Disaggregating within- and between-person effects of affect on drinking behavior in a clinical sample with alcohol use disorder.

Objective: The goal of the current study was to better understand affect-drinking relations among those diagnosed with an alcohol use disorder (AUD), as recent meta-analytic work suggests that daily negative affect may not universally predict subsequent alcohol consumption in those nondependent on alcohol. Specifically, we investigated the between- and within-person effects of positive and negative affects on drinking.

Method: Participants (n = 92) who met AUD diagnostic criteria completed a 90-day daily assessment of drinking behavior and positive and negative affects.

Results: Time-lagged multilevel modeling revealed that within-person elevations in negative affect predicted increased odds and quantity of drinking later in the day. Relations between positive affect and drinking were nonsignificant.

Conclusions: These findings are in contrast to recent meta-analytic findings and highlight the complexity of affect-drinking relations among those diagnosed with AUD. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).