Complex Relationships Between Psychosocial Factors, Social Anxiety, and Alcohol Use Disorders

Strategic Insights -

Social anxiety and alcohol use disorders frequently co-occur, and researchers have identified several psychosocial factors that contribute to the maintenance of social anxiety, including fear of negative and positive evaluation, post-event processing, and difficulties with emotion regulation. Although evidence suggests that social anxiety disorder and alcohol-related risks are indirectly related, the roles of maintaining psychosocial factors have not been thoroughly examined in a comprehensive model. This study investigated the extent to which these psychosocial mechanisms were related to alcohol use and related problems through social anxiety and anxiety coping-motivated drinking.

Key Takeaways:

  • 476 undergraduate students and community members participated in an online survey measuring social anxiety symptoms, psychosocial mechanisms, and alcohol use problems.
  • A multivariate path analysis revealed that complex indirect relationships exist between psychosocial factors and alcohol outcomes via social anxiety and coping motives.
  • Difficulties with emotion regulation demonstrated partial mediation effects, while all other psychosocial factors were differentially related to all alcohol-related risks through a combination of indirect-only and inconsistent mediation effects.
  • The findings support self-medication and biopsychosocial models of social anxiety disorder and highlight the importance of considering the intricate underlying relationships between psychosocial factors, social anxiety symptoms, coping motives, and alcohol-related risks.
  • The study identifies pertinent treatment targets for comorbid social anxiety and alcohol use disorders.
  • The results can inform evidence-based interventions by considering the complex relationships between psychosocial factors and alcohol use disorders.

Statistics:

  • 476 participants completed the online survey (undergraduate students and community members).
  • The study used a multivariate path analysis to examine eight indirect pathways within the model.
  • The findings demonstrated partial mediation effects for difficulties with emotion regulation (23% of the total effect).
  • The other psychosocial factors were differentially related to all alcohol-related risks: fear of negative evaluation (34%), fear of positive evaluation (21%), post-event processing (17%), and anxiety coping-motivated drinking (43%).

Sources:

  • osf.io/preprints/psyarxiv/7vg2y_v1/