Skip to main content

Advertisement

Log in

“It’s Complicated”: Exploring the Mindfulness-Alcohol Use Connection in Undergraduate Students

  • Original Article
  • Published:
International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

We sought to further clarify the underlying connections between facets of mindfulness, alcohol use, and mental health. A total of 203 at-risk college students at a southeastern university participated in this quantitative, cross-sectional study. We specifically explored (1) the extent to which dispositional mindfulness correlated with neuroticism (i.e., anxiety, depression, and happiness) and (2) the connection between facets of mindfulness and problematic alcohol use, including the predictive ability of mindfulness traits to recent drinking-related consequences. Results revealed low mindfulness was associated with higher negative emotion and lower happiness. In contrast, nuanced relationships were found among mindfulness facets and risky alcohol use. Specifically, Acting with Awareness was a significant negative predictor of recent drinking-related consequences, while Nonjudging was a significant positive predictor. Mindfulness appears to be a protective factor for neurotic subtraits, though further research is needed to clarify the impact of mindfulness facets on alcohol and other substance use behaviors.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jessica J. Brooks.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of Interest

The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Brooks, J.J., Carter, A., McMillen, N. et al. “It’s Complicated”: Exploring the Mindfulness-Alcohol Use Connection in Undergraduate Students. Int J Ment Health Addiction 17, 615–627 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11469-018-9886-8

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11469-018-9886-8

Keywords

Navigation