The long-term objective of the proposed project is to determine the feasibility of ecological momentary assessment (EMA) for assessing moderators of alcohol-related intimate partner violence (IPV) and whether proximal negative affect, emotion dysregulation, and self-control depletion moderate the temporal association between alcohol and IPV perpetration among young adults. Importantly, the use of EMA will provide the most rigorous and accurate assessment of alcohol-related IPV to date. IPV includes psychological, physical, and sexual aggression, which occur at alarmingly high rates in young adult dating relationships, particularly among heavy episodic drinkers. Moreover, IPV results in increased mental and physical health symptoms for victims, as well as increased health care utilization. The proposed project aims to investigate the temporal relationship between alcohol use and IPV perpetration in 200 young adult heavy episodic drinkers who have previously perpetrated IPV. Unfortunately, there is a dearth of research on proximal moderators (e.g., negative affect, emotion dysregulation, self-control) of the temporal relationship between alcohol use and IPV, despite the relevance to theoretical models of alcohol-related IPV. Moreover, no research has utilized EMA to examine the proximal moderators of the alcohol-IPV relationship. Participants will complete brief daily surveys multiple times per day for 28 consecutive days. The repeated daily assessments will allow for more accurate reporting on key proximal moderators of the alcohol-IPV association. This project has the potential to provide crucial information that can be used to reduce IPV among young adults.
Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a significant public health problem and alcohol use temporally precedes and increases the risk for IPV perpetration. The current study will examine (1) the feasibility of ecological momentary assessment for assessing proximal moderators of alcohol-related IPV and (2) whether state negative affect, emotion dysregulation, and self-control depletion moderate the temporal association between alcohol and IPV. The information obtained from this study will have relevance for researchers and clinicians who are interested in the reduction of intimate partner violence.
