Problematic alcohol use as a risk factor for cyber aggression within romantic relationships.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Cyber aggression has emerged as a modern form of intimate partner violence which has yet to undergo sufficient research necessary to identify risk factors that may increase the likelihood or severity of cyber aggressive behavior toward a relationship partner. Prior research offers contradictory findings pertaining to the relationship between problematic alcohol use and cyber aggression.

METHODS: We recruited 100 (40 female) adult participants through online crowdsourcing to complete a series of questionnaires assessing traditional partner violence, cyber aggression, and problematic alcohol use.

RESULTS: Forty-two percent of the sample reported perpetrating cyber relational aggression and 35% reported perpetrating cyber privacy invasion during the year prior to study participation. Traditional partner violence was associated with both forms of cyber aggression. Problematic alcohol use was only associated with privacy invasion after accounting for demographic factors and traditional partner violence.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: Cyber aggression was prevalent among the current adult sample. Results suggest that problematic alcohol use is a risk factor for cyber privacy invasion but not cyber relational aggression.

SCIENTIFIC SIGNIFICANCE: Findings add to and clarify the nascent, conflicting results that have emerged from prior research on alcohol-related cyber aggression. (Am J Addict 2018;XX:1-7).