A Comparison of Models of Drinking Motives in a University Sample

Previous research has suggested the presence of several alternative factorial models for the assessment of drinking motives. In the present study, confirmatory factor analysis was used to assess the factor structure of the Drinking Motives Questionnaire ( M. L. Cooper, 1994 ) in a college sample. The results indicate that a 4-factor model that includes the dimensions of social rewards, affect enhancement, coping, and conformity motives fits the data significantly better than 2- and 3-factor models. Furthermore, the 4-factor model fits equally well for men and women.