Abstract
ABSTRACTGiven inconsistent findings regarding relations between specific types of alcohol-related protective behavioral strategy use and alcohol outcomes, the current study aimed to examine whether specific strategies vary regarding relations with alcohol consumption. Undergraduate college students (N = 162) completed measures online, including the Protective Behavioral Strategy Scale and assessment of alcohol use. A structural equation modeling framework was used to examine differential item functioning across alcohol quantity and frequency. Four items demonstrated differential item functioning (e.g., Avoid drinking games, Avoid trying to “keep up” or “out-drink” others). Findings support idiographic approaches to assessment in treatment.
Highlights
This study examined whether items of the Protective Behavioral Strategies Scale differ in magnitude of their relation to specific alcohol consumption outcomes using a series of multiple-indicators multiple causes (MIMIC) models
“Avoid drinking games” was negatively associated with past-month frequency and typical quantity above and beyond its association with these outcomes through Manner of Drinking, which was not predicted
The current findings of differential item functioning across alcohol consumption outcomes on the Protective Behavioral Strategies Scale (PBSS) have several research and clinical implications
Summary
Given the prevalence of binge drinking among college students (i.e., two-week prevalence of approximately 32%; Johnston, O’Malley, Bachman, Schulenberg, & Miech, 2016) and associated negative consequences (e.g., Perkins, 2002; White & Hingson, 2014), much research attention has been focused on protective behavioral strategies (PBS; e.g., Benton et al, 2004; DeMartini et al, 2013; Madson & Zeigler-Hill, 2013; Martens, Martin, Littlefield, Murphy, & Cimini, 2011; Palmer, Corbin, & Cronce, 2010; Sugarman & Carey, 2007; see Pearson, 2013 for a critical review). The harm-reduction approach to alcohol intervention provided the foundation for many of the currently used brief alcohol interventions for college students, such as the Brief Alcohol Screening and Intervention for College Students (BASICS; Dimeff, Baer, Kivlahan, & Marlatt, 1999) and other brief motivational interventions (see Larimer & Cronce, 2007 for a review) Because many of these interventions include components which aim to increase PBS use, research has begun to evaluate changes in PBS use as a mechanism of action for interventions. The PBSS is the most frequently used measure of PBS use in brief alcohol intervention research examining PBS as the mechanism of action (e.g., Barnett et al, 2007; Martens et al, 2013; Murphy et al, 2012) Examining this measure at the item level may help elucidate specific strategies that may be associated with increased or decreased alcohol consumption. Exploratory analyses were conducted on remaining items to determine if any related to consumption over and above relations with the latent construct (i.e., the respective PBSS subscale), as this could indicate sensitive or problematic items on the PBSS
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