Impact of Labeled Glasses in a Bar Laboratory Setting: No Effect on Ad Libitum Alcohol Consumption

The impact of alcohol priming on craving and motivation to drink: a meta-analysis

BACKGROUND AND AIMS

An initial dose of alcohol can motivate-or prime-further drinking and may precipitate (re)lapse and bingeing. Lab-based studies have investigated the alcohol priming effect; however, heterogeneity in designs has resulted in some inconsistent findings. The aims of this meta-analysis were to (i) determine the pooled effect size for motivation to drink following priming, measured by alcohol consumption and craving, and (ii) examine whether design characteristics influenced any priming effect.

METHODS

Literature searches of PsycINFO, PubMed and Scopus in October 2020 (updated October 2021) identified lab-based alcohol priming studies that assessed effect of priming on motivation to drink. A tailored risk-of-bias tool assessed quality of lab-based studies. Random effects meta-analyses were computed on outcome data from 38 studies comparing the effect of a priming dose of alcohol against control on subsequent alcohol consumption/self-reported craving. Study characteristics that might have affected outcomes were design type (within/between-participant), dose of prime, time of motivation assessment, type of control drink (placebo alcohol/soft drink).

RESULTS

Relative to control, alcohol had a small-to-moderate priming effect on subsequent alcohol consumption (standardised mean difference [SMD] = 0.336 [95% CI, 0.171, 0.500]) and craving (SMD = 0.431 [95% CI, 0.306, 0.555]). Aspects of study design differentially affected consumption and craving. The size of the priming dose had no effect on consumption, but larger doses were sometimes associated with greater craving (with craving generally following the blood alcohol curve). Alcohol priming effects for consumption, but not craving, were smaller when compared with placebo, relative to soft drink, control.

CONCLUSIONS

Lab-based alcohol priming studies are a valid paradigm from which to investigate the impact of acute intoxication on alcohol motivation. Designs are needed that assess the impact of acute consumption on motivation to drink in more varied and realistic ways.

Alcohol Health Warning Labels: A Rapid Review with Action Recommendations

A rapid review of research on health warning labels located on alcohol containers (AWLs) was conducted. Using five search engines (Embase, Medline, Pubmed, Scopus, Psyinfo), 2975 non-duplicate citations were identified between the inception date of the search engine and April 2021. Of those, 382 articles were examined and retrieved. We selected 122 research papers for analysis and narrative information extraction, focusing on population foci, study design, and main outcomes. Research included public opinion studies, surveys of post-AWL implementation, on-line and in-person experiments and real-world quasi-experiments. Many studies focused on the effects of the 1989 United States Alcoholic Beverage Labeling Act on perceptions, intentions and behavior. Others focused on Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom, England or Scotland, Italy and France. There was substantial variation in the design of the studies, ranging from small-scale focus groups to on-line surveys with large samples. Over time, evidence has been emerging on label design components, such as large size, combination of text and image, and specific health messaging, that is likely to have some desired impact on knowledge, awareness of risk and even the drinking behavior of those who see the AWLs. This body of evidence provides guidance to policy-makers, and national and regional authorities, and recommendations are offered for discussion and consideration.

Reinstating Over-Pouring Behavior: Importance of the Imagined Drinking Context

College students significantly over-pour more than a standard drink in a free-pour simulated alcohol-pouring task. Due to this effect, it is likely that much of the self-report alcohol consumption data incorrectly or underreport actual alcohol consumption. Objective: We sought to determine factors that influence over-pouring. Specifically, in two studies we sought to determine the effect of different factors on the amount of fluid subjects pour in a simulated alcohol-pouring task. Methods: Data were collected from 217 undergraduate students (105 subjects in study 1 and 112 different subjects in study 2). In study one, subjects were asked to pour what they consider to be a standard beer for themselves and an unfamiliar peer. In study two subjects were instructed to pour a beer for themself and the experimenter as if they were at an off-campus party. Results: In study one, we found that size of the cup used to pour into significantly impacted the amount of fluid poured. In addition, subjects poured significantly less for themselves than the unfamiliar peer. In study two, the imagined context in which subjects poured significantly increased the amount of fluid poured demonstrating the importance of imagined contextual cues on alcohol use behavior. Conclusions/Importance: Imagined drinking context, presence of an unfamiliar peer, and cup size affect the amount of fluid poured in a simulated alcohol free pour task. Given the various factors that impact free pouring in college students, self-report alcohol data should be considered with caution.