Abstract
The college years are a time of significant upheaval, including changes in social relationships and dramatic increases in the development of depressive symptoms and alcohol-related problems. Research has identified that individuals’ tendencies to dwell on stressful events, both cognitively (rumination) and interpersonally (co-rumination), are independent risk factors for depressive symptoms and alcohol-related problems; however, pathways linking these processes are largely unexamined. The current study evaluated the tendency to focus excessively on problems in intra and inter-individual contexts and its relation to maladaptive outcomes in a diverse sample of college-aged emerging adults. Participants included 298 (73% female) undergraduate students who took part in an online survey. Students completed self-report questionnaires assessing co-rumination, rumination, depressive symptoms and alcohol-related problems. There was a significant indirect effect of co-rumination on both depressive symptoms and alcohol-related problems via its link to rumination. The current study adds to a growing literature demonstrating that overfocusing on problems within friendships may increase the likelihood of rumination, leading, in turn, to mental health and substance use problems among college-aged adults.
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All data utilized in the current study will be made available upon reasonable request.
Notes
We also examined this model without controlling for binge drinking. Results suggest the same pattern of findings. The model continued to fit the data well: χ2(df=3) = 3.60, p = .308; CFI = 1.00; TLI = 0.99; and RMSEA = .03 (90%CI = .00 to .13) and the indirect effect from co-rumination to alcohol-related problems through rumination remained significant: unstd. indirect effect = .02. SE = .01; 95% CI [.01 to .04], p = .005. The indirect effect from co-rumination to depressive symptoms through rumination also remained significant: unstd. indirect effect = .11, SE = .02; 95% CI [.07 to .15], p < .001.
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Felton, J.W., Havewala, M., Myerberg, L. et al. Rumination and Co-Rumination and their Associations with Alcohol-Related Problems and Depressive Symptoms among College Students. J Rat-Emo Cognitive-Behav Ther 40, 388–405 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10942-021-00418-y
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10942-021-00418-y