From Binge Drinking to Future Alcohol Severity: The Role of Emotion Regulation and Emerging Psychopathology

Binge drinking (BD) during emerging adulthood increases the risk of developing alcohol use disorders, yet not all individuals follow this trajectory. Deficits in emotion regulation has been identified as a risk factor for psychopathology, but its specific role in shaping long-term alcohol severity among young binge drinkers remains insufficiently understood. This study investigates the role of emotion regulation difficulties as a mediator in the relationship between binge BD and future alcohol severity in young people and the moderator role of emerging psychopathological symptoms. We followed a cohort of 192 university students (53% female) over two years, from ages 18 to 20 We measured alcohol consumption and emotion regulation (Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale), as well as psychopathological symptoms (Brief Symptom Inventory). Mediation and moderated mediation models were conducted with PROCESS. Results show that BD predicts future alcohol severity, with emotion regulation difficulties, specifically challenges in goal-directed behaviour, partially mediating this relationship. Psychopathological symptoms moderated the effects, with difficulties in emotion regulation being a significant predictor of future alcohol severity only in individuals with emerging psychopathological symptoms. Additionally, the association between BD and future alcohol severity was amplified in those with emerging psychopathological symptoms. These findings offer new insights into the risk factors underlying the escalation of problematic alcohol use and the interplay between BD, emotion regulation, and psychopathology. They also stress the importance of early interventions focused on enhancing emotion regulation abilities in young binge drinkers, especially those displaying early psychopathological symptoms.