What question did this study set out to answer?

This research aims to explore how the timing of assessing drinking motives impacts their relation to drinking outcomes.

March 12, 2026Open Access

Comparison of event-specific drinking motives reported at the first drink versus retrospectively the next morning.

HBHolly K. BoyleYale University GLGabriela LópezShirley Ryan AbilityLab KCKate B. CareyJohn Brown University

Key Points

This research aims to explore how the timing of assessing drinking motives impacts their relation to drinking outcomes.
Used event-level assessment design to compare drinking motives at first drink versus next morning.
Focused on young adults' drinking behaviors and perceptions.
Collected retrospective reports on motives to analyze associations with drinking outcomes.
Retrospective motives showed stronger associations with drinking outcomes compared to immediate motives.
Young adults' drinking motives may evolve during an event, impacting their drinking behavior.
High antecedent motives are linked to increased risk of heavy drinking and negative consequences.

Abstract

Findings suggest event-level effects of motives on drinking outcomes depend on when motives are assessed. More associations between retrospective motives and outcomes suggest that drinking motives may change within an event and/or young adults reconstruct their drinking motives based on their experience. Findings have event-level assessment design implications and provide evidence that antecedent "high" motives present the greatest event-level risk for heavy drinking and negative outcomes. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).

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