The purpose of the thesis is twofold (a) to review the relationship between alcohol use and emotion regulation, and (b) to develop and evaluate a newly designed questionnaire calIed the Brief Aspirations and Concerns in Life Inventory (BACLI) for measuring the structure of an individuals motivation for obtaining their life goals. First, this thesis presents a review of alcohol's roles in regulating emotions. This review paper proposes an integration of Cox and Klinger's (1988, 1990,2004) motivational model of alcohol use and Gross and Thompson's (2007) model of emotion regulation strategies. It aims to further the understanding of alcohol's role in regulating emotions. Tentative conclusions are made that alcohol can be used to enhance some emotion regulation strategies, albeit in many cases maladaptively. The empirical paper compares the outcomes and relationships between the BACLI questionnaire and a well-established and comprehensive Personal Concerns Inventory (PCI; Cox & Klinger, 2000). It also examines the relationship between other motivational and emotional variables and alcohol use and problems. The BACLI provided a good alternative to the PCI. In line with previous research, motivational variables were predictive of alcohol use and problems. Difficulties with emotion regulation also predicted greater drinking problems. Finally, these papers are discussed in terms of their implications for clinical psychology.