Predicting stability and change in frequency of intoxication from the college years to beyond: Individual-difference and role transition variables.

Abstract

The authors examined whether individual-difference variables (e.g., family history of alcoholism, sex, personality traits, positive alcohol expectancies) and role transition-related variables (full-time work status, marital status, parenthood) moderate the "maturing-out" process whereby young adults who drink heavily during college decrease their drinking in the following years. Analyses were based on 288 young adults, assessed as full-time students (mostly college seniors, Year 4 of a larger study) and 3 years later (Year 7) when all had earned bachelor's degrees, and the analyses showed that frequency of intoxication (per week) decreased significantly (p < .0001). Entering the workforce full time, being male, and being less open to experience were associated with decreased postcollege drinking. Furthermore, relatively extraverted individuals were more likely to continue a pattern of frequent intoxication from Year 4 to year 7. The findings stress the importance of studying how individual-difference variables predict behavior across role transitions.