Author ORCID Identifier
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5373-1016
Defense Date
2026
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy
Department
Counseling Psychology
First Advisor
Dr. Oswaldo Moreno
Second Advisor
Dr. Shawn C.T. Jones
Third Advisor
Dr. Rosalie Corona
Fourth Advisor
Dr. Daniel Gutierrez
Fifth Advisor
Dr. Adrian Bravo
Abstract
Background. Alcohol use remains one of the most prevalent health-risk behaviors among college students in the United States and is associated with a range of academic, physical, and psychological consequences. Hispanic/Latino college students navigate complex social and cultural environments that may influence alcohol use behaviors, including exposure to early-life adversity, sociopolitical stressors, and culturally grounded sources of resilience. Guided by the Healthy People 2030 Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) framework, this study examined how social and community context factors relate to alcohol use among Hispanic/Latino college students and whether drinking motives function as a psychological mechanism linking social experiences to alcohol use behaviors.
Method & Data Analysis. This quantitative study used secondary data from the Hispanic and Latino Alcohol Study (HOLAS), a multi-site survey of Hispanic/Latino college students across eight universities in the United States. The analytic sample consisted of 1,090 participants aged 18–25 who reported alcohol use within the past 30 days. Structural equation modeling was used to examine relationships among adverse childhood experiences, familism-related cultural values, drinking motives, and alcohol use frequency, while controlling for sociodemographic covariates including age and sex.
Results. Results indicated that adverse childhood experiences were significantly associated with stronger drinking motives, which in turn were associated with more frequent alcohol use. Drinking motives significantly mediated the relationship between ACEs and alcohol use frequency, suggesting that early-life adversity may influence alcohol use primarily through motivational pathways rather than direct behavioral effects. Familism-related cultural values were not significantly associated with drinking motives or alcohol use frequency in the final model. The final structural model demonstrated acceptable fit and explained 6% of the variance in drinking motives and 8% of the variance in alcohol use frequency.
Implications. These findings highlight the importance of considering socially embedded experiences when examining alcohol use among Hispanic/Latino college students. In particular, early-life adversity may shape alcohol use behaviors through psychological motivations for drinking. Interventions that address coping-oriented drinking motives and trauma-informed stress processes may therefore represent promising strategies for reducing alcohol-related risk within Hispanic/Latino college populations. By integrating the SDOH framework with motivational models of alcohol use, this study contributes to a more comprehensive understanding of how social context and psychological mechanisms jointly shape alcohol use behaviors among Hispanic/Latino college students.
Rights
© The Author
Is Part Of
VCU University Archives
Is Part Of
VCU Theses and Dissertations
Date of Submission
4-20-2026