Since personality traits are thought to influence the motivation of behavior in general, they are also expected to relate to specific alcohol related motivations, especially motives that are directly related to internal affect regulation (i.e., enhancement and coping). Several theorists have suggested that motivations act as a proximal influence on substance use through which more distal factors, such as personality, are mediated (e.g., Cooper, Frone, Russell, & Mudar, 1995; Cox & Klinger, 1988, 1990; Kuntsche, von Fisher, & Gmel, 2008; Stewart & Devine, 2000; see Sher et al., 1999). Providing empirical support for this notion, Kuntsche, Knibbe, Gmel, and Engels (2006) reviewed over 80 scientific papers concerning drinking motives of people aged 10–25 and concluded there was a robust positive relation between neuroticism (Cooper, Agocha, & Sheldon, 2000; Kuntsche et al., 2008; Stewart & Devine, 2000; Stewart, Loughlin, & Rhyno, 2001) and coping motives (i.e., drinking to alleviate negative emotional states). Enhancement motives (i.e., drinking to enhance positive emotional state) have been primarily linked to low inhibitory control (e.g., Colder & O’Connor, 2002), sensation-seeking (e.g., Comeau, Stewart, & Loba, 2001, Cooper et al., 1995), impulsivity (e.g., Cooper, Agocha, & Sheldon, 2000), and extraversion (e.g., Kuntsche et al., 2006).
