RELATIONSHIP OF FINANCIAL STRAIN AND PSYCHOSOCIAL RESOURCES TO ALCOHOL-USE AND ABUSE - THE MEDIATING ROLE OF NEGATIVE AFFECT AND DRINKING MOTIVES

Limited research has examined the relationship between financial strai n and alcohol use and abuse. Building on affect regulation theory and recent research in the stress and alcohol literatures, this study deve loped and tested a model relating financial strain, social resources, personal resources, depression, and drinking to cope to alcohol use an d abuse. Data were obtained from a random sample of 1,424 adults who i ndicated that they had drunk alcohol in the previous year. We tested a nd then revised our model using structural equation modeling analysis. Results supported the affect regulation model of financial strain and alcohol use and abuse. Generally, depression mediated the relationshi p between financial strain and drinking to cope, and drinking to cope mediated the relationship between depression and alcohol use and abuse . In addition, both gender and race moderated six of the relationships in our revised model.