The effect of social support and quality of life on attitudes towards drinking in a population of older adults.

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dc.contributor.advisorDolan, Sara Lynn.
dc.contributor.authorCollum, Samantha P.
dc.contributor.departmentPsychology and Neuroscience.en_US
dc.contributor.schoolsBaylor University. Dept. of Psychology and Neuroscience.en_US
dc.date.accessioned2014-09-05T13:23:49Z
dc.date.accessioned2017-04-07T19:35:11Z
dc.date.available2014-09-05T13:23:49Z
dc.date.available2017-04-07T19:35:11Z
dc.date.copyright2014-08
dc.date.issued2014-09-05
dc.description.abstractAlcoholism in older adults remains a highly prevalent problem within the United States. The elderly have been identified as a "special population" at risk for developing alcoholism and older adults struggling with alcoholism continue to represent an underserved population. The present study examined the relationship between problematic drinking, age at onset of problematic drinking, alcohol expectancies, the role of social support, and quality of life (specifically life satisfaction). Study participants were 155 men and women aged 55 and older recruited from local retirement communities and senior centers. Study participants completed a brief self-report battery of measures including: the Short Michigan Alcoholism Screening Test- Geriatric Version (S-MAST-G), the Desire for Drugs Questionnaire- Revised (DDQ-R), the Life Satisfaction Index- Form A (LSI-A), the Alcohol Effects Questionnaire (AEFQ), and the Shortened Social Support Questionnaire (SSQ). The main objective of this study was to advance knowledge into the relationships between alcohol expectancies, social support, life satisfaction, and problematic drinking. Results indicated that older adults with positive alcohol expectancies were more likely to drink problematically and to drink alcohol at a higher frequency whereby a greater number of hours were spent drinking weekly, but were not more likely to consume higher quantities of alcohol. Social support did not impact problematic drinking, or levels of alcohol use in this study. Lastly, total life satisfaction was negatively related to problematic drinking. As a result, there are clear relationships between life satisfaction, positive alcohol expectancies, and problematic drinking (and at times with overall alcohol use) in older adults. It may be important for future studies to examine these variables in a more generalizable population, as many of the older adults in this sample did not currently consume alcohol, or had never consumed alcohol.en_US
dc.description.degreePsy.D.en_US
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/2104/9147
dc.language.isoen_USen_US
dc.publisheren
dc.rightsBaylor University theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from this source for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission. Contact librarywebmaster@baylor.edu for inquiries about permission.en_US
dc.rights.accessrightsNo access - Contact librarywebmaster@baylor.eduen_US
dc.subjectAlcohol use.en_US
dc.subjectProblematic drinking.en_US
dc.subjectOlder adults.en_US
dc.subjectElderly.en_US
dc.subjectSocial support.en_US
dc.subjectQuality of life.en_US
dc.subjectLife satisfaction.en_US
dc.subjectAlcohol expectancies.en_US
dc.titleThe effect of social support and quality of life on attitudes towards drinking in a population of older adults.en_US
dc.typeThesisen_US

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