Dr. Lydia Muyingo
Clinical Psychologist (Supervised Practice), Children's Hospital
Current areas of focus:
Mental health, child mental health, teen mental health, family mental health, assessment, intervention, psychotherapy, psychology
Previous: academia, graduate school, graduate training, EDI, alcohol use
Media
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So far, so good as Nova Scotia enters era of broader mask use
Relationships on the rocks: A meta-analysis of romantic partner effects on alcohol use.
by Muyingo, L., Smith, M. M., Sherry, S. B., McEachern, E., Leonard, K. E., & Stewart, S. H.
Published by Psychology of Addictive Behaviors
September 30, 2020
The partner influence hypothesis postulates one partner’s alcohol use influences the other partner’s alcohol use over time. Although several studies have examined the partner influence hypothesis, the magnitude and gender-specific nature of partner influences on alcohol use are unclear and have yet to be examined meta-analytically. We addressed this by conducting a traditional bivariate meta-analysis and two-stage meta-analytic structural equation modeling across 17 studies (N = 10,553 couples). Studies that assessed both romantic partners’ alcohol use at a minimum of two time-points were selected. Results suggest romantic partners do influence one another’s drinking, to a small but meaningful degree, with women (β = .19) exerting a statistically stronger (p < .05) influence than men (β = .12). Results also suggest time lag between assessment, alcohol indicator, married, and year of publication may moderate partner influence. Thus, social influences on individual alcohol use include important partner influences. These influences can serve either risk or protective functions. Given the economic, social, and health consequences associated with alcohol misuse, advancing knowledge of social risk factors for alcohol misuse is essential. Therefore, assessment and treatment of alcohol misuse should extend beyond the person to the social context. We encourage clinicians to consider involving romantic partners when assessing and treating alcohol misuse. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved
URL: https://psycnet.apa.org/doiLanding?doi=10.1037%2Fadb0000578
Biography
Dr. Lydia Muyingo is a Clinical Psychologist in Supervised Practice, authorized for practice with children, adolescents and families. She currently works with youth and families struggling with a variety of mental health concerns. She completed her PhD in Clinical Psychology at Dalhousie University. There, she published research on the partner influences on alcohol use and completed her dissertation on the healthy immigrant effect on alcohol use.