Community Disorganization, Anxiety, and Binge Drinking Among U.S. Young Adults

Introduction: Anxiety and binge drinking are prevalent among young adults. Anxiety has been shown to increase the risk of binge drinking, and community-level stressors such as crime and lack of cohesion may further influence this association. Living in a community with increased stressors, such as high crime, may exacerbate the association between anxiety and binge drinking. However, few studies have examined these associations among young adults. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to determine if community disorganization moderates the association between anxiety and binge drinking among young adults aged 18-25. Methods: This cross-sectional study, conducted in 2022, with 1620 U.S. young adults recruited from an online Qualtrics panel (51.8% female; 60.7% non-white; m age = 21.8 [SD = 2.2]) used logistic regression analyses to 1) examine associations between anxiety symptoms, community disorganization, and binge drinking and 2) test whether community disorganization moderated the association between anxiety and binge drinking controlling for important sociodemographic variables. Results: Results indicated that community disorganization did not moderate this relationship; however, both community disorganization and anxiety were associated with increased odds of binge drinking. Conclusions: These findings suggest that young adults in this sample facing psychological and environmental stressors may be at elevated risk for harmful alcohol use. Longitudinal research is needed to clarify causal pathways, particularly during emerging adulthood, a transitional period marked by shifts in location, roles, and social experiences.