Behavioral Alcohol Research for Clinical Advancement (Corbin)
The Behavioral Alcohol Research for Clinical Advancement lab (BARCA) conducts laboratory and survey research on processes involved in alcohol-related problems, including alcohol use disorders. Laboratory-based studies are conducted in a simulated bar on the Arizona State University campus, the BARCA Lounge. Participants are administered alcohol and then observed in this quasi-naturalistic setting. Survey studies are designed to track drinking and other risky behaviors longitudinally to identify risk and protective factors for the development of related problems. The goal of both types of studies is to better inform prevention and intervention efforts. The BARCA lab will continue to apply the knowledge gained through experimental and longitudinal studies to the prevention and treatment of addictive behaviors.
The focus of BARCA's research is on factors that contribute to the development of alcohol related problems in adolescents and young adults. Substance use disorders are now the third most common psychiatric diagnosis, trailing only mood and anxiety disorders in prevalence in the general population. In addition, heavy alcohol use contributes to a host of high-risk behaviors with their own associated costs. Examples include unprotected sexual behavior that increases risk for HIV/AIDS, other drug use, problem gambling, and driving under the influence, which is responsible for a large proportion of traffic-related fatalities. The goals of Dr. Corbin's research are to improve our understanding of factors that lead to the development of alcohol related problems; and to develop effective programs for reducing alcohol-related harm in adolescents and young adults. The first research aim is met through a combination of a) longitudinal survey research on risk factors for heavy drinking and engagement in other risk behaviors (e.g. high risk sexual behavior, gambling), b) laboratory-based research on the relation between subjective response to alcohol and risk for alcohol-related problems, and c) laboratory-based research on the effects of alcohol on basic cognitive processes, decision making, and risk-taking. The second aim is met through prevention outcome studies targeting alcohol use and associated risk behaviors.
Current Projects
Current Projects
Reducing Alcohol-Related Sexual Risk Behavior (R34 with Dr. Thresa Treat). This study aims to target the interface of alcohol and sexual behavior with an integrated combination of cognitive training and motivational strategies. It involves examination of the effects of a prevention program and longitudinal tracking of subsequent real-world behavior.
Opioid Project.. This project aims to assess the effect of initial dosing on medication-assisted treatment outcomes for individuals with opioid use disorder. Findings will inform the best procedures to improve retention and medication stability. This project works with a community treatment provider focused on medication-assisted treatment for opioid use disorder.
Acute Stress and Drinking in Middle-aged adults (IMHR). This study aims to examine relations between stress, drinking context, and alcohol consumption in middle-aged adults. It involves the use of ecological momentary assessment data to assess stress and alcohol-related problems in an understudied population.
Moderators and Mediators of Within-Person Risk for Contact and Non-Contact Sexual Aggression in College Men. Our newly funded grant project will use four survey bursts every six months and 28 days of EMA data at each burst to examine links between both alcohol use and bar/party attendance as daily predictors of both non-contact and contact sexual aggression. We will also examine potential moderators (new vs. existing partner), cannabis use and cognitive processing deficits and mediators (sexual arousal and use of protective behavioral strategies of these relations). Finally we will examine non-contact sexual aggression as a prospective predictor of contact sexual aggression in a large sample (n = 300) of college men. The findings have the potential to inform targets of both traditional prevention programs and ecological momentary interventions delivered in real-time to reduce momentary risk for negative outcomes of sexual behavior.
Alcohol and Emotion Study. This study aims to comprehensively test competing models of affective relief in both experimental and daily life contexts, connect individual differences in affective relief across these contexts, and test their prospective associations with alcohol use and AUD. This study capitalizes on the strengths of both lab-based alcohol administration and EMA paradigms. Lab-based paradigms are well-suited to capturing high-intensity negative affect immediately following the induction of acute negative affect and comprehensively characterizing negative affect across the full BAC curve. These advantages allow us to observe how alcohol relieves intense negative affect that may be infrequently observed in real-world settings, but may be highly reinforcing. EMA, on the other hand, allows us to examine affective relief in response to more frequent but less intense negative affect.
Past Projects
Contextual Influences on Alcohol Response and its Relation to Drinking Outcomes (NIAAA R01). This project is designed to comprehensively assess alcohol response across multiple settings, including those that are more representative of real-world drinking contexts. Findings will facilitate the development of prevention programs that target unique patterns of response to alcohol across contexts.
Promotive and Protective Factors for Alcohol Use and Problems in Emerging Adults (NIAAA R21; September 2013 – August 2016). This project involves secondary data analyses to identify major classes of promotive/protective factors against heavy drinking and related problems in emerging adults. The results of these analyses will be used to develop a novel prevention program to bolster promotive/protective influences in incoming college students. We are currently evaluating the efficacy of this new program for students enrolled in PSY 191 at Arizona State University.
Genetic Mechanisms of Change in Trajectories of Drinking and Other Deviant Behaviors (with Dr. Kim Fromme; NIAAA R01; September 2012 – June 2019). The goals of this project are to collect survey and DNA data from an existing longitudinal sample to test the genetic mechanisms underlying different trajectories of drinking and other behavioral risks. Specifically, we are testing generalized deviance and subjective response to alcohol as distinct mechanisms through which genetic factors operate.
ASU Support for Success Initiative for Students in Transition to College (ASSIST-C) (with Drs. Leah Doane, Thao Ha, and the Office of Educational Outreach and Student Services). In collaboration with ASU professional staff, the ASU research faculty formulated a strengths-based curriculum for youth and parents that was offered to a random subset of incoming 2015 ASU students and their families. The program included modules on goal setting, academic engagement, peer relationships, romantic relationships, health behaviors, and emotional health. Data collection is now complete and we are currently evaluating the outcomes of the program.
Trait and state ECF deficits under alcohol: Developmental paths to alcohol misuse (submitted to NIAAA for review; with Drs. Laurie Chassin and Madeline Meier). This project examines both state and trait executive cognitive functions (ECF) and acute tolerance alcohol effects as potential mechanisms through which a family history of alcoholism contributes to risk for alcohol-related problems. The project brings together a rich three-generation longitudinal study of family history, an alcohol challenge, and retinal imaging to address this important research question.
Anxiety and Subjective Response to Alcohol: Moderating Effects of Drinking Context and Mediation by Cortisol Response to Alcohol. This study aims to understand the nature of relations among anxiety symptoms, physiological response to alcohol (specifically, changes in salivary cortisol levels in response to alcohol) and subjective response to alcohol. Analyses will also address the extent to which drinking context impacts relations among these variables.
Multidimensional Assessment of Self-Control (MASC) measurement development. Several studies sought to create a new brief survey measure of top-down self-control that differentiates between self-control perceived capacity, internal motivation, and external motivation. The three subscales uniquely related to various self-reported behavioral outcomes and accounted for additional variance beyond that accounted for by a widely used measure of self-control (BSCS; Tangney, Baumeister, & Boone, 2004). Future studies are needed to establish the stability of multiple dimensions of self-control, their ability to prospectively predict health risk and protective behavior, and to develop state-like and domain-specific measures of self-control. Currently, we are conducting a laboratory-based study of this measure as it relates to executive cognitive function (ECF) and behavior.
Survey of Local Substance Use Treatment Centers. This study aims to create a database of local substance use treatment centers for the community. The goal is for this database to contain information about the types of treatments that are available so that those seeking treatment can easily access important information about available resources to facilitate their decision-making.
Development of a novel retrospective measure of early alcohol exposure. This project seeks to validate a comprehensive alcohol consumption measure that gathers detailed early drinking information. This measure has the potential to yield a variety of different alcohol consumption indices along with drinking trajectories across adolescence and young adulthood. Preliminary studies suggest this measure predicts concurrent and future alcohol-related problems over and above other common alcohol consumption measures.
Lab Director and Principal Investigator: William R. Corbin, PhD, Professor of Psychology
My research focuses on understanding factors that contribute to the development of alcohol and other substance use and related problems in adolescents and young adults. Using both survey and lab-based studies, my work is designed to provide new insights into the etiology of substance misuse. This work directly informs the development and evaluation of prevention and intervention approaches targeting substance-related problems. My lab-based work has led to new insights regarding the role of expectancies for and subjective responses to alcohol as risks factors for alcohol-related problems and my recent survey-based research has focused considerably on the role of drinking contexts (particularly solitary drinking) in alcohol-related outcomes. My recent prevention work is designed to reduce risk for heavy drinking and sexually aggressive behavior among college men using a combination of personalized normative feedback and cognitive training.
Current Graduate Students
Abigail McDonald
Abigail McDonald is a doctoral candidate in Clinical Psychology at Arizona State University working with Dr. Will Corbin in the BARCA Lab. Her research focuses on understanding risk factors for polysubstance use and related problems among young adults, with a particular emphasis on prescription stimulant adherence, misuse, and diversion among college students with ADHD. Broadly, her work examines how individual differences in affect regulation, cognitive processes, and contextual factors contribute to patterns of substance use, including the co-use of stimulants with alcohol and cannabis, and the development of comorbid internalizing symptoms. Abigail’s research uses intensive longitudinal methods, including ecological momentary assessment (EMA), to examine within-person fluctuations in stress, mood, and medication use in daily life. She applies advanced quantitative approaches such as multilevel modeling and dynamic structural equation modeling to better understand dynamic processes underlying substance use risk. In addition, she conducts research on treatment practices for opioid use disorder, including studies examining how medication dosing and take-home policies for medications for opioid use disorder influence treatment retention and substance use outcomes. Her work aims to inform prevention and intervention strategies targeting substance misuse across emerging adulthood and clinical treatment settings.
Cassandra Raymond
Cassandra (“Cassie”) Raymond is a Clinical Psychology Ph.D. student working with Dr. William Corbin. Her research primarily focuses on understanding the risk factors and regulatory processes that contribute to risky and impulsive decision-making, particularly in the context of substance use among adolescents and emerging adults. Her current projects examine the mechanisms linking affective states and socioeconomic status to alcohol use.
Ariel Grayson
Ariel Grayson is a Clinical Psychology Ph.D. student working with Dr. William Corbin in the BARCA Lab. Her research focuses on understanding how contextual, social, and individual factors influence alcohol and other substance use, with a particular emphasis on underrepresented populations. Her current work investigates the mechanisms linking solitary drinking to alcohol-related consequences, as well as how solitary drinking is conceptualized and measured in the existing literature.
Current Undergrad Research Assistants
Brooklyn Brizendine
Brooklyn is an undergraduate freshman majoring in biological sciences with aspirations to attend medical school. She is interested in neurobiology and examining the relationship between stress and alcohol use. In her free time, Brooklyn enjoys running, reading, and spending time with friends and family.
Naysa Cruz
Naysa is a junior at ASU pursuing Bachelor of Sciences in Psychology and Neuroscience, as well as certificates in 'homeland security' and 'law and human behavior'. She has been an undergraduate research assistant at the BARCA lab since Summer 2024, and plans to apply to PhD programs for Clinical Psychology in her senior year. Naysa's research interests include comorbid gambling addiction and AUD, as well as situational relapse risks when treating use disorders. Her free time usually consists of crochet, audio books, and keeping two cats off the vet's books.
Allison Kojo
Allison graduated in 2025 from Arizona State University with her Bachelors of Science in Psychology. During her experience as a research intern, she became interested in exploring the relationships between alcohol misuse, personality disorders, and criminal behavior. In addition to the BARCA lab, she also currently works in ASU’s Culture and Decision Science Network Lab. She hopes to gain her doctorate and become a licensed forensic psychologist.
Colette Kotha
Colette Kotha is a junior at ASU and is an undergraduate research assistant at the BARCA lab. She is pursuing a B.S. in Psychology with a minor in Criminology and Criminal Justice and plans to apply for a clinical PhD program to eventually do research in forensic psychology. Colette is also an undergraduate RA for the Arizona Twin Project, an undergraduate teaching assistant, and an intern for the Scottsdale Police Department. Her research interests include the prevalence of substance users in the incarcerated population, and the effect of substance use on violent offenders with severe mental illness.
Hailey Martin
Hailey Martin is a Sophomore at Barrett, The Honors college at ASU and is majoring in Forensic Psychology. She intends to pursue doctoral study in clinical psychology with a focus in forensic assessment. Hailey’s research interests lie in the public perception of the Not Guilty by Reason of Insanity plea, evidence-based treatment for sexual offenders and alcohol use and decision-making as it relates to issues of sexual consent. Hailey has volunteered on the Crisis Text Line as a crisis counselor and at the Utah State Hospital on the Forensic Unit. In her spare time Hailey enjoys golf, reading, thrifting and hanging out with friends.
Omer Osman
Omer is a Junior majoring in Neuroscience and minoring in Religious Studies. His research interests are the factors that contribute to substance abuse and innovative approaches to prevention and treatment. He plans to continue his education after graduation by pursuing a PhD. In his free time, Omer enjoys reading and listening to music.
Gabriela Pinkhasova Wray
Gabriela is a senior undergraduate honors student at ASU pursuing her B.S. in psychology and B.A in philosophy! She’s also working as a research assistant in Dr. Jack Waddell's lab, which works on cannabis-related substance use disorders. Her current thesis is looking at how the fluctuations of negative and positive affect interact with a person's urgency to predict momentary urgency that may be related to negative consequences of alcohol use, such as driving under the influence or engaging in risky sexual activities. Gabriela wishes to pursue a clinical psychology PhD with a specialization in forensic psychology to learn more about maladaptive decision-making and the intersection of law.
Paige Owen
Paige is an undergraduate student at Arizona State University pursuing a B.A. in Forensic Psychology. She joined the Behavioral Alcohol Research for Clinical Advancement (BARCA) Lab in 2024, where she assists with research on alcohol-related risk behaviors and prevention strategies among young adults. Her research interests include substance use, impulsivity, and the measurement of deviance in forensic populations. Outside the lab, Paige is part of ASU’s Next Generation Service Corps, leading community projects focused on anti-human trafficking and public health advocacy. She plans to pursue a Ph.D. in Forensic Psychology to further study deviant behavior and behavioral risk factors. In her free time, Paige enjoys creative design projects, volunteering, and watching classic horror films.
Gianna Roque
Gianna graduated from Arizona State University with a B.S. in Psychology in the Fall of 2024. She is currently taking a gap year to gather experience as a research assistant before pursuing a PhD in Clinical Psychology. She plans to further her research in the future and specialize in sex therapy. In her free time, Gianna loves spending time with friends and family, reading, and practicing yoga.
Solana Vazquez
Solana is a senior undergraduate pursuing a B.S. in Psychology through ASU’s accelerated master’s program and intends to pursue a Ph.D. in psychology/behavioral neuroscience. Her research interests include substance use disorders—particularly involving opioids and stimulants—impulsivity, and psychological disorders, with a focus on risk factors that differentiate vulnerability from resilience in the development and maintenance of such disorders and behaviors. She has conducted behavioral and neuroscience research in rodents, including work in the Basic Behavioral Processes Lab at ASU and research at the University of Toronto examining the neurobiology of drug reinforcement and memory consolidation. She joined the BARCA Lab to complement this experience and gain insight into behavioral and environmental contributors to substance use and impulsivity.
Lab Alums — Where are they now?
Former Doctoral Students:
Kyle Menary, PhD, Consultant, Boston Consulting Group
Stephen Boyd, PhD, Assistant Professor, Oregon Health Sciences University
Jessica M. Cronce, PhD, Assistant Professor, University of Oregon
Meghan Morean, PhD, Assistant Professor, Oberlin College
Ashley Gearhardt, PhD, Assistant Professor, University of Michigan
Caitlin Scott Gallegos, PhD, Clinical Psychologist, New Mexico VA Healthcare System
Sarah Okey, PhD, Research Psychologist, Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board
Jack Waddell, PhD, Assistant Professor, Arizona State University
Scott King, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow, University of Washington
Former Post-doctoral Fellows:
Ellen Vaughan, PhD, Associate Professor, Indiana University
Derek Iwamoto, PhD, Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology, University of Maryland
Select Publications
Below are a sample of recent publications from Dr. Corbin's research and lab. A more complete listing may be found in Dr. Corbin's curriculum vitae. Student co-authors appear with an asterisk*.
In press
Boyd, S. B., & Corbin, W.R. (In press). Faster alcohol metabolism is associated with increased stimulation and within session consumption. Experimental and Clinical Psychopharmacology.
2016
*Menary, K.R., Corbin, W.R., & Chassin, L. (2017). Associations between early internalizing symptoms and speed of transition through stages of alcohol involvement. Development and Psychopathology, 29, 1455-1467.
Boyd, S. J., Corbin, W. R., Morean, M. E., & Martin, C. S. (2017). Alcohol stimulation and sedation: A critical review of the biphasic alcohol effects scale. Current Addiction Reports, 4, 209-220.
Corbin, W. R. & Cronce, J. M. (2017). Effects of alcohol, initial gambling outcomes, impulsivity, and gambling cognitions on gambling behavior using a video poker task. Experimental and Clinical Psychopharmacology, 25, 175-185.
Corbin, W.R., Scott, C.J., & Treat, T.A. (2016). Sociosexual attitudes, sociosexual behaviors, and alcohol use. Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, 77, 629-637.
*Gates, J.R., Corbin, W.R., & Fromme, K. (2016). Emerging adult identity development, alcohol use, and alcohol-related problems during the transition out of college. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 30, 345-355.
2015
Carlson, M., Harden, K.P., Kretsch, N., Corbin, W.R., & Fromme, K. (2015). Interactions between DRD4 and developmentally specific environments in alcohol dependence symptoms: Attempt to replicate Park et al. (2011). Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 124, 1043-1049.
Corbin, W.R., Papova, A., Morean, M.E., O’Malley, S.S., Krishnan-Sarin, S., Abi-Dargham, A., Anticevic, A., Pearlson, G., Petrakis, I., Pittman, B.P., & Krystal, J.H. (2015). Integrating Acquired Preparedness and Dual Process models of risk for heavy drinking and related problems. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 29, 864-874.
Corbin, W.R., Scott, C.S., Boyd, S.J., Menary, K.R., & Ender, C.K. (2015). Contextual influences on subjective and behavioral response to alcohol. Experimental and Clinical Psychopharmacology, 23, 59-70.
*Hartman, J.D., Patcok-Peckham, J.A., Corbin, W.R., Gates, J.R., Leeman, R.F., Luk, J.W., & King, K.M. (2015). Direct and indirect links between parenting styles, self-concealment (secrets), impaired control over drinking and alcohol-related outcomes. Addictive Behaviors, 40, 102-108.
*Menary, K.R., Corbin, W.R., Leeman, R.F., Fucito, L.M., Toll, B.A., DeMartini, K., & O’Malley, S.S. (2015). Interactive and indirect effects of anxiety and negative urgency on alcohol-related problems. Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research, 39, 1267-1274.
O’Malley, S.S., Corbin, W.R., Leeman, R.F., DeMartini, K.S., Fucito, L.M., Ikomi, J., Romano, D.M., Wu, R., Toll, B.A., Sher, K.J., Gueorguieva, R., & Kranzler, H.R. (2015). Reduction in alcohol drinking in young adults by naltrexone: A double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized clinical trial of efficacy and safety. Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, 76, e207-e213.
2014
*Boyd, S.J., Corbin, W.R., & Fromme, K. (2014). Parental and peer influences on alcohol use during the transition out of college. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 28, 960-968.
Corbin, W.R., Zalewski, S., Leeman, R.F., Toll, B.A., Fucito, L.M., & O’Malley, S.S. (2014). In with the old and out with the new? A comparison of the old and new binge drinking standards. Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research, 38, 2657-2663.
Iwamoto, D.K., Corbin, W.R., Takamatsu, S., & Castellanos, J. (2014). College men and alcohol use: Positive alcohol expectancies as a mediator between distinct masculine norms and alcohol use. Psychology of Men & Masculinity, 15, 29-39.
*Scott, C.S., & Corbin, W.R. (2014). Influence of sensation seeking on response to alcohol versus placebo: Implications for the Acquired Preparedness Model. Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, 75, 136-144.
2013
*Morean, M.E., Corbin, W.R., & Treat, T.A. (2013). The Subjective Effects of Alcohol Scale: Development and psychometric evaluation of a novel assessment tool for measuring subjective response to alcohol. Psychological Assessment, 25, 780-795.
News & more!
The BARCA lab presented a symposium titled “Innovative Scientific Approaches for Identifying Novel Targets of Prevention of Alcohol-Related Sexual Aggression” at the 41st Annual Research Society on Alcoholism Scientific Meeting in June 2018 (abstract).
Jessica Hartman defended her Master’s project titled “The Comprehensive Early Drinking History Form: A Novel Measure of Early Alcohol Exposure” in August 2017. This project focused on the development of a retrospective measure, geared towards adolescents and young adults, that gathers detailed early drinking information. She received her M.A. in December 2017 and this manuscript is in submission for publication. Currently Jessica is working on preparing her Comprehensive Exams which she will be defending in Fall 2018.
Anna Papova passed her comprehensive exams in October 2017 and is currently setting up her dissertation study titled “Experimental Manipulation of Motivation and Self-Efficacy for Self-Control.” This study will examine a multidimensional self-control survey measure as it compares to laboratory executive cognitive function tasks and consumptive behavior.
In collaboration with Drs. Tom Dishion, Leah Doane, Thao Ha and the Office of Educational Outreach and Student Services, we recently launched a new parent-based prevention program, ASSIST-C, to facilitate successful transitions into college for new freshmen.
Dr. Corbin was appointed as a standing member of the Addictions Risk and Mechanisms Study Section of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
The BARCA lab presented a symposium titled “Positive and Negative Urgency Predict Craving and Subjective Response in a Placebo-Controlled Alcohol Challenge” at the 39th Annual Research Society on Alcoholism Scientific Meeting in June 2016 (abstract).
Kyle Menary submitted a proposal to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) as a National Research Service Award (NRSA). The application was successfully funded, and the project will run through September of 2018. The study aims to understand the nature of relations among anxiety symptoms, physiological response to alcohol (specifically, changes in salivary cortisol levels in response to alcohol) and subjective response to alcohol.
Dr. Corbin was promoted to Professor and appointed to the Board of Directors of both the Research Society on Alcoholism and the Council of University Directors of Clinical Psychology.
Several research assistants in the BARCA lab have been accepted into graduate programs in the past few years including Kailey Richner, Jessica Canning, and Angela Harrid.