The indirect effects of self‐regulation on the association of social support with increased protective drinking behavior and decreased alcohol problems in a predominantly Hispanic college student sample

Abstract

AbstractBackgroundResearch suggests that self‐regulation, which refers to one's ability to manage a behavior, and social support are related to alcohol use. Other research suggests that social support may serve as a precursor to self‐regulation and health‐promoting behaviors. We examined whether self‐regulation has an indirect effect on the association between social support and both protective drinking behaviors and alcohol problems.MethodsA random sample of students at a Hispanic Serving Institution completed an online survey, which included sociodemographic questions, the Multidimensional Perceived Social Support Scale, the Short Self‐Regulation Questionnaire, the Protective Behavioral Strategies (PBS) Scale, and the Rutgers Alcohol Problem Index. Undergraduate students (n = 192) who reported drinking in the last month were included in the analysis. A path analysis using Mplus8 was conducted to investigate the relationships among social support, self‐regulation, PBS, and alcohol‐related problems.ResultsThe sample was mostly female (58.9) and of Hispanic ethnicity (89.6). Analyses showed that social support had a significant positive association with PBS and a significant negative association with alcohol‐related problems. When self‐regulation was added to the models, these associations were no longer significant, and self‐regulation had a significant indirect effect on the relationship between social support and both PBS and alcohol‐related problems.ConclusionsThe results of the current cross‐sectional study suggest that a viable hypothesis in future longitudinal studies is that self‐regulation is a mechanism by which social support increases PBS and reduces alcohol problems. Future research should assess longitudinally both the mediating effects of self‐regulation between social support and drinking outcomes and potential moderators, such as ethnicity.