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Positive Functioning and Alcohol-Use Disorders in Young Adults

Adolescents who choose to consume alcohol are making decisions that impact their immediate circumstances. Often a pattern of alcohol consumption in young people results in struggles in family, academic and social circles.

One area that was recently examined is the effects of adolescent alcohol consumption on positive functioning. Positive functioning is the overall personal well-being of an individual, or how well they are adjusting and operating in their environment.

Oesterle, Hill, Hawkins, and Abbott studied the longitudinal relationship between alcohol-use disorders and positive functioning in 2008. They specifically wanted to examine how alcohol and positive functioning are associated from late adolescence into early adulthood.

The researchers used data from the Seattle Social Development Project. The information gathered was prospective, longitudinal data. They examined 808 young adult men and women who participated in several interviews throughout childhood and adolescence.

The study used a longitudinal path analysis to examine the association between alcohol-use disorders and positive functioning by looking at data from four interview sessions between ages 15-18 and 27.

The results of the study showed that positive functioning and alcohol-use disorders were moderately associated throughout adolescence and into young adulthood. An adolescent with strong positive functioning predicted a reduced likelihood of a diagnosis of alcohol abuse and dependence.

The trend continued as the participants aged into young adulthood. Positive functioning at the age of 21 predicted a reduced likelihood of alcohol abuse and dependence at age 24.

The results were consistent even after controlling for various factors. The researchers controlled for continuity in positive functioning and alcohol-use disorders, associations between positive functioning and alcohol use in adolescence and sociodemographic differences impacted by gender, race/ethnicity, and poverty.

The results of this study provide critical information for the prevention of alcohol-use disorders in adolescents. Positive functioning in adolescence and early adulthood can reduce the likelihood of developing an alcohol-dependence problem.

The information from this study suggests that adolescents and young adults may be positively impacted by education centering on positive functioning. Alcohol abuse and dependence may be prevented by improving the positive functioning as children transition from adolescence to young adulthood.

The impact of positive functioning education may extend into later adulthood, because each age group with positive functioning impacted the behaviors of those participants as they aged. Education administered during early years of childhood and adolescence may provide benefits for a lifetime of healthy choices related to alcohol.