Development of the drinking and physical activity motives scale.

Objective

Research has shown a positive relationship between alcohol use and physical activity. Although little is known about the factors that give rise to this association, evidence suggests intrinsic and extrinsic motivations underlie it.

Participants

University students (N = 1691, 79% female, Age: M = 20.36, SD = 1.89) who completed an online assessment.

Methods

A literature review identified five putative motives underlying the alcohol use ↔ physical activity relation: (1) Work Hard, Play Hard (WHPH), (2) Stress, (3) Social, (4) Body Image (BI), and (5) Guilt, all domains assessed by the Drinking and Physical Activity Motives (DPAM) scale.

Results

Confirmatory factor analysis followed by tests of measurement invariance across gender and race/ethnicity supported a partially invariant factor structure across all subgroups and associations with measures of drinking and physical activity.

Conclusions

The DPAM will facilitate a better understanding the alcohol use ↔ physical activity relationship, ultimately enhancing intervention efforts to reduce drinking among college students.