Effects of Anxiety Arousal on the Consumption of Alcohol by Alcoholics and Social Drinkers

8/11/2019 Effects of Anxiety Arousal on the Consumption of Alcohol by Alcoholics and Social Drinkers

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2/8

A N X I E T Y

A R O U S A L

A N D C O N S U M P T IO N O F

A I C O H O L

4 7

Not all

investigations have supported

th e

escape learning model .

Th e

results f rom sev-

eral recent studies suggest that the initial

consumpt ion

of alcohol m ay serve toincrease,

rather than to decrease,

states

of arousal.

Tentative support fo r this effect is repor ted

by Mendelson, LaDou, and Solomon ( 1 9 6 4 ) ,

w ho found

that

alcoholics displayed an in-

crease in pulse rate and repor ted feelings of

anxiety

in the

initial

stages of

alcohol con-

sumption

in a

controlled drinking si tuation.

In the case of nonalcoholics, Williams (1966)

reported that

in a

social drinking si tuation,

alcohol consumption

of

approximately

six

ounces of whiskey reduced anxiety as re-

ported on an adjective checklist , but with

increased consumption beyond this amount,

anxiety tended to increase.

The

studies reviewed above deal with

th e

investigation

of the

relat ionship between

self-

repor ted or

observed states

of

arousal

and

alcohol consumption. One mayalso

assess

the

relationship between relatively stable per-

sonality traits

of

predisposition

to

arousa l

c f . trai t anxie ty) and drinking

behavior .

Attempts to

define

a global alcoholic per -

sonality as an etiological

factor

in alcoholism

have generally been unsucc essful. D espite

th e

failure

to find a

reliable syndrome

of traits

among alcoholics, many reports suggest that

alcoholics score higher than normal subjects

on

traditional personali ty measures

of

arousal,

such as anx ie ty and neuroticism (e.g. , Men-

aker, 1967; Okulitch

&Marlatt,

1 9 7 2 ) .

U s-

in g social drinke rs as subjects, Sm art (19 68)

has repor ted that scores on the Manifes t

Anxiety

Scale are not sig nificantly related to

consumpt ion rates. I t has yet to be deter-

mined , however, what relationship exists be-

tween personal i ty

test

scores

of

arousal

and

th e actual drinking behavior of

alcoholics.

The present study also represents an a t t empt

to assess the degree of association between a

personali ty measure of t ra i t anxiety and

dr inking rates in alcoholics and social drinkers.

The first objective of the present investi-

gation was to

assess

th e alcohol consumption

rates

in

nonabstinent alcoholics

and

social

drinker control subjects as a func t ion of ma-

nipulated

states

of anxiety (threat of painful

or nonpainful elect r ic

shock) .

A second ob-

jective was to obtain a measure of disposi-

tional

or

trai t anxiety (th e Neuro ticism scale

of th e EysenckPersonality Inventory) and to

determine

th e

relationship

of

tes t perfo rm ance

to consumption rates in both groups of sub-

jects.

The first

hypothesis

w asthat

alcoholics

would dr ink more than

social

dr inkers , re-

gardless of the arousal-condition assignment.

In ad dition, hypotheses w ere derived from

thetheoretical position that advocates a posi-

t ive relationship between various measuresof

arousal

and

alcohol consumption. From this

point of view, i t would be predicted that all

subjects would consume more alcohol in the

high-threat condition

than

in the

low-threat

condition, and

that

there would be a signifi-

cant, positive relationship between th e per-

sonali ty measure of arousal and the amount

of alcohol consumed fo r both alcoholics and

social drinkers.

METHOD

Subjects

Twenty nonabs t i nen t male alcoholics and 20 male

social drinkers were recrui ted f rom th e Madison,

Wisconsin,

area .

All

poten t ia l subjects were screened

fo r eligibility in a preexperimental interview de-

scribed below.

Sources

used to recrui t alcoholic

subjects

and the

n u m b e r

w ho qualified for

partici-

pation were as follows: (a) A letter was sent to

81 men who had been admitted five or more t imes

to a local inpatient alcoholism treatment center,

asking for volunteers who had resumed dr inking

since their last discharge. Tw o subjects

w ere

ob-

tained from

this source.

(6 ) Sign-up sheets asking

for volunteers to take part in an alcohol-tasting ex-

per iment were distributed

to a

n u m b e r

of

local

bartenders

and

hotel desk clerks

in

areas frequented

by alcoholics. Two eligible subjects were obtained

by

this

me thod ,

(c )

A

representative

f rom th e

p ro j -

ec t

conducted

a pretrial interview

with

persons

going before th e loca l municipa l -court on d runken-

ness

charges .

If an individua l qualified for inclu-

sion and

volunteered

to participate, th e presiding

j u d g e

3

gave him a su spend ed sentence on the con -

dition

that he

serve

in the

study.

Tw o

subjects

were obtained in this manne r , (d ) Three subjects

responded to a classified newspaper ad which asked

fo r male drinkers

to

participate

in a

tasting

ex-

periment, (e ) Eleven subjects were 'obtained

through

an ex-alcoholic contact w ho recrui ted names of

volunteers.

8

W e

wish

to

express

our

appreciation

to

Russell

J. M ittelstadt of Da ne Cou nty , Wisconsin, for his

help

in

recrui t ing potential subjects

fo r

this

ex-

per iment .


3/8

428

R A Y M O N D L.

HIGGINS

AND G. A L A N

M A R L A T T

The 20 social drinkers were recrui ted f rom th e

same sign-up

sheets described above (2 subjects);

from

sign-up sheets given

to the staff of a

local

m anuf ac tu r ing

firm ( 1 0 ) ; and

from

the newspaper

ad (8) . A ll subjects received a pay me nt of $5 for

their participation in the study.

All subjects were informed tha t th e study involved

the tasting of alcoholic beverages and w ere told to

arrive

at the

labora tory

in a

sober state . Whenever

possible,

th e

subjects were t ransported

to and f rom

the laboratory by taxi .

All

subje cts were adminis-

tered

a

Breathalyzer test

at the

time

of

their arrival .

If th e

blood alcohol level exceeded .06%,

th e

sub-

ject w as told to

.return

at a later

date.

In addi-

t ion, no subjects were included unless they reported

some degree of alcohol usage during the previous

two weeks and

stated

no intentions of abstaining

from

alcohol. Three subjects were excluded on this

basis.

Subjects were classified as alcoholics or

social

drinkers on the basis of responses given during a

20-minute

screening interview. Information

was ob-

tained concerning

th e

subject 's demographic

and

socioeconomic

sta tus, current dr inking pa t te rns and

rates, previous hospitalizations or involvement in

t rea tment programs

fo r

alcoholics,

and

record

of

arrests for drunken conduct. To ensure

th a t

sub-

jects would

not

bias their responses

in

order

to

qualify

fo r participation, no

i n fo rmat i o n

w as given

concerning the criteria for acceptance into the study.

Subjects included in the study as alcoholics had

to

mee t

one or

both

of the

following

cri teria:

(a )

On e

or

more

pr eviou s admissions to an alcoholic

treatment faci l i ty and (6) fou r or m o r e arrests for

drunken conduct. Based on se l f - report , 16 subjects

had

been admi t ted

to^a

t rea tment program

on a t

least on e

occasion

(X =

5.3

admissions),

and 15

qualified

on the basis of arrest record A T

=

24.5

arrests) . Subjects were included in the social drink-

in g g roup if they did not abstain

from

alcohol and

if

they were

no t

classified

as

alcoholics.

As an

added

precaution, social

drinkers

were excluded

from

par-

ticipation

if

they reported heavy drinking

or

dis-

closed tha t drinking sometimes represented

a

p rob-

lem for them.

For the

alcoholics

w ho qualified fo r

par t ic ipa t ion,

the age range was 29-64 A T = 45.4), and for the

social drinkers

th e

range

w as

25-60

(X = 41.2).

Although an a t tempt was made to match subjects

on the

basis

of

educa t iona l background

and

social

class standing, the mean social class index

(Hol-

lingshead, 1957) was f o u n d to be 64.8 (Social Class

V )

for th e

alcoholics

and

48.0 (Class

IV) for the

social

drinkers.

Because

of the

significant

difference

between

th e

groups

=

4.60, d/

= 3 8 ,

p


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A N X I E T Y

A R O U S A L AND C O N S U M P T IO N or A L C O H O L

4 29

will be able to take as many tastes of the drinks

as you need to answer th e questions. Just pour th e

drinks into the glasses as you need them.

The arousal manipulation w as patterned after th e

procedure outlined by

Schachter

et al.

(1968),

and

consisted

of threatening the subjects

with either

a

painfu l

or

nonpainful shock.

Once

th e

instructions

fo r

the

tasterating

task

were completed,

all subjects

were told: .

I

men t io n ed

before

that

our

main interest

in

this

experiment is the effect of touch ontaste.We have

decided to use electrical stimulation as the way to

excite

your sense of touch because then we can

carefully cont ro l

th e

a m o u n t

of

stimulation that

you get .

Subjects assigned to the low threat condition were

then told:

In order to create the

effect

we're interested in,

w ewill only need

to use the

lowest

level

of

stimu-

lation possible. A t most , you will only feel a

slight tingle in your skin, but youprobably won't

feel anything at all. We're only interested in the

effect

of very weak s t imulat ion .

The

exper imenter (a male graduate student) then

attached

tw o

small electrodes

to the

subject's left

ankle and

connected them

to a

small

box

containing

tw o SizeD flashlightbatteries,visible to the subject.

During this period, the experimenter engaged in a

short conversat ion directed a t reducing any inap-

propriate

fears

reported by the subject .

Fo r subjects assigned to the high-threat condition,

th e exper imenter removed a cover f rom a stand,

revealing an impressive assortment of electrical gad-

get ry

and a

console showing

a

variety

of

lights

and dials. Drawing at tent ion to this equipment, th e

experimenter continued:

This machine is the one we wil l be using to gen-

erate

th e

shock .

I'm

afraid tha t

th e

shock will

be

quite

painfu l , but in order for it to have any

e f f e c t

o n y o u r

taste,

it has to be of a pre tty high voltage.

Of

course, there won't be any permanent damage.

With that introduction,

th e

su b j ec t

w as

at tached

to the console by placing two large electrodes on

his left ankle. No effor t was made to reduce the

subject 's

concern about receiving the shock. Switches

on

th e

console were turned

on,

activating

th e

lights

and

dials.

Th e

subjec t

w as

told

that

although

th e

shock would not begin at this time, i t was neces-

sary to warm up theeq u ip men t .

After

th e

hook-up

phase, the

subjects

in

both

thre at condit ions were given these instruct ions:

The best way for us to test th e effect of thestimu-

lation is to have you rate th e drinks now, be-

fore

th e

st imulat ion,

to see how the

drinks

taste

u n d e r

normal circumstances,

and

then

to

rate

them again, after th e stimulation, to see what

changes it has made. But before you begin rat ing

the drinks, I would likeyou to fill out this short

questionnaire. Fill it out by simply making

a

mark in the appropriate

space

fo r

each question.

The quest ionnaire consisted of seven S-point rat-

in g scales, two of which were designed to measure

th e

degree

of

arousal reported

by

subjects

in the

tw o

threat conditions. These

tw o

items were How

anxious

do you

feel

at

p resen t ?

and

How nervous

or uneasy

do you

feel about taking

part in

this

ex -

per iment and being shocked?

After th e subjects completed th e questionnaire,

the experimenter concluded the instruct ions:

I'm

going into

th e

next room now,

but we

will

be able to hear each other over this intercom.

When I get

there,

I will tell you w h e n to start.

Don ' t begin until I tell you to . Do you have any

questions abou t what you are to do? Can you

briefly

tel l me what you're supposed to do when

w e

start? Okay. Remember that when I say to

begin

you can start filling out the taste

rating

forms.

You can start

with

th e

wo rd

already in

th e slot.

Th e subject w as then left to wo rk on the rating

task. Fifteen minutes later ,

th e

exper imenter

re -

entered th e room and asked the subject to again

complete the rating scale questionnaire to assess

an y reported changes in arousal level. All of the

subjects

were then told t h a t they

had

been

as-

signed

to a

control group

and that

they would

no t

receive any shock. The subjects were thanked for

their cooperat ion, paid, and taken to a wait ing

taxi. Th e entire expe rime nt lasted an average of SS

minutes .

Dependent Measures

Beverage consumption. Th e

to ta l amount

of

bev-

erage consumed (in f luid ounces) was determined

by subtract ing the amount of each beverage re-

maining in the bottles and glasses f rom the original

amount

presented.

Th e actual volume of pure al -

cohol consumed was also computed by referring to

conversion tables listing the amount of alcohol con-

tained in specific volumes of each of the beverages

used.

Sip

rate.

D u r i n g

th e

taste rating task,

th e

subjec t

w as

covert ly observed through

a

disguised one-way

mirror by an ass is tan t who was unaware of the

subject 's condit ion assignment. Th e assistant moni-

tored

th e

subject 's general behavior

and

recorded

th e

n u mb er

of

sips taken

per

minute dur ing

th e

task

session.

A

single

sip was

defined

as a

discrete

touch

of the alcohol to the subject 's lips. (This

measure does not necessarily reflect th e frequency

of swallows taken, since several swallows may have

occurred within each sip.) In addit ion, est imates

were mad e of the average amount of both beverage

and pure alcohol consumed per sip by dividing th e

overall consumption rates obtained by the total

frequency of sips.

Blood alcohol level.

Posttask

blood alcohol levels

were est imated by the use of a

formula

given by

th e American Medical Association (1959), which

yields

th e

maximum concentrat ions possible imme-

diately after consumption of

alcohol,

given th e

amo u n t

of

pure alcohol consumed

and the

subject's

body weight.


5/8

4 R A Y M O N D L.

HIGGINS

AND G. A L A N M A R L A T T

TABLE

1

MEANNUMBERor LIQUID

O U N C E S

OFTOTAL

B E V E R A G E

A N D

PURE

A L C O H O L C O N S U M E D B Y A L C O H O L I C S

A N D

S O C I A L

DRINKERS

Gr oup

Alcoholics

Social drink ers

High state

anxiety

Total

beverage

7 . 2 0

3.20

Pu re

alcohol

1.56

.54

Low

state

anxiety

Total

beverage

7.60

3.23

P u r e

alcohol

1.46

.48

RESULTS

Effectiveness of

Arousal M anipulation

Analyses

of

var i ance were per fo rmed

fo r

each

of the two

rating scales

for

anx ie ty

arousal which were adminis tered both pr ior

to and

following

th e taste ra t ing task. Whi le

no significant

differences wer e found

for the

threat condition or subject populat ion factors

in

the f i rs t adminis t rat ion , the anxiety ma-

nipulat ion did

show some

effect

on the

sec-

ond admin i s t r a t ion r a t ings . On the S-point

scale i tem How anx ious do you

feel

at pres-

ent? th ehigh-threat

group obtained

a

mean

rat ing

of

2.SO,

as

compared

to

2.00

for

low-

threat subjects 7 7

=

3.37,

f

= 1/36, p

Effects of Anxiety Arousal on the Consumption of Alcohol by Alcoholics and Social Drinkers

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