Prospective Tests of the Acquired Preparedness Model for Alcohol and Cannabis Supports Between-Person Associations...

The Acquired Preparedness Model (APM) theorizes that psychosocial learning is a mechanism linking impulsive personality traits to various risky behaviors. Prior research on acquired preparedness has predominantly examined between-person associations, enrolled civilian samples, and focused on one behavior (e.g., alcohol use). This secondary analysis used three waves of biannual survey data to test temporal relations among impulsivity, alcohol and cannabis use expectancies, and quantity/frequency among Veterans deployed post-9/11/2001.

Veterans reporting lifetime cannabis use (N=361) completed measures of urgency (UPPS-P), alcohol and cannabis use expectancies, and past-month alcohol and cannabis frequency and quantity at baseline, 6 and 12-months. Four separate Random Intercept Cross-Lagged Panel Models tested between- and within-person associations among urgency, alcohol/cannabis expectancies, and alcohol/cannabis use frequency or quantity.

Within persons, 6-month alcohol or cannabis expectancies did not mediate associations between baseline urgency and 12-month alcohol or cannabis use indices. Urgency was not associated with positive alcohol or cannabis expectancies at any assessment. Between persons, urgency was associated with more positive alcohol and cannabis expectancies. Positive expectancies were associated with higher use frequency and quantity across both substances, whereas negative expectancies were associated with lower cannabis use frequency and quantity.

Acquired preparedness may be more applicable to predicting alcohol and cannabis use behaviors between rather than within Veterans over time. Future research should consider how sociocultural factors may impact acquired preparedness among Veterans, and whether these processes unfold differently in relation to substance use outcomes during shorter time periods and across unique developmental stages.