The effects of alcohol expectancies on drinking behaviour in peer groups: observations in a naturalistic setting

Effects of alcohol portrayals in movies on actual alcohol consumption: an observational experimental study

AIMS

This study uses an experimental design to assess the effects of movie alcohol portrayal on alcohol consumption of young adults while watching a movie. Gender, weekly alcohol use and identification with the movie actor/character were assessed as moderators.

DESIGN

A two (sex) × two (movie: alcohol or no portrayal of alcohol) between-subject design was used.

SETTING

Participants watched a contemporary movie in a semi-naturalistic living room setting.

PARTICIPANTS

A total of 122 same-sex, young adult dyads (ages 18-29 years) participated in the experiment.

MEASUREMENTS

Their actual alcohol consumption while watching was examined. A multivariate regression analysis was used to examine the effects of the movie condition on alcohol consumption.

FINDINGS

Assignment to movie alcohol increased alcohol consumption during the movie for men but not women. Identification and weekly alcohol consumption did not moderate the relation between movie condition and alcohol consumption.

CONCLUSIONS

Viewing a movie with alcohol portrayal can lead to higher alcohol consumption in young men while watching the movie.

A variable-number-of-tandem-repeats polymorphism in the dopamine D4 receptor gene affects social adaptation of alcohol use: investigation of a gene-environment interaction

Research suggests that people adapt their own drinking behavior to that of other people. According to a genetic-differences approach, some individuals may be more inclined than others to adapt their alcohol consumption level to that of other people. Using a 3 (drinking condition) x 2 (genotype) experimental design (N = 113), we tested whether susceptibility to alcohol-related cues (i.e., seeing someone drink) was related to the variable number of tandem repeats in exon 3 of the D4 dopamine receptor gene. A strong gene-environment interaction showed that participants carrying at least one copy of the 7-repeat allele consumed substantially more alcohol in the presence of a heavy-drinking individual than did participants without this allele. This study highlights that individual variability in sensitivity to other people's drinking behavior may be attributable to genetic differences. Carrying the 7-repeat allele may increase the risk for heavy alcohol use or abuse in the company of heavy-drinking peers.

Interaction between dopamine D2 receptor genotype and parental rule-setting in adolescent alcohol use: evidence for a gene-parenting interaction

Association studies investigating the link between the dopamine D2 receptor gene (DRD2) and alcohol (mis)use have shown inconsistent results. This may be due to lack of attention for environmental factors. High levels of parental rule-setting are associated with lower levels of adolescent alcohol use and delay of initiation of drinking. We tested whether DRD2 TaqI A (rs1800497) genotype interacts with alcohol-specific parenting practices in predicting the uptake of regular adolescent alcohol use. Non-regular drinkers were selected from a Dutch, nationwide sample of 428 adolescents (mean age 13.4 years at baseline) and participated in a prospective, community-based study with three annual waves. Parental rule-setting was directly and inversely related to adolescent alcohol use over time. For DRD2 genotype no significant main effect was found. DRD2 genotype interacted with parental rule-setting on adolescent alcohol use over time: adolescents, with parents highly permissive toward alcohol consumption and carrying a genotype with the DRD2 A1 (rs1800497T) allele, used significantly more alcohol over time than adolescents without these characteristics. The DRD2 genotype may pose an increased risk for alcohol use and abuse, depending on the presence of environmental risk factors, such as alcohol-specific parenting.

Ethanol consumption: how should we measure it? Achieving consilience between human and animal phenotypes

There is only modest overlap in the most common alcohol consumption phenotypes measured in animal studies and those typically studied in humans. To address this issue, we identified a number of alcohol consumption phenotypes of importance to the field that have potential for consilience between human and animal models. These phenotypes can be broken down into three categories: (1) abstinence/the decision to drink or abstain; (2) the actual amount of alcohol consumed; and (3) heavy drinking. A number of suggestions for human and animal researchers are made in order to address these phenotypes and enhance consilience. Laboratory studies of the decision to drink or to abstain are needed in both human and animal research. In human laboratory studies, heavy or binge drinking that meets cut-offs used in epidemiological and clinical studies should be reported. Greater attention to patterns of drinking over time is needed in both animal and human studies. Individual differences pertaining to all consumption phenotypes should be addressed in animal research. Lastly, improved biomarkers need to be developed in future research for use with both humans and animals. Greater precision in estimating blood alcohol levels in the field, together with consistent measurement of breath/blood alcohol levels in human laboratory and animal studies, provides one means of achieving greater consilience of alcohol consumption phenotypes.

Peer influence in a micro-perspective: imitation of alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages

Ample experimental research has found evidence for imitation of alcohol consumption in social encounters. However, these studies cannot reveal whether imitation is specifically related to alcohol and not to consumption in general. We investigated whether imitation is more evident when peers drink alcohol compared to other beverages. We observed sipping behavior during a 30-minute interaction between same-sex confederates and participants in an ad lib semi-naturalistic drinking context (bar lab). We expected a stronger imitation effect when both participant and confederate drank alcoholic beverages. A random occasion multilevel analysis was conducted to take repeated measurements into account. Findings showed that participants imitated the sips of the confederates, but that the likelihood of participants imitating a sip was lower when confederates were drinking alcoholic beverages and participants non-alcoholic beverages compared to when both were consuming alcohol.

Exposure to movie smoking, antismoking ads and smoking intensity: an experimental study with a factorial design

BACKGROUND

This study examines whether smoking portrayal in movies or antismoking advertisements affect smoking intensity among young adults.

METHODS

We conducted an experimental study in which 84 smokers were randomly assigned using a two (no-smoking versus smoking portrayal in the movie) by three (two prosocial ads, two antismoking ads or one of each) factorial design. Participants viewed a 60-minute movie with two commercial breaks and afterwards completed a questionnaire. Smoking during the session was allowed and observed.

RESULTS

Exposure to the movie with smoking had no effect on smoking intensity. Those who viewed two antismoking ads had significantly lower smoking intensity compared with those who viewed two prosocial ads. There was no interaction between movie smoking and antismoking ads. Baseline CO (carbon monoxide) level had the largest effect on smoking intensity.

CONCLUSION

These findings provide further evidence to support antismoking ads placed with movies because of their possible effect on young adult smoking behaviour. However, caution is warranted, because nicotine dependence appears to be the primary predictor of smoking intensity among young adult smokers in this study.

Social anxiety and alcohol consumption: the role of alcohol expectancies and reward sensitivity

Although the relationship between social anxiety and alcohol consumption has been the subject of extensive exploration, previous studies have failed to draw consistent conclusions about the nature of this relationship. Gray [Gray, J.A. (1970). The psychophysiological basis of introversion-extraversion. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 8, 249-266] suggested that individuals who are sensitive to reward are likely to place themselves in potentially rewarding environments (e.g. pubs and clubs). As such these individuals will have a greater chance to experience and vicariously observe the effects of alcohol in these environments, leading to the formation and modification of alcohol expectancies. Consequently, reinforcement sensitivity theory and alcohol expectancies are inherently related, yet have remained disparate areas of research. In this study, a total of 454 young adults responded to a questionnaire assessing social anxiety, alcohol consumption, reward sensitivity and alcohol expectancies. Regression analyses revealed a positive relationship between reward sensitivity, expectations of tension reduction and increased confidence, and alcohol consumption. Expectations of tension reduction were observed to moderate the relationship between social anxiety and alcohol consumption. In addition, three-way relationships between reward sensitivity, alcohol expectancies and social anxiety were observed to predict alcohol consumption. Overall, these results suggest that both reward sensitivity and alcohol expectancies play a role in the relationship between social anxiety and alcohol consumption, and that inclusion of these constructs in further research may aid in further clarifying the mechanisms underlying comorbid social anxiety and alcohol abuse.

Why My Classmates Drink

A structural equation model was estimated based on a Swiss national sample of 5649 12- to 18-year-olds to test whether individual drinking motives mediate the link between classmates' motives and individual alcohol use. Results showed that the social, enhancement, coping and conformity motives of individual students are associated with the corresponding motive dimension of other students in the class. No direct effect of the four classmates' motives on individual drinking, but an indirect effect via individual motives was observed. It appears that drinking motives within the adolescent social environment exert their influence on drinking by way of shaping individual motives.

Meeting Your Match: How Attractiveness Similarity Affects Approach Behavior in Mixed-Sex Dyads

This experimental study investigated approach behavior toward opposite-sex others of similar versus dissimilar physical attractiveness. Furthermore, it tested the moderating effects of sex. Single participants interacted with confederates of high and low attractiveness. Observers rated their behavior in terms of relational investment (i.e., behavioral efforts related to the improvement of interaction fluency, communication of positive interpersonal affect, and positive self-presentation). As expected, men displayed more relational investment behavior if their own physical attractiveness was similar to that of the confederate. For women, no effects of attractiveness similarity on relational investment behavior were found. Results are discussed in the light of positive assortative mating, preferences for physically attractive mates, and sex differences in attraction-related interpersonal behaviors.

An experimental study on imitation of alcohol consumption in same-sex dyads

AIM

In order to study the role of imitation in relation to drinking, alcohol consumption among two peers was examined with experiments in a naturalistic drinking setting.

METHOD

In a bar lab, 135 young adults (52% women) were exposed to either a non-drinking, a light-drinking or a heavy-drinking same-sex model (i.e. a confederate) in a 30-min time-out session. Instead of using a taste task (Quigley and Collins, 1999. The modeling of alcohol consumption: a meta-analytic review. J Stud Alcohol 60:90-8) in which participants were obliged to consume alcohol, in the current study, a design was used in which participants were allowed to drink alcohol but could also choose non-alcoholic beverages.

RESULTS

Craving for alcohol was included as a covariate in ANCOVAs. Results showed that the participants consumed substantially more alcohol when exposed to heavy-drinking models compared to light- and non-drinking models. Craving levels were positively related to alcohol consumption during the experiment.

CONCLUSION

Both men and women imitated same-sex peers' drinking behavior in an ad lib naturalistic bar setting.

Sex differences in short-term mate preferences and behavioral mimicry: a semi-naturalistic experiment

Studies on short-term mating (STM) yield sex differences regarding preferences for attractiveness (important to women, very important to men) and social status (very important to women, not to men) in potential mates. Additionally, men generally report a greater desire to engage in STM than women. So far, this evidence is primarily based on studies using vignettes or surveys. The current study extended the findings on sex differences in STM by examining actual behavior and STM-desires towards real people of the opposite sex. It investigated whether (1) sex differences exist in STM-desire, (2) whether this desire was affected by a confederate's attractiveness and status, and (3) if these sex differences were also reflected in interpersonal behavior (mimicry). In a pub-like laboratory, single heterosexual participants performed a task alongside a confederate of the opposite sex, who differed in attractiveness and social status. Mimicry was observed and explicit STM-desire was assessed. Results showed that men only desired STM more than women in the case of an attractive partner. Women's STM-desire did not vary as a function of status or attractiveness of the potential partner. Men's, but not women's, mimicry paralleled these differential STM-desires. These results underline the conditionality of sex differences in STM-desire and provide a useful paradigm to further investigate STM.

Drug use expectancies among nonabstinent community cocaine users

Previous research has shown that one's expectations about the effects of using a particular substance (i.e., substance use expectancies) are associated with the quantity and frequency of actual use. An extensive literature supports the importance of expectancies in predicting alcohol use, but less is known about the association between expectancies and use of other substances. The purpose of the present investigation was to examine the association between cocaine expectancies and frequency of use in a heterogeneous community sample of drug users. Participants were 157 self-identified primary cocaine users recruited from the community as part of a hepatitis prevention study. Participants completed a structured interview that assessed demographic variables, current and past drug use, and drug expectancies. Results from multivariate logistic regression analyses indicated that frequency of cocaine use was positively associated with higher expectation that drug use would increase social and physical pleasure (OR=1.67, p<0.05) and inversely associated with higher expectation that drug use would increase cognitive and physical impairment (OR=0.59, p<0.01). These findings suggest that drug use expectancies are an important correlate of cocaine use behavior in nontreatment-seeking community users.

Single-session expectancy challenge with young heavy drinkers on holiday

Expectancy challenges (ECs) were used to change alcohol expectancies and alcohol consumption in young heavy drinking men (age 16-24) on holiday. The intervention took place in community centers and bars. Alcohol expectancies and consumption were assessed with paper and pencil measures prior to the intervention (N=301) and 2 days afterwards (EC: n=178; controls: n=86). Six weeks after the EC, participants were interviewed by telephone (EC: n=163; controls: n=71). The intervention resulted in an increase in sedation expectancies in the EC group. Furthermore, the EC led to a differential reduction in alcohol consumption on a night out at the six-week posttest in the heaviest drinkers only. The reduction in alcohol consumption on a night out was not mediated by the change in sedation expectancies. These findings suggest that further research on the mechanisms of change is necessary before a single-session EC may be used in a real-life prevention setting.

Children's disruptiveness, peer rejection, friends' deviancy, and delinquent behaviors: a process-oriented approach

This study examined whether peer rejection and affiliation with deviant friends throughout childhood could mediate the link between early disruptiveness and two aspects of delinquent behaviors (i.e., violence and substance use) in a sample of 375 children. Furthermore, we tested whether the two putative mediators operated in a sequential manner or in a parallel manner. Participants' disruptiveness, peer rejection, and friends' deviancy were assessed throughout childhood (ages 7 to 13). Delinquency-related outcomes were assessed at ages 14 and 15 years. Results indicate that the sequential mediational model was supported when delinquency-related violence was the outcome, but not when substance use was the outcome. The discussion stresses the differential role of peer rejection and affiliation with deviant friends in regard to the two outcomes considered in this study and in regard to the time frame when they were measured.

Sociometric Status and Social Drinking: Observations of Modelling and Persuasion in Young Adult Peer Groups

Because young adult drinking occurs primarily in peer groups, this should be taken into account when studying influences on drinking behaviour. This paper aimed to assess influences on drinking by observing existing peer groups in a naturalistic setting. We first analysed the basic levels at which two types of influence take place. The first, modelling (imitating others' drinking), was found to significantly influence individual drinking, whereas for the second one, persuasion (drinking resulting from others offering drinks), no predictions were found. Subsequently, we examined whether peer group members' sociometric status in the group affected the amount of influence and persuasion exerted and received. No indications were found that sociometric status had an impact on influence in alcohol consumption within a drinking situation. Features and weaknesses of the study are discussed.

Best friends and alcohol consumption in adolescence: a within-family analysis

Although friends and siblings are considered to be important role models in adolescents' peer contexts, these peer influences on adolescent alcohol consumption over time are seldom examined simultaneously in a within-family design. The present study examined the relative impact of alcohol use of the best friend, adolescent sibling and sibling's best friend on the development of alcohol consumption during adolescence. Data reported in this study are part of an ongoing longitudinal questionnaire study among families with two adolescent siblings (N=416). Results from structural equation modeling showed a strong similarity in drinking between best friends and adolescents cross-sectionally. Over time, however, only marginal effects of friends alcohol use on drinking of the youngest sibling, and no effects for the oldest sibling were found. Robust evidence was found for peer-selection processes. In addition, we found a moderate to high relative similarity in drinking within sibling pairs, but no longitudinal effect of sibling's drinking. We also found no support for a possible additional influence of sibling's best friend's drinking on adolescent drinking. Therefore, we tested several potential moderating variables on peer influences, but found no effects of a set of relationship characteristics or individual characteristics on the links between peer and adolescent drinking over time.

Pastime in a pub: observations of young adults' activities and alcohol consumption

Alcohol consumption typically takes place in a time-out situation, which can be spent by engaging in several leisure time activities. Usually, conversation is the dominant pastime in a bar, but this may take place during other activities, like watching TV or playing games. These activities may inhibit drinking because of the physical difficulties of drinking and being active at the same time. Findings of an observational study on drinking in young adults (N=238) in a bar lab will be discussed. In the present study, we followed the ad-lib drinking of peer groups (7-9 persons) during 1-h periods. The results suggest that (1) selection of activities is not related to initial drinking level or personality characteristics; (2) active pastime is related to slower drinking than passive pastime (in males); (3) male problem drinkers appear to compensate for the "lost" amount of drinking after an active phase; and (4) involvement in active pastime is not related to total alcohol consumption. Implications of these findings are discussed.

Automatic and controlled processes and the development of addictive behaviors in adolescents: a review and a model

This paper presents a review and a model of the development of addictive behaviors in (human) adolescents, with a focus on alcohol. The model proposes that addictive behaviors develop as the result of an imbalance between two systems: an appetitive, approach-oriented system that becomes sensitized with repeated alcohol use and a regulatory executive system that is not fully developed and that is compromised by exposure to alcohol. Self-regulation critically depends on two factors: ability and motivation to regulate the appetitive response tendency. The motivational aspect is often still weak in heavy drinking adolescents, who typically do not recognize their drinking as problematic. Motivation to regulate use often develops only years later, after the individual has encountered serious alcohol-related problems. Unfortunately, at that point behavioral change becomes harder due to several neurocognitive adaptations that result from heavy drinking. As we document, there is preliminary support for the central elements of the model (appetitive motivation vs. self-regulation), but there is a paucity of research directly addressing these mechanisms in human adolescents. Further, we emphasize that adolescent alcohol use primarily takes place in a social context, and that therefore studies should not solely focus on intra-individual factors predicting substance use and misuse but also on interpersonal social factors. Finally, we discuss implications of the model for interventions.

Young men's ambivalence toward alcohol

There is widespread concern about the health and social consequences of excessive alcohol consumption among young men. Interventions to reduce alcohol-related harm will be affected by ambivalence toward alcohol, because ambivalent attitudes are worse predictors of behaviour than are homogeneous attitudes. It is therefore important to identify aspects of alcohol consumption about which young men are not ambivalent. In-depth interviews were conducted with a socioeconomically diverse sample of 31 men, aged 18-21 living in London, UK. Ambivalence toward alcohol was widespread. None of the drinkers who were interviewed had uncomplicated positive evaluations of drinking: all mentioned compelling reasons not to drink. Most motives for drinking were also identified as reasons for not drinking if consumption became excessive. However, three motives for not drinking were not also motives for drinking: violence, alcoholism, and cost. These findings should be considered during the design of interventions to reduce the health and social consequences of excessive alcohol consumption amongst young men.

Pathways to alcohol use among Dutch students in regular education and education for adolescents with behavioral problems: the role of parental alcohol use, general parenting practices, and alcohol-specific parenting practices

The present study explored the role of parents' alcohol use, general parenting practices (support and behavioral control), and alcohol-specific parenting practices (alcohol-specific rule enforcement and alcohol availability at home) on adolescent alcohol use. Structural equation analyses were performed on cross-sectional data from adolescents who received special education because of behavioral problems (n=411) and from adolescents who received regular education (n=428). The main findings show that alcohol-specific parenting practices appear to be highly important in regulating adolescent alcohol use. Parental alcohol use was related to alcohol-specific rule enforcement and alcohol availability at home. Behavioral control was also related to alcohol-specific rule enforcement. Furthermore, the relationships between parental alcohol use, parenting practices, and adolescent alcohol use did not appear to differ substantially for students in special and regular education.