Redefining binge drinking and exploring the relationship between emotional distress, coping and thought control

A conceptual review of the literature highlighted the need to propose a new definition of binge drinking and explore the role of emotional distress, dispositional coping and thought control processes in the maintenance of problem drinking. Binge drinking was redefined as a clinical condition that must satisfy the following three criteria: a) binge drinking is undertaken in discrete periods of time; b) the amount of alcohol consumed is excessive in comparison with the person's usual pattern; and c) the effects of binge drinking cause clinically significant distress or interference with the person's social, occupational or other important areas of functioning. A clinical sample of Binge Drinkers (n=18), Non-Binge Drinkers (n=33) and a sample of Non-Problem Drinkers (n=27) were compared on measures of emotional distress (BDI, Beck, Rush, Shaw & Emery, 1979, BAI, Beck, Epstein, Brown & Steer, 1988), coping (CISS, Endler & Parker, 1990) and thought control (TCQ, Wells & Davies, 1994). The results revealed that Binge Drinkers were significantly less depressed than Non-Binge Drinkers, although both groups were more depressed than Controls. Binge Drinkers did not differ from Non-Binge Drinkers on measures of anxiety or coping. However, both reported higher levels of anxiety and utilized more emotion-focused coping strategies when compared with the Controls. Finally, the Binge Drinkers tended to use fewer social control strategies for controlling their unwanted thoughts. Conversely, the Non-Binge Drinkers tended to adopt distraction strategies for managing their unpleasant thoughts. The clinical and research implications are critically discussed