Alcohol use and misuse as a self-presentational tactic among college freshmen: an investigation of individual and situational factors
Date
2009
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Abstract
Two studies investigated underage college freshmen's alcohol use from the perspective of the two-component model of impression management (Leary & Kowalski, 1990). In the first study (n = 232), situational impression motivation (low vs. high) and alcohol-related impression construction (i.e., alcohol norms; norm vs. control) were manipulated and alcohol self-presentation was measured using an Internet profile created by participants. In addition, dispositional measures related to impression motivation (e.g., self-monitoring) and alcohol-related impression construction (e.g., alcohol expectancies) were assessed. Results suggested that alcohol norms affected whether someone presented themselves as an alcohol user. In addition, several dispositional factors moderated the relationship between the situational impression motivation and alcohol use. Overall results suggested that participants in the low impression motivation condition were more likely to present themselves as alcohol users, but high self-monitors and people who drank heavily in social situations were especially more likely to present themselves as alcohol users as compared to those in the high impression motivation condition. The second study utilized a daily process methodology. College freshmen in their first semester on campus (n = 65) completed a daily Internet-based survey in which they answered questions related to their impression motivation, alcohol-related impression construction cues, and alcohol use during face to face social interactions lasting longer than 10 minutes. As in study one, dispositional impression motivation and alcohol construction was assessed. Results confirmed the importance of the situational impression construction factors found in study one in increasing the likelihood of alcohol use. Further, several three-way interactions were found that suggested that for students with high alcohol expectancies, their alcohol use during social interactions increased as alcohol impression construction cues and impression motivation increased. In addition, for heavy social drinkers, alcohol use decreased as alcohol impression construction cues decreased and impression motivation increased. Implications for the two-component model of impression management, prevention of underage alcohol misuse, and studies of college student alcohol use are discussed.
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Subject
alcohol use
college alcohol use
freshmen
impression management
self-presentation
underage drinking
social psychology
clinical psychology