The Moderating Effect of Social Capital on the Relationship Between Distress Tolerance and Problem Drinking

BACKGROUND: Social capital may serve as a contextual factor in the relationship between distress tolerance and problem drinking. OBJECTIVES: This study examined the moderating effect of social capital on the relationship between distress tolerance and problem drinking among adults. METHODS: An online self-report survey was conducted among 350 participants aged 19-64 years. After excluding 20 insufficient or careless responses, data from 330 participants were analyzed. The moderating effects were examined using PROCESS macro Model 1 for SPSS version 4.2. RESULTS: Distress tolerance significantly predicted problem drinking. Overall social capital significantly moderated the relationship between distress tolerance and problem drinking, and both structural and cognitive social capital also demonstrated significant moderating effects. CONCLUSIONS: These findings are meaningful because they examined social capital from a psychological perspective while distinguishing its structural and cognitive dimensions, thereby extending previous research that often treated social capital as a single-dimensional construct. Furthermore, the findings provide empirical evidence supporting the role of social capital as a contextual factor in distress-related problem drinking and suggest its potential value for prevention and intervention strategies across adulthood.