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Desire to Dissociate: Implications for Problematic Drinking in College Students with Childhood or Adolescent Sexual Abuse Exposure
Author(s) -
Klanecky Alicia,
McChargue Dennis E.,
Bruggeman Lindsay
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
the american journal on addictions
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.997
H-Index - 76
eISSN - 1521-0391
pISSN - 1055-0496
DOI - 10.1111/j.1521-0391.2012.00228.x
Subject(s) - dissociative , psychology , dissociation (chemistry) , dissociative experiences scale , sexual abuse , developmental psychology , poison control , clinical psychology , human factors and ergonomics , social psychology , chemistry , personality , medicine , medical emergency , schizotypy
Alcohol use to replace inadequate dissociative capabilities, or chemical dissociation, has been linked to college students with childhood or adolescent sexual abuse (CASA). Insofar as CASA‐exposed persons experience a restricted range of dissociative capabilities, what remains relatively unclear is whether some desire to achieve greater dissociative experiences. Nonclinical levels of dissociative tendencies have positively predicted alcohol‐related blackouts in CASA‐exposed students, and dissociation mediated the relations between CASA and intoxication frequency. Although alcohol (similar to dissociation) can reduce physiological and psychological responses to stress, alcohol consumption may be prompted by a desire to dissociate rather than inadequate dissociative tendencies alone. To investigate this interpretation of the chemical dissociation phenomenon, researchers examined the mediating potential of dissociative tendencies using the Dissociative Experiences Scale–II (DES‐II) as well as the desire to dissociate concept (ie, a modified version of the DES‐II) on the relations between CASA exposure and problematic alcohol use in college students (N = 298). Results indicated that dissociation scores did not replicate previous mediation findings whereas desire to dissociate scores fully mediated CASA exposure and problematic alcohol use. Implications of the results are discussed including possible reasons why prior mediation results were not replicated as well as links to experiential avoidance. (Am J Addict 2012;21:250–256)