Daily Associations Between Injunctive Drinking Norms and Alcohol Consumption

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Public Health
• Behavioral Science

Background:

• Perception of others' approval of alcohol use (injunctive drinking norms) strongly predicts alcohol consumption in young adults.
• While between-person norms predict alcohol use, within-person fluctuations in the norm-drinking relationship exist.
• Social context may moderate the association between injunctive norms and alcohol use.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine within-person, day-level associations between injunctive drinking norms and alcohol consumption.
• To investigate whether social context (type and gender of companions) moderates the relationship between daily injunctive norms and alcohol use.

Main Methods:

• An ecological momentary assessment (EMA) protocol was used over 2 weeks with 83 young adults (M age = 24.0).
• Participants reported on injunctive norms, social context, and drinks consumed daily via smartphone.
• Multilevel models analyzed within- and between-person effects of norms and social context on drinking quantity.

Main Results:

• Daily injunctive norms were positively associated with alcohol consumption quantity, independent of baseline norms.
• This association was significant only when participants drank with friends or romantic partners, not when drinking alone.
• The gender of companions did not moderate the effect of norms on drinking quantity.

Conclusions:

• This study offers novel insights into daily variations in injunctive drinking norms.
• Findings highlight that social context is crucial for understanding the impact of norms on alcohol consumption.
• Malleable injunctive norms within specific social contexts present promising targets for future alcohol intervention strategies.