Eating Disorder Symptoms, Affect-Regulation Drinking Motives and Drinking-Related Outcomes

The present study examined the mediating and moderating effects of affect-regulation (i.e., coping and enhancement) drinking motives in the relationship between eating disorder (ED) pathology and drinking outcomes. The sample included 419 undergraduate college students (52.0% female) who completed self-report questionnaire measures of ED pathology, drinking motives, drinking level, and drinking-related problems. ED pathology was positively associated with both coping and enhancement motivation and drinking-related problems. Results from mediation analyses indicated a positive indirect effect for ED pathology on drinking level through enhancement motivation and positive indirect effects for ED pathology on drinking-related problems (a) through coping motivation and (b) through enhancement motivation and number of heavy drinking days. Little evidence was found for the predicted moderating effects of drinking motives, and few gender differences were observed in the effects of interest. Findings support the notion that distinct motivational pathways underlie the association between ED pathology and alcohol-related outcomes.