Maria Testa, PhD

My research examines the short-term effects of partner substance use on relationship functioning and intimate partner violence among community couples. These studies show that episodes of drinking and marijuana use increase the likelihood of an aggressive episode within the next few hours (e.g., Testa & Derrick, 2014).  However, shared substance use can also have a positive impact on the relationship, increasing experiences of intimacy (Testa et al., 2019).  I have also researched the role of alcohol use in college sexual assault, with survey and daily process studies among college women and men (Testa et al., 2015; Testa & Cleveland, 2017). Recently I conducted a personalized normative feedback intervention around drinking and hookups as a way of reducing sexual victimization among college freshman women.