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The Role of Social Media in the Alcohol-Risk Trajectories of First-Year Students

Award Number: R21AA024853
ORGANIZATION: NATIONAL INSTITUTE ON ALCOHOL ABUSE AND ALCOHOLISM
OPDIV: NIH
AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY
AWARD ACTIVITY TYPE: SCIENTIFIC/HEALTH RESEARCH (INCLUDES SURVEYS)
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 01/15/2017
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 12/31/2019

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The Role of Social Media in the Alcohol-Risk Trajectories of First-Year Students - Project Summary There is growing consensus that, because 97% of adolescents use social media sites (SMS) and because SMS content frequently portrays heavy drinking as normative and glamorous, SMS may powerfully shape teen drinking behavior. NIAAA has identified first-year college students, particularly during their first six weeks on campus, as a high-risk group for heavy drinking and harmful consequences and our pilot research suggests that this cohort may be especially likely to turn to SMS during this critical period for cues about the social norms of their new college environment. Given that normative perceptions are among the strongest known predictors of alcohol use, these students may be particularly influenced by SMS alcohol content during this time. However, extant research has suffered from important methodological limitations (e.g., relying on self-reports of SMS alcohol exposure, examining Facebook alone despite emerging evidence that Instagram may be more influential; examining only one hypothesized mediator [normative perceptions] of the SMS-drinking relationship). Further, no interventions have yet been designed to mitigate the risk associated with SMS alcohol influence, largely because an understanding of the cognitive pathways involved is severely lacking. In order to advance the scientific knowledge of SMS influences on underage college drinking and inform the development of SMS-based prevention efforts, the proposed project seeks to: 1) evaluate short- and long-term effects of viewing SMS alcohol content on later drinking using recently-developed content analysis software to objectively assess exposure to peers' alcohol-related posts on Facebook and Instagram during the first weeks of college; 2) elucidate both explicit (perceived norms, expectancies, beliefs) and implicit (approach/excite alcohol associations and implicit expectancies) cognitive mechanisms by which exposure to peers' alcohol- related SMS content influences drinking trajectories; 3) identify the characteristics of student observers (e.g., demographics and personality characteristics) that make SMS alcohol influence more likely; and 4) identify the specific attributes (e.g., media richness, social context) of alcohol-related social media posts that make influence more likely. This project will follow 400 incoming students from July prior to matriculation through April of their spring semester. A software application installed on participants' computers and smartphones will monitor time spent using SMS while a novel web portal designed for the present study will systematically sample content from participants' Facebook and Instagram newsfeeds during the first 30 days of college. Throughout the year, participants will complete web-based measures assessing their explicit and implicit alcohol-related cognitions, personality and individual difference variables, and alcohol consumption and consequences. Findings will substantially bolster our understanding SMS alcohol influence during a critical developmental period and will inform the development, implementation, and evaluation of SMS-based prevention and intervention efforts aiming to mitigate alcohol-related risks on college campuses.


Issue Date FY	Funding FY	Legal Entity Name	Legal Entity Address	Legal Entity City	Legal Entity State	Legal Entity Zip Code	Legal Entity COUNTY	Legal Entity COUNTRY	Assistance Listing	Award Code	Budget Year	Action Date	Action Type	Action Amount

Issue Date FY: 2020 ( Subtotal = -$1,004 )
2020	2018	LOYOLA MARYMOUNT UNIVERSITY	1 LMU DR UHALL STE 4900	LOS ANGELES	CA	90045	LOS ANGELES	USA	Alcohol Research Programs	000	2	3/11/2020	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	-$1,004
														Subtotal = -$1,004

Issue Date FY: 2019 ( Subtotal = $0 )
2019	2018	LOYOLA MARYMOUNT UNIVERSITY	1 LMU DR UHALL STE 4900	LOS ANGELES	CA	90045	LOS ANGELES	USA	Alcohol Research Programs	000	2	4/19/2019	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$0
														Subtotal = $0

Issue Date FY: 2018 ( Subtotal = $163,875 )
2018	2018	LOYOLA MARYMOUNT UNIVERSITY	1 LMU DR UHALL STE 4900	LOS ANGELES	CA	90045	LOS ANGELES	USA	Alcohol Research Programs	001	2	5/23/2018	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$16,388
2018	2018	LOYOLA MARYMOUNT UNIV (CONSOL)	1 LMU DRIVE, UHALL, SUITE 4900	LOS ANGELES	CA	90045	LOS ANGELES	USA	Alcohol Research Programs	000	2	12/15/2017	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$147,487
														Subtotal = $163,875

Issue Date FY: 2017 ( Subtotal = $198,375 )
2017	2017	LOYOLA MARYMOUNT UNIVERSITY	1 LMU DR UHALL 4900	LOS ANGELES	CA	90045	LOS ANGELES	USA	Alcohol Research Programs	000	1	1/13/2017	NEW	$198,375
														Subtotal = $198,375

Grand Total All Awards = $361,246

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The Role of Social Media in the Alcohol-Risk Trajectories of First-Year Students

Award Number: R21AA024853

ORGANIZATION: NATIONAL INSTITUTE ON ALCOHOL ABUSE AND ALCOHOLISM

OPDIV: NIH

AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY

AWARD ACTIVITY TYPE: SCIENTIFIC/HEALTH RESEARCH (INCLUDES SURVEYS)

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 01/15/2017

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 12/31/2019

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