol behavior.

Conclusions:

• This is the first study to use EMA to examine the bidirectional link between impulsivity and alcohol use.
• Findings highlight that alcohol use and problems can lead to subsequent increases in impulsivity.
• The study contributes to daily process models of alcohol use by illustrating real-world unfolding of drinking behaviors.