TY - JOUR
T1 - Internalizing Symptoms, Alcohol Use, and Protective Behavioral Strategies
T2 - Associations with Regretted Sexual Experiences of College Students
AU - Peterson, Roselyn
AU - Dvorak, Robert D.
AU - Woerner, Jacqueline
AU - Lewis, Melissa A.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 Elsevier B.V.
PY - 2021/3/15
Y1 - 2021/3/15
N2 - One of the most pervasive forms of regret, often connected to alcohol use, is sexual regret. Lifetime rates of regretted sexual experiences (RSE) for college students is between 29%-71.9%, with 31.8% endorsing past year RSE and 31.7% stating alcohol negatively influenced decision making. While past research has focused on psychological symptoms following sexual assault, psychological effects and subsequent outcomes of RSE remains under-studied. Whether a history of sexual regret is associated with mental health symptoms, alcohol use, and protective behavioral strategy (PBS) use in the past month was analyzed. Participants (n = 1,394; 57.68% females, 26.96% racial/ethnic minority) reported on internalizing symptoms (anxiety, depression, trauma symptoms, and suicidal ideation) and externalizing and protective behaviors (problematic alcohol use and PBS). It was hypothesized that those with a history of RSE would report heightened current psychological symptoms compared to those without a history of RSE, regardless of when the RSE occurred. Of the n = 1,394 participants, 39.96% reported sexual regret and 26.11% endorsed a history of sexual victimization. Results indicate that among participants with an RSE, past month symptoms of anxiety, depression, trauma, and suicidal ideation were heightened. A similar pattern emerged for problematic alcohol use, as those with a history of RSE engaged in more problematic alcohol use in the past month. For PBS, those with a history of RSE engaged in fewer PBS than those without. Understanding these factors may provide novel insight for mental health prevention efforts and intervention targets for individuals who experience sexual regret.
AB - One of the most pervasive forms of regret, often connected to alcohol use, is sexual regret. Lifetime rates of regretted sexual experiences (RSE) for college students is between 29%-71.9%, with 31.8% endorsing past year RSE and 31.7% stating alcohol negatively influenced decision making. While past research has focused on psychological symptoms following sexual assault, psychological effects and subsequent outcomes of RSE remains under-studied. Whether a history of sexual regret is associated with mental health symptoms, alcohol use, and protective behavioral strategy (PBS) use in the past month was analyzed. Participants (n = 1,394; 57.68% females, 26.96% racial/ethnic minority) reported on internalizing symptoms (anxiety, depression, trauma symptoms, and suicidal ideation) and externalizing and protective behaviors (problematic alcohol use and PBS). It was hypothesized that those with a history of RSE would report heightened current psychological symptoms compared to those without a history of RSE, regardless of when the RSE occurred. Of the n = 1,394 participants, 39.96% reported sexual regret and 26.11% endorsed a history of sexual victimization. Results indicate that among participants with an RSE, past month symptoms of anxiety, depression, trauma, and suicidal ideation were heightened. A similar pattern emerged for problematic alcohol use, as those with a history of RSE engaged in more problematic alcohol use in the past month. For PBS, those with a history of RSE engaged in fewer PBS than those without. Understanding these factors may provide novel insight for mental health prevention efforts and intervention targets for individuals who experience sexual regret.
KW - adverse sexual outcomes
KW - alcohol use
KW - mood disorders
KW - posttraumatic stress
KW - protective behavioral strategies
KW - suicidal ideation
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85100517381&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.jad.2021.01.077
DO - 10.1016/j.jad.2021.01.077
M3 - Article
C2 - 33578350
AN - SCOPUS:85100517381
SN - 0165-0327
VL - 283
SP - 363
EP - 372
JO - Journal of Affective Disorders
JF - Journal of Affective Disorders
ER -