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Article

Maladaptive Emotion Regulation and Alcohol Consumption During Adolescence: Examining Pathways Through Behavioral Problems and Drinking Motives

by
Lara Wippermann
1,*,
Alissa Schüürmann
1,
Viktoria Pöchmüller
2 and
Naska Goagoses
1
1
Department of Special Needs Education and Rehabilitation, School of Educational and Social Sciences, Carl von Ossietzky Universität Oldenburg, Ammerländer Heerstraße 114, 26129 Oldenburg, Germany
2
Institute for Special Education, Europa-Universität Flensburg, Auf dem Campus 1, 24943 Flensburg, Germany
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Adolescents 2026, 6(1), 2; https://doi.org/10.3390/adolescents6010002
Submission received: 6 October 2025 / Revised: 5 December 2025 / Accepted: 18 December 2025 / Published: 20 December 2025
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Abstract

The current investigation examines pathways linking individual risk factors, namely maladaptive emotion regulation, behavior problems, and drinking motives, with adolescents’ alcohol consumption. In a cross-sectional design, 243 adolescents attending secondary school in Germany completed questionnaires. The Cognitive Emotion Regulation Questionnaire was used to assess maladaptive emotion regulation, the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire for assessing internalizing and externalizing behaviors, and the Drinking Motives Questionnaire Revised for assessing the four drinking motives, namely social, enhancement, coping, and conformity motives. Adolescents also reported their daily and problematic alcohol consumption. The path analysis revealed that maladaptive emotion regulation was positively associated with both internalizing and externalizing problems, and all four drinking motives. Externalizing problems were positively associated with adolescents’ enhancement and coping motives, and their alcohol consumption. Internalizing problems were only negatively associated with enhancement motives. Only coping motives were positively associated with alcohol consumption. Moreover, maladaptive emotion regulation had an indirect effect on alcohol consumption, via externalizing problems and coping motives. The findings emphasize the interactions between the risk factors in contributing to adolescent alcohol consumption, underscoring the importance of targeting emotion regulation and coping motives in substance use prevention efforts prior and during adolescence.

1. Introduction

Alcohol consumption is considered one of the greatest health risks for adolescents worldwide [1]. Globally, the lifetime prevalence of alcohol consumption among adolescents aged 15 years is 57% [2]. In addition, 37% reported alcohol consumption at least once in the past 30 days [2]. Alcohol consumption during adolescence can have immediate negative outcomes (e.g., traffic accidents) [3], mental health problems (e.g., depression) [4], behavioral problems (e.g., delinquency) [5], and academic consequences (e.g., poorer academic performance) [6]. Given the high prevalence and negative outcomes of alcohol consumption during adolescence, prevention and intervention measures remain vital. Predictive factors need to be identified in order to provide new avenues and insights for these. In particular, exploring pathways among factors may help develop more targeted programs and early identification strategies. Accordingly, the present investigation aims to investigate how maladaptive emotion regulation strategies, internalizing and externalizing behavior problems, and drinking motives relate to alcohol consumption during adolescence.

1.1. Theoretical and Empirical Background

Adolescence usually marks the onset of substance use and often the escalation thereof [7]. As such, alcohol consumption is often considered typical in this life stage, even serving as a way to actively engage with developmental tasks and to cope temporarily with developmental stress, as well as facilitating distance to parents, improving social integration with peers, and identity building [7,8]. In contrast to the normative trajectory, a smaller group of adolescents demonstrates variability in their developmental course, with alcohol use persisting across the life span and reflecting underlying adjustment difficulties [8,9]. Building on this, Schulenberg et al. [7] proposed a developmental perspective of adolescent alcohol use, emphasizing individual trajectories leading to the initiation or avoidance, as well as the escalation or decline in alcohol consumption during adolescence. The model integrates multiple levels, including biological factors, social factors, and individual behaviors, whilst acknowledging unique transitions and coping with developmental tasks. Schulenberg et al. [7] strongly reiterates that instead of looking at new or singular risk factors for adolescent alcohol use, the developmental perspective underscores the importance of research examining the interplay of multiple risk factors to understand etiological processes. It is proposed that several distinct routes to alcohol consumption and alcohol-related problems exist whereby early risk factors first leading to behavior problems, which are then a proximal risk factor for alcohol use in adolescence, are the most common pathway [7]. Thus, although alcohol consumption may be linked to coping with developmental tasks [9], the presence of emotional and behavioral problems increases the likelihood of persistent and escalating patterns of use [10,11,12]. Within this pathway, emotion regulation strategies are likely to play an important role, as well as adolescents’ drinking motives.

1.2. Emotion Regulation and Alcohol Consumption

Emotion regulation describes “all the extrinsic and intrinsic processes responsible for monitoring, evaluating and modifying emotional reactions, especially their intensive and temporal features, to accomplish one’s goals” [13] (p. 27). Various strategies can be implemented for emotion regulation, including social, behavioral, and cognitive emotion regulation strategies [14]. Cognitive emotion regulation strategies represent the internal and conscious cognitive management of emotions in stressful situations and experiences [14,15]. Although all emotion regulation strategies serve a functional purpose, they are often classified as either adaptive or maladaptive, based on their association with psychopathological symptoms [16]. Regarding cognitive emotion regulation, maladaptive strategies include self-blame (i.e., attributing negative experiences to oneself), blaming others (i.e., assigning responsibility for negative experiences to others), rumination (i.e., persistent focus on negative experiences), and catastrophizing (i.e., exaggerating the threatening or disastrous aspects of negative experiences) [14]. Such maladaptive emotion regulation strategies have been linked to increased alcohol consumption and alcohol-related problems during adulthood (e.g., conflicts, risky behavior) [17,18].
However, only a few studies have examined this association during adolescence, with findings being less clear, as some find direct associations whilst others did not [19,20,21]. An examination of mediational factors could provide relevant insights [22], highlighting the pathways in which emotion regulation may influence alcohol consumption during adolescence. Given that studies have previously shown behavior problems and drinking motives to be associated separately with emotion regulation and alcohol use, we opted to examine these as potential mediators.

1.3. Associations with Behavior Problems

Externalizing behavior problems is a broad construct, describing outward-directed behaviors, such as aggression, hyperactivity, lack of concentration, and rule-breaking [23,24]. Meanwhile, internalizing behavior problems describe inward-directed behaviors, characterized by anxiety, depression, inhibition, withdrawal, and psychosomatic symptoms [23,24]. There is substantial evidence for the association between emotion regulation and both internalizing and externalizing behavior problems in children and adolescents (e.g., [25,26,27,28]). Particularly maladaptive emotion regulation is considered a risk factor in the development and maintenance of behavior problems [25,29]. Studies examining associations between behavior problems and alcohol consumption in youth show differences between internalizing and externalizing problems. Externalizing problems consistently predict adolescent alcohol consumption [10,30], and increased risk for developing subsequent substance-related disorders [11,31,32]. Regarding internalizing problems, studies show more inconsistencies with some revealing positive associations with alcohol consumption [11,12,33], while others find negative or no associations [10,34].

1.4. Associations with Drinking Motives

Drinking motives describe the incentives or reasons for individuals to engage in alcohol consumption, with four common motives that range across combined dimensions [35]. Social motives represent an other-focused approach motivation, whereby alcohol is consumed to enhance enjoyment with others (e.g., at a party), while enhancement motives represent the self-focused approach dimension, whereby alcohol is consumed to experience associated psychophysiological effects [35]. Coping motives represent a self-focused avoidance motivation, whereby alcohol is consumed to suppress problems or alleviate stress, and conformity motives align on the other-focused avoidance dimensions, whereby alcohol is consumed due to peer pressure or gaining access to social groups [35]. A recent meta-analysis shows that all four drinking motives are positively associated with drinking frequency, quantity, and problems, albeit with differing effect sizes [36]. Similarly, positive associations between the drinking motives and alcohol consumption have been reported during adolescence, with the conformity motive being the only one revealing mixed findings [37,38].
Concerning the association with behavior problems, two developmental pathways have been proposed; the externalizing pathway is driven by the impulsive pursuit of rewarding stimuli, while the internalizing pathway is driven by attempts to relieve negative symptoms [39]. This underscores findings that internalizing behaviors have shown concurrent associations with coping motives, while externalizing behaviors are associated with coping and enhancement motive during adolescence and young adulthood [39,40]. The association between behavior problems, drinking motives, and alcohol consumption has also been credited to a shared underlying etiology [39], which includes emotion regulation. In addition to being implicated in the development of behavior problems and problematic alcohol consumption as described above, emotion regulation difficulties have also been linked with drinking motives. Most commonly, emotion regulation difficulties are associated with increased coping motives, which in turn predict problematic alcohol consumption amongst young adults [41,42]. However, studies have also found emotion regulation difficulties to be associated with conformity, enhancement, and social motives during early adulthood [43,44].

1.5. Current Investigation

Previous studies focusing on individual risk factors have found that emotion regulation (e.g., [17]), behavior problems (e.g., [10]), and drinking motives (e.g., [45]) are separately associated with alcohol consumption. Only recently have studies begun to examine these factors together, highlighting pathways through which they influence each other and ultimately predict alcohol consumption [7,41,43]. Yet, to date, no studies have examined the convergence of emotion regulation, behavior problems, and drinking motives. Drawing on previous studies (e.g., [11,17,29,36,39]), positive hypothetical pathways can be delineated, allowing for the empirical examination of both direct and indirect associations. Although findings from young adulthood can provide some insight, adolescence is a unique developmental phase with important distinction [7]. Adolescence usually marks the initiation of alcohol consumption, whilst various social–emotional competences are still being refined [46]. Therefore, a focused look at this age range can offer new insights for the etiology underlying substance use, and in turn for prevention and intervention efforts [7].
Furthermore, a common pathway predicting alcohol use in adolescence begins with early risk factors that lead to behavior problems, which are then a proximal risk factor for alcohol use [7]. We thus set out to further examine the risk factors involved in this pathway, thereby providing new etiological insights. The aim of the current investigation was therefore to examine alcohol consumption during adolescence, whilst considering emotional, behavioral, and motivational risk factors. Specifically, we examined the direct and indirect associations with a path analysis, leading through maladaptive emotion regulation, internalizing and externalizing behavior problems, and drinking motives to adolescents’ alcohol consumption. This is represented in a hypothetical path model with positive associations amongst the variables (see Figure 1), which was then empirically tested.

2. Materials and Methods

2.1. Procedure and Participants

The current investigation utilizes data from a cross-sectional project that aimed to examine substance use and other problematic behaviors among lower secondary school students in Germany, along with related risk factors. Approval was obtained from the university’s ethics committee, data protection officer, and the regional state office for schools and education. Six schools agreed to participate. Consent forms were distributed to parents/legal guardians of secondary school students in Grades 5 to 10. Participation was voluntary and anonymous. The final sample for analysis consisted of 243 students, with a relatively equal distribution across age and gender (see Table 1). The mean age of the students was 14.84 years (SD = 1.25). The sample included 128 female and 114 male students, as well as 1 indicating their gender to be diverse. The students attended various forms of secondary school (e.g., regular schools focused on academic, vocation, etc., as well as a special education school). Overall, 10 students reported a special educational need. In total, 97.9% indicated they were born in Germany, and 89.3% indicated that their mother was born in Germany.

2.2. Instruments

Maladaptive emotion regulation was assessed with the Cognitive Emotion Regulation Questionnaire [47], which has shown good psychometric properties in Germany [16] and among high school students [14]. The questionnaire considers four maladaptive emotion regulation strategies (i.e., self-blame, blaming others, rumination, and catastrophizing), used in response to stressful life events. These were assessed with 12 items (e.g., “I keep thinking about how terrible it is what I have experienced”; α = 0.83), for which participants could respond on a five-point scale ranging from almost never to almost always.
Internalizing and externalizing problem behavior was assessed with the self-report version of the Strength and Difficulties Questionnaire [48], which has shown satisfactory psychometric properties among adolescents in Germany [49]. The questionnaire included 20 items, which formed the internalizing behavior problem scale (e.g., “I am often unhappy, depressed or tearful”; α = 0.76) and externalizing behavior problem scale (e.g., “I get very angry and often lose my temper”; α = 0.72), with participants answering on a three-point scale ranging from not true to certainly true.
Drinking motives were assessed with the Drinking Motives Questionnaire Revised [50], which has shown satisfactory psychometric properties among German-speaking adolescents [51]. The questionnaire includes four subscales that assess the reasons for drinking alcohol, namely, enhancement (e.g., “Because you like the feeling”; α = 0.85), social (e.g., “Because it helps you enjoy a party”; α = 0.89), conformity (e.g., “Because your friends pressure you to drink”; α = 0.86), and coping motives (e.g., “To forget your worries”; α = 0.89). Participants answered 25 items on a six-point scale, ranging from never to almost always. For alcohol consumption, we assessed the amount of daily alcoholic beverages and problematic alcohol consumption. For daily alcohol consumption, participants indicated the number of alcoholic beverages they typically consumed on a regular weekday and weekend day (i.e., one alcoholic beverage, two alcoholic beverages, three alcoholic beverages, etc.); this was averaged to gain an overall score of alcoholic beverages per day. Problematic alcohol consumption was assessed with nine items derived from the DSM-5 diagnostic criteria for alcohol use disorder [52]. In line with these criteria, the items assessed cravings, tolerance, withdrawal symptoms, unsuccessful attempts to reduce alcohol consumption, continued consumption despite harm, time spent obtaining alcohol, continued consumption despite interpersonal problems, and impacts on school obligations. For illustration, the criterion “There is a persistent desire or unsuccessful efforts to cut down or control alcohol use” [52] was represented by the item “I have tried to drink less alcohol or to stop drinking entirely, but without success.” In the present study, the scale showed acceptable internal consistency (α = 0.76). The full set of items is provided in Goagoses et al. [53], and earlier analyses showed expected associations with perceived social support and monthly alcohol consumption [34]. Participants responded on a five-point scale ranging from strongly disagree to strongly agree.

2.3. Data Analysis

In total, 738 students participated in the study. Yet for the current investigation we included only the 266 students who had consumed alcohol in past month, as only these reported on their drinking motives. As each scale consisted of multiple items, we computed means that if up to 80% were answered, all others were treated as missing values. Conducting a missing data analysis for the relevant variables revealed that 1.8% of values were missing, afflicting 23 of the cases. Little’s MCAR test was not significant, χ2 = 114.05, df = 99, p = 0.14. As the data was missing completely at random, we proceeded with listwise deletion of the 23 cases. This resulted in the final sample of 243 participants for data analysis. Preliminary analyses were conducted, including correlations and t-tests for gender differences (1 = male, 2 = female; see Table S1). The student identifying as diverse was included in all analysis, except those which looked at gender differences. The path analysis model was tested in line with the current aim and as depicted in Figure 1, yet with the four drinking motives separate and including both daily and problematic alcohol consumption. Direct paths were drawn between all central variables. Effects were calculated using a bootstrapping method, with 5000 samples and 90% bias-corrected confidence intervals. The model included covariances (of error terms) between the behavior problems and between the drinking motives. To avoid a fully saturated model, we included gender and grade level as controls only based on identified associations/differences in the preliminary analysis. As paths between grade level and motives did not emerge as significant, they were removed from the model (Model fit prior to removing non-significant paths between grade level and coping/enhancement motives (χ2/df = 3.147, CFI = 0.965, NFI = 0.952, RMSEA = 0.094 [CI 90% (0.063, 0.127)])). A Comparative Fit Index (CFI) and Normed Fit Index (NFI) value above 0.95 indicates good model fit, while a Root Mean Square Error of Approximation (RMSEA) value below 0.05 reflects good fit and a value below 0.08 reflects acceptable fit [54,55,56].

3. Results

3.1. Preliminary Analysis

The means and standard deviations of each variable is displayed in Table 2. Correlations between them are displayed in Table 3. Maladaptive emotion regulation correlated positively with internalizing and externalizing behavior problems, all four drinking motives, as well as with daily and problematic alcohol consumption. Externalizing and internalizing problems correlated with problematic alcohol consumption. Only externalizing problems correlated with daily alcohol consumption. Enhancement, conformity and coping motives correlated positively with daily and problematic alcohol consumption whilst social motives only correlated with problematic alcohol consumption. Grade level correlated only with externalizing behavior (r = 0.16, p < 0.05), coping motives (r = 0.11, p < 0.05), and enhancement motives (r = 0.18, p < 0.001). Examining gender differences, male students reported less maladaptive emotion regulation strategies (t(238.91) = −3.56, p = < 0.001, d = −0.45), internalizing problems (t(240) = −4.96, p = < 0.001, d = −0.64), and coping motives (t(211.28) = −3.35, p = < 0.001, d = −0.42) than female participants (see Table 2).

3.2. Path Analysis

The tested model demonstrated adequate fit values (χ2/df = 2.766, CFI = 0.967, NFI = 0.951, RMSEA = 0.085 [CI 90% (0.055, 0.117)]). Table 4 displays the total effects of the tested path analysis model, while Figure 2 illustrates the significant findings. Maladaptive emotion regulation was positively associated with both internalizing and externalizing behavior problems, as well as all four drinking motives. Internalizing behavior problems were negatively associated with enhancement motives. Externalizing behavior problems were positively associated with coping and enhancement motives, as well as problematic alcohol consumption. Conformity motives were positively associated with problematic alcohol consumption, while coping motives were positively associated with both daily and problematic alcohol consumption. Although not showing direct effects, maladaptive emotion regulation had small indirect effects on both daily alcohol consumption (β = 0.14, 90% CI [0.09, 0.28], p < 0.01) and problematic alcohol consumption (β = 0.27, 90% CI [0.13, 0.29], p < 0.001). Additionally, there was a small indirect effect from maladaptive emotion regulation onto coping motives via behavior problems (β = 0.09, 90% CI [0.04, 0.19], p = 0.01). Lastly, externalizing behavior problems had small indirect effects on both daily (β = 0.09, 90% CI [0.06, 0.38], p = 0.02) and problematic alcohol consumption (β = 0.11, 90% CI [0.06, 0.30], p = 0.02). All other indirect effects were not significant. In total, the variables explained 19.0% and 39.6% of variance for daily and problematic alcohol consumption, respectively.

4. Discussion

In line with the developmental perspective of alcohol consumption during adolescence [7], the aim of the current investigation was to examine the association between multiple risk factors and expanding on the etiology of a common pathway leading to behavior problems. Specifically, we examined how maladaptive emotion regulation strategies, internalizing and externalizing behavior problems, and drinking motives directly and indirectly relate to alcohol consumption during adolescence. Maladaptive emotion regulation has been found to predict alcohol consumption in adulthood [17,18], while findings have been inconsistent during adolescence [19,20,21]. We found that adolescents’ maladaptive emotion regulation strategies have a small indirect effect on their daily and problematic alcohol consumption, being mediated through their behavior problems and drinking motives. Furthermore, maladaptive emotion regulation strategies were associated with all four drinking motives, demonstrating a general increased motivation to consume alcohol. However, only coping motives showed an association with daily and problematic alcohol consumption. This expands on research from early adulthood, in which it was similarly found that the indirect effect between emotion regulation difficulties and alcohol consumption was mediated through coping motives [41,42,43]. The current investigation thus reveals similar pathways during adolescence, but with behavior problems also playing an additional role. In line with the previous literature [25,26,27,28], we found that maladaptive emotion regulation strategies were positively associated with both internalizing and externalizing behavior problems, which in turn showed unique associations with drinking motives and alcohol consumption.
As expected (see [10,30]), the current investigation revealed that externalizing problems had direct and small indirect effects on daily and problematic alcohol consumption. Internalizing problems on the other hand were not associated with alcohol consumption. Although depression and anxiety are often linked with substance use disorders during adulthood [57], adolescence may present a unique phase in which additional factors may impact the association. During adolescence alcohol consumption often occurs in social settings, increasing when more friends are present and at parties [58]. As adolescents with internalizing behavior problems withdraw from social interactions [59], they may be less likely to find themselves in situations in which alcohol is available, and in turn have less experience using alcohol as a coping mechanism. Furthermore, studies show that associations between internalizing behaviors and alcohol consumption during adolescence disappear when controlling for externalizing behaviors [60,61]. This highlights the significance of comorbidity between internalizing and externalizing behavior problems [62,63], with the latter being a stronger driver for substance use when both are assessed and controlled for.
Both internalizing and externalizing behavior problems only showed direct effects on self-focused drinking motives (i.e., enhancement and coping), and not on other-focused drinking motives (i.e., social and conformity). As social and conformity motives are also not related to increased daily or problematic alcohol consumption, it could indicate that other-focused motives may be representative of a normative or typical developmental engagement with alcohol, which most often occurs within social contexts. However, self-focused motives seem to be embedded within psychopathological pathways, as they are linked with maladaptive emotion regulation and behavior problems, as well as increased and problematic alcohol consumption. Specifically, internalizing behaviors were only negatively associated with an enhancement motive, indicating that these adolescents are less likely to consume alcohol due to it being perceived as fun, exciting, and eliciting pleasant feelings. As internalizing behaviors entail negative emotionality, with higher tendencies to experience fear and anxiety, adolescents may be less likely to embrace the enhancing effect of alcohol; rather, they may find it exhausting or stressful to engage in the behavior. In contrast to previous findings with young adults [39,64], the current findings revealed that adolescents’ internalizing behaviors were not associated with coping motives when externalizing problems were controlled for. As noted with the lacking association to alcohol consumption, this may reflect underlying comorbidities not considered in the previous literature. Alternatively, adolescents who present with strong internalizing problems may find other, less socially embedded behaviors for coping, such as computer gaming [65]. Externalizing behaviors were positively associated with coping and enhancement motives, as shown in previous studies [39,40]. Social motives are often considered more normative [39], whilst conformity motives are linked with overt prosocial behaviors, whereby substances are consumed to maintain a positive reputation and fit into social groups [66], which could then account for lacking associations with internalizing and externalizing problems.

4.1. Practical Implications and Suggestions

The current findings align with previous suggestions that substance use prevention programs should focus on internalizing and externalizing behavior problems, as well as coping skills during childhood [67]. Previous intervention studies for alcohol use have indeed focused on improving emotion regulation and coping skills for young adults with depression and anxiety [68,69], which could be similarly effective for adolescents. However, as emotion regulation trainings during adolescence are not always effective for reducing behavior problems [70], early prevention programs during childhood may be necessary [71]. School can be another important context in which prevention efforts can address the multiple risk factors leading to substance use [8], with multi-tiered systems of support recommended [72]. School psychologists often report having inadequate knowledge about the identification and assessment of students with substance use problems [73], with the current findings revealing that focus should be placed on students with externalizing behavior problems. Diverting adolescents with emotional and behavior problems away from substance use and towards other activities that could support coping (e.g., sport), could be beneficial [7,8]. Indeed, adolescents themselves have previously suggested that participation in extracurricular and leisure activities can offer a feasible prevention approach for alcohol use [74]. Lastly, health insurance providers have begun offering cost-free prevention-oriented health courses in areas such as physical activity, stress management, and addiction for adults [75], with the current findings underscoring that comparable initiatives for adolescents are important.

4.2. Limitations and Future Research

As the current investigation draws upon cross-sectional data, causality cannot be established; however, it still provides important insights that should be drawn upon in future longitudinal studies with larger sample sizes. Furthermore, social desirability cannot fully be disregarded as adolescents completed the questionnaire in self-report, albeit anonymously. Although model fit indices were generally good, RMSEA was slightly below the acceptable limit. In addition, the model included numerous regression paths and indirect effects, increasing the risk of multiplicity, requiring these to be interpreted with appropriate caution. Future research could focus on replicating the path model with other substances, such as cannabis, where differences among internalizing and externalizing behaviors, as well as motives, have been reported [76,77]. An additional look at protective factors that buffer against the identified risk factors could also be beneficial to identify further preventative measures. For instance, social support from parents, teachers, and peers, has been shown to foster emotion regulation [78] and reduce behavior problems [53]. Furthermore, adolescents who are considered vulnerable for the identified risk factors should receive attention in future. For instance, students with special educational needs arising from emotional and behavioral disorders exhibit lower emotion regulation skills [79], higher externalizing and internalizing behavior problems [80], and higher prevalence rates of alcohol use [81] than students without special educational needs. Lastly, future research using a person-centered approach with latent class analysis could provide important insights into the impact of behavior problem comorbidity and overlapping drinking motives on alcohol consumption.

5. Conclusions

The present investigation examined how maladaptive emotion regulation strategies, behavior problems, and drinking motives relate to adolescents’ alcohol consumption. As hypothesized, results indicated that maladaptive emotion regulation is a central factor, as it was positively linked to both internalizing and externalizing behavior problems, all drinking motives, and indirectly to both daily and problematic alcohol consumption. Externalizing problems emerged as particularly relevant, showing direct associations with both self-focused drinking motives (i.e., coping and enhancement), with coping motives then leading directly to both daily and problematic alcohol use. Overall, the model explained a meaningful proportion of variance in alcohol consumption. These findings highlight the interactions between emotional, behavioral, and motivational risk factors that contribute to adolescent alcohol use. The findings underscore the importance of addressing adaptive emotion regulation strategies and coping motives in substance use prevention efforts before and during adolescence.

Supplementary Materials

The following supporting information can be downloaded at https://www.mdpi.com/article/10.3390/adolescents6010002/s1, Table S1: Analysis Results for Gender Differences.

Author Contributions

Conceptualization, L.W. and N.G.; Methodology, N.G. and A.S.; Validation, L.W. and N.G.; Formal Analysis, L.W.; Investigation, N.G. and A.S.; Data Curation, L.W. and V.P.; Writing—Original Draft Preparation, L.W., N.G., V.P. and A.S.; Writing—Review and Editing, L.W.; Visualization, L.W.; Supervision, N.G.; Project Administration, N.G. and A.S.; Funding Acquisition, A.S. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

Funding

The current investigation is part of a larger research project, with partial financial support received from a local substance use prevention group for printing the questionnaires. The APC was funded by Bibliotheks- und Informationssystem (BIS) at the Carl von Ossietzky Universität Oldenburg.

Institutional Review Board Statement

The study was conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki, and approved by the Commission for Research Impact Assessment and Ethics of the Carl von Ossietzky Universität Oldenburg (Drs.EK/2019/088, 30 January 2020), for studies involving humans.

Informed Consent Statement

Informed consent was obtained from all subjects involved in the study, as well as their parents/legal guardians.

Data Availability Statement

Due to the nature of this research, participants of this study did not agree for their data to be shared.

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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Adolescents 06 00002 g001
Figure 1. Hypothesized path model linking risk factors to adolescents’ alcohol consumption.
Figure 1. Hypothesized path model linking risk factors to adolescents’ alcohol consumption.
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Adolescents 06 00002 g002
Figure 2. Examined path analyses of risk factors for adolescent alcohol consumption. Note. * p < 0.05, ** p < 0.01, Only significant associations are displayed, with positive effects as continuous lines and negative effects as dashed lines. For clarity, the control variables are not displayed, nor the intercorrelations of error terms.
Figure 2. Examined path analyses of risk factors for adolescent alcohol consumption. Note. * p < 0.05, ** p < 0.01, Only significant associations are displayed, with positive effects as continuous lines and negative effects as dashed lines. For clarity, the control variables are not displayed, nor the intercorrelations of error terms.
Adolescents 06 00002 g002
Table 1. Descriptive table of sociodemographic variables.
Table 1. Descriptive table of sociodemographic variables.
NPercentMSD
Age238 14.841.25
Gender243
  Female12852.7
  Male11446.9
  Diverse10.4
Birth country of Mother243
  Germany21789.2
  Other2610.8
Grade243 8.891.15
  5.10.4
  6.114.5
  7.156.2
  8.4217.3
  9.7129.2
  10.10342.4
Type of Secondary School243
  Special Education School41.6
  Lower Secondary School6128.8
  Academic High School13769.6
Special Educational Needs Status243
  Yes104.1
  No23395.9
Note. N = total; M = mean; SD = standard deviation.
Table 2. Descriptive statistics and gender differences.
Table 2. Descriptive statistics and gender differences.
TotalMaleFemale pCohen’s d
MSDMSDMSD
Maladaptive Emotion Regulation2.500.702.330.612.640.74t(238.91) = −3.56<0.001−0.45
Internalizing Problems1.870.341.760.311.970.34t(240) = −4.96<0.001−0.64
Externalizing Problems1.660.351.650.341.670.36t(240) = −0.470.64−0.06
Enhancement Motive2.321.072.351.082.291.05t(240) = −0.440.660.06
Social Motive1.260.551.320.641.200.45t(199.92) = 1.730.090.23
Conformity Motive2.601.102.671.152.551.05t(240) = 0.850.390.11
Coping Motive1.580.861.390.611.751.01t(211.28) = −3.35<0.001−0.42
Daily Alcohol Consumption0.800.920.810.960.800.87t(240) = 0.080.940.01
Problematic Alcohol Consumption1.440.531.400.471.480.58t(237.77) = 1.120.26−0.14
Note. M = mean; SD = standard deviation; gender differences based on two-sided t-test, with t-values reported based on equality of variances.
Table 3. Correlations between variables.
Table 3. Correlations between variables.
123456789
1Maladaptive Emotion Regulation-0.47 **0.38 **0.21 **0.27 **0.16 **0.43 **0.12 *0.21 **
2Internalizing Problems -0.44 **0.030.070.000.32 **0.060.16 **
3Externalizing Problems -0.23 **0.15 *0.12 *0.31 **0.16 **0.32 **
4Enhancement Motive -0.19 **0.82 **0.50 **0.40 **0.49 **
5Social Motive -0.19 **0.22 *0.050.16 **
6Conformity Motive -0.47 **0.37 **0.47 **
7Coping Motive -0.33 **0.54 **
8Daily Alcohol Consumption -0.47 **
9Problematic Alcohol Consumption -
Note. * p < 0.05, ** p < 0.01, based on one-sided tests.
Table 4. Total effects of path analysis model.
Table 4. Total effects of path analysis model.
β90% CIpR2
Externalizing Behavior Problems 0.17
  Maladaptive Emotion Regulation0.38[0.28, 0.47]<0.001
Internalizing Behavior Problems 0.26
  Maladaptive Emotion Regulation0.42[0.34, 0.50]<0.001
Enhancement Motive 0.09
  Maladaptive Emotion Regulation0.20[0.08, 0.32]0.005
  Externalizing Behavior Problems0.23[0.10, 0.34]0.005
  Internalizing Behavior Problems−0.17[−0.23, −0.04]0.032
Social Motive 0.09
  Maladaptive Emotion Regulation0.29[0.15, 0.44]<0.001
  Externalizing Behavior Problems0.08[−0.02, 0.19]0.188
  Internalizing Behavior Problems−0.10[−0.14, 0.03]0.193
Conformity Motive 0.05
  Maladaptive Emotion Regulation0.19[0.06, 0.31]0.019
  Externalizing Behavior Problems0.11[−0.01, 0.23]0.146
  Internalizing Behavior Problems−0.13[−0.26, −0.01]0.077
Coping Motive 0.24
  Maladaptive Emotion Regulation0.30[0.19, 0.41]<0.001
  Externalizing Behavior Problems0.16[0.05, 0.23]0.022
  Internalizing Behavior Problems0.07[−0.05, 0.19]0.380
Daily Alcohol Consumption 0.19
  Maladaptive Emotion Regulation−0.02[−0.12, 0.08]0.789
  Externalizing Behavior Problems0.07[−0.02, 0.16]0.192
  Internalizing Behavior Problems−0.02[−0.12, 0.09]0.805
  Enhancement Motive0.21[0.02, 0.40]0.071
  Social Motive−0.06[−0.14, 0.04]0.331
  Conformity Motive0.12[−0.07, 0.33]0.312
  Coping Motive0.17[0.04, 0.31]0.031
Problematic Alcohol Consumption 0.40
  Maladaptive Emotion Regulation−0.08[−0.18, 0.03]0.234
  Externalizing Behavior Problems0.18[0.09, 0.27]0.002
  Internalizing Behavior Problems0.00[−0.11, 0.10]0.923
  Enhancement Motive0.13[−0.04, 0.29]0.205
  Social Motive0.01[−0.09, 0.12]0.884
  Conformity Motive0.18[0.00, 0.38]0.099
  Coping Motive0.37[0.22, 0.50]<0.001
Gender ⟶ Maladaptive Emotion Regulation0.22[0.13, 0.32]0.001
Gender ⟶ Internalizing Behavior Problems0.21[0.13, 0.29]<0.001
Gender ⟶ Coping Motive0.14[0.07, 0.21]0.004
Grade ⟶ Externalizing Behavior Problems−0.16[−0.24, −0.07]0.005
Note. Significant effects are displayed in bold.
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Wippermann, L.; Schüürmann, A.; Pöchmüller, V.; Goagoses, N. Maladaptive Emotion Regulation and Alcohol Consumption During Adolescence: Examining Pathways Through Behavioral Problems and Drinking Motives. Adolescents 2026, 6, 2. https://doi.org/10.3390/adolescents6010002

AMA Style

Wippermann L, Schüürmann A, Pöchmüller V, Goagoses N. Maladaptive Emotion Regulation and Alcohol Consumption During Adolescence: Examining Pathways Through Behavioral Problems and Drinking Motives. Adolescents. 2026; 6(1):2. https://doi.org/10.3390/adolescents6010002

Chicago/Turabian Style

Wippermann, Lara, Alissa Schüürmann, Viktoria Pöchmüller, and Naska Goagoses. 2026. "Maladaptive Emotion Regulation and Alcohol Consumption During Adolescence: Examining Pathways Through Behavioral Problems and Drinking Motives" Adolescents 6, no. 1: 2. https://doi.org/10.3390/adolescents6010002

APA Style

Wippermann, L., Schüürmann, A., Pöchmüller, V., & Goagoses, N. (2026). Maladaptive Emotion Regulation and Alcohol Consumption During Adolescence: Examining Pathways Through Behavioral Problems and Drinking Motives. Adolescents, 6(1), 2. https://doi.org/10.3390/adolescents6010002

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