ORIGINAL ARTICLE Dysmorphic Appearance Concern and Hazardous Alcohol Use in University Students: The Mediating Role of Alcohol Expectancies Mitchell Cunningham, 1 * Lexine Stapinski, 2 Scott Griffiths 3 , and Andrew Baillie 1 1 Department of Human Sciences (Psychology), Macquarie University, 2 National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre (NDRAC), The University of New South Wales, and 3 Department of Psychology, The University of Sydney Objective: A paucity of research has examined the link between body image concerns and alcohol use in university students. Individuals with elevated body image concerns may use alcohol due to the endorsement of expectancies that alcohol will reduce discomfort deriving from appearance concerns. Therefore, the aim of this study was to examine the how the link between body image concerns (i.e., dysmorphic appearance concerns) and hazardous alcohol use may be accounted for by alcohol-related expectancies. Method: Participants were 138 undergraduates (74% male) who completed an online survey that gauged dysmorphic appearance concern, alcohol use, and alcohol-related expectancies. Results: Results not only showed a link between dysmorphic appearance concern and hazardous alcohol use, but that the link between the constructs was partially mediated by positive alcohol expectancies. Moreover, individuals with elevated dysmorphic appearance concern appeared to use alcohol for their perceived sexual facilitation benefits and providing “liquid courage.” Conclusions: Therapies aimed at reducing hazardous alcohol use may benefit from targeting positive alcohol expectancies in young adults with elevated dysmorphic appearance concern. Key words: alcohol expectancies; alcohol use; body image; dysmorphic appearance concern. What is already known on this topic 1 University populations are high-risk alcohol users and display high rates of body dissatisfaction and appearance concern. 2 However, a paucity of research has been under- taken to explore the relationship between body image issues and hazardous drinking behaviours. The research that has been undertaken in this area has primarily focused on women. 3 Alcohol related expectancies are closely linked to hazardous alcohol use, particularly positive alcohol expectancies, in university students. What this paper adds 1 The findings of this study are novel in not only high- lighting a link between body image issues and haz- ardous alcohol use in university students, but also in delineating the importance of alcohol-related expectancies, particularly positive expectancies, in linking the two constructs. 2 While the current study builds upon the preliminary research linking indices of body image and hazard- ous alcohol use, the findings also have a number of potential clinical implications. Specifically, positive alcohol expectancies, such as sexual facilitation, may be an important and valuable target for the treatment and prevention of hazardous alcohol use believed to be associated with body image patholo- gies in university students. 3 This research represents an innovative line of inves- tigation by increasing our understanding about the profile of young people most vulnerable to high-risk drinking. University students, both in Australia and internationally, consume hazardous amounts of alcohol (Kypri, Cronin, & Wright, 2005; Kypri et al., 2009; Rickwood, George, Parker, & Mikhailovich, Correspondence: Mitchell Cunningham, The Australian Road Research Board, ARRB Group Ltd., 2-14 Mountain St., Ultimo, NSW 2007, Australia. Email: mitchell.cunningham@students.mq.edu.au Accepted for publication 30 January 2017 doi:10.1111/ap.12275 Australian Psychologist (2017) © 2017 The Australian Psychological Society 1