Growth Mindsets of Alcoholism Buffer Against Deleterious Effects of Drinking Identity on Problem Drinking Over Time

Background Explicit (self‐report) and implicit (indirect) measures of identification with drinking alcohol—drinking identity—are associated with drinking outcomes cross‐sectionally and longitudinally. A key next step is to identify moderators. The current study evaluated a promising moderator: mindsets of alcoholism. Believing people can change (growth mindset) is associated with adaptive outcomes in domains such as mental health, but research is scant regarding mindsets related to problematic drinking. We evaluated whether individuals’ alcoholism mindsets moderated the drinking identity to drinking relation as part of a larger, longitudinal web‐based study of heavy drinkers. Methods A total of 422 US college graduates (59% women) who were heavy drinkers completed measures assessing drinking identity, mindsets, and drinking outcomes (consumption, problems, and risk of alcohol use disorder). Drinking outcomes were assessed at 2 subsequent assessments occurring 4 and 8 months after the initial assessment. Results Drinking identity was positively associated with drinking outcomes, and drinking outcomes reduced following college graduation. Alcoholism mindsets were significantly and negatively correlated with all drinking outcomes. Mindsets were only conditionally associated with drinking behaviors over time in models that evaluated mindsets, drinking identity measures, and their interaction. Mindsets moderated the relationship between drinking identity and changes in drinking behaviors, but the relation was specific to explicit drinking identity and consumption. Among participants with stronger drinking identity, those who had stronger (vs. weaker) growth mindsets reported reduction in consumption over time. Conclusions Growth mindsets of alcoholism appear adaptive for college graduate heavy drinkers with a stronger drinking identity. Mindsets are amenable to interventions; targeting them may be useful in heavy‐drinking college graduates. Identification with drinking alcohol (drinking identity) predicts drinking outcomes. A key next step is to identify moderators. We evaluated a promising moderator: mindsets of alcoholism. Believing people can change (growth mindset) is associated with adaptive outcomes, but research is scant regarding mindsets of problematic drinking. Alcoholism mindsets moderated the association between drinking identity and alcohol consumption among heavy‐ drinking college graduates. Growth mindsets of alcoholism appear most adaptive for h