Rebecca L. Monk

Environmental context effects on alcohol-related outcome expectancies, efficacy, and norms: a field study.

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of environmental contexts on alcohol norms, expectancies, and efficacy ratings. University students (n = 177) recruited via opportunity sampling completed questionnaires in either university lecture theaters or in a student bar. Positive social, fun, and tension reduction outcome expectancies were higher and social drink refusal self efficacy was lower in those participants questioned in a student bar relative to those questioned in a university lecture theater. These differences were found while controlling for between-groups variations in typical alcohol consumption quantities. Although hitherto largely unexamined by research, context appears to be a potentially important moderator of alcohol-related cognitions. Such findings require further exploration to inform more effective intervention approaches and have implications for the validity of existing literature.

I have no clue what I drunk last night using Smartphone technology to compare in-vivo and retrospective self-reports of alcohol consumption.

Aim This research compared real-time measurements of alcohol consumption with retrospective accounts of alcohol consumption to examine possible discrepancies between, and contextual influences on, the different accounts. Method Building on previous investigations, a specifically designed Smartphone technology was utilized to measure alcohol consumption and contextual influences in de facto real-time. Real-time data (a total of 10,560 data points relating to type and number of drinks and current social / environmental context) were compared with daily and weekly retrospective accounts of alcohol consumption. Results Participants reported consuming more alcoholic drinks during real-time assessment than retrospectively. For daily accounts a higher number of drinks consumed in real-time was related to a higher discrepancy between real-time and retrospective accounts. This effect was found across all drink types but was not shaped by social and environmental contexts. Higher in-vivo alcohol consumption appeared to be related to a higher discrepancy in retrospectively reported weekly consumption for alcohol beverage types other than wine. When including contextual factors into the statistical models, being with two or more friends (as opposed to being alone) decreased the discrepancy between real-time and retrospective reports, whilst being in the pub (relative to being at home) was associated with greater discrepancies. Conclusions Overall, retrospective accounts may underestimate the amount of actual, real-time alcohol consumed. Increased consumption may also exacerbate differences between real-time and retrospective accounts. Nonetheless, this is not a global effect as environmental and social contexts interact with the type of alcohol consumed and the time frame given for reporting (weekly vs. daily retrospective). A degree of caution therefore appears warranted with regards to the use of retrospective self-report methods of recording alcohol consumption. Whilst real-time sampling is unlikely to be completely error free, it may be better able to account for social and environmental influences on self-reported consumption.

A critical systematic review of alcohol-related outcome expectancies.

To assess the validity of the research into alcohol-related outcome expectancies a systematic review of 80 articles published between 1970 and 2013 was conducted. Participant gender, age, and contextual influences are highlighted as possible causes of the observed variations in research findings. There is a need for fuller consideration of the influences of demographics and environmental and social contexts on research findings. It is recommended that alcohol intake measures should be standardized to a greater degree in future research. Contextual influences on expectancies also require extensive future investigation to increase the validity of research and improve alcohol-related interventions.

Smells like inhibition: The effects of olfactory and visual alcohol cues on inhibitory control

RationaleHow the smell of alcohol impacts alcohol-related thoughts and behaviours is unclear, though it is well-documented that alcohol-related stimuli and environments may trigger these.ObjectivesThe current study, therefore, aimed to investigate the priming effects of both visual and olfactory alcohol cues on inhibitory control.MethodForty individuals (M age = 23.65, SD = 6.52) completed a go/no-go association task (GNAT) which measured reaction times, response accuracy and false alarm rates whilst being exposed to alcohol-related (or neutral) olfactory and visual cues.ResultsAlcohol-related visual cues elicited lower false alarm rates, slower reaction times and higher accuracy rates relative to neutral pictorial cues. False alarm rates were significantly higher for those exposed to alcohol as opposed to neutral olfactory cues.ConclusionsBy highlighting that exposure to alcohol-related olfactory cues may impede response inhibition, the results indicate that exposure to such stimuli may contribute to the activation of cognitive responses which may drive consumption.

A systematic review of the Alcohol norms literature: A focus on context

Objective: To proffer a theoretically driven assessment of the validity of research which examines alcohol-related normative beliefs. Methods: A systematic review of 68 articles matching the inclusion criteria, published between 1970 and 2013. Results: Potential causes of deviations in research findings are identified and compelling gaps in our knowledge with regards to the influence of participant gender, age and contextual factors are highlighted and discussed in relation to the broader literature. Conclusions: It is proposed that a standardization of research approaches and alcohol intake measures are required in order to increase the validity of present research and enable useful comparisons between studies. Further attention to key, potentially mediatory variables is also highlighted as important for increasing research validity with a view to facilitating the improvement of interventions.

'IF You Drink Alcohol, THEN You Will Get Cancer': Investigating How Reasoning Accuracy Is Affected by Pictorially Presented Graphic Alcohol Warnings.

AIMS To investigate the cognitive processing of emotive pictorial warnings intended to curb alcohol misuse, using novel methodologies adapted from the reasoning literature to assess whether emotive pictorial warnings alter reasoning. METHOD In Study 1, individuals completed a version of the Wason selection task-evaluating warnings in which content type (Alcohol and Non-Alcohol) and emotional valence (Positive and Negative) were manipulated through imagery. In Study 2, people evaluated the certainty of outcomes described by alcohol-related and non-alcohol-related warnings in the form of If-Then statements. RESULTS Study 1 found that in alcohol-related warnings, there was no difference in reasoning accuracy between positive and negative content. However, fewer correct responses followed exposure to negative general-health messages. Study 2 suggested that when a warning involves the potential consequences of drinking alcohol, accuracy is improved when the content is negative. However, when considering the consequences of abstinence, accuracy was greatest when the content was positive. This was supported by an inference by content interaction. CONCLUSION In conclusion, negative imagery should be used with caution in health warnings, and goals carefully considered. In some cases imagery of negative outcomes may improve reasoning, however, its use in alcohol-related messages does not appear to be consistently beneficial.

The effect of flow and context on in-vivo positive mood in digital gaming.

Abstract Although research extols the positive effects of social gaming, the dynamic processes underlying these effects remain unclear. In a hitherto unused approach in this field, we utilised a Smartphone App to model the effect of in-vivo flow and gaming context on positive mood. We also explored individual-level factors including demographic gaming variables (average hours per week playing, gamer-type, preferred type of play) and Big-5 personality traits. Data was obtained from 41 gamers producing a total of 2796 data-points. Multi-level modelling revealed positive mood was associated with in-vivo reports of flow in gameplay, current context and individual-level variance in the number of hours typically spent engaged in playing per week. Specifically, in-vivo positive mood was higher for players when playing online with friends (relative to those playing solo). Higher reports of flow were, nonetheless, associated with decreases in positive mood. Finally, players who indicated playing less frequently experienced higher positive mood, relative to those who played more. These findings support and extend previous work which explores the emotional affordances of gaming and highlight the importance of obtaining situated measures of experiences. They demonstrate that positive mood in gaming is not static, but changeable depending on ones current gaming environment and flow.

The influence of groups and alcohol consumption on individual risk-taking

BACKGROUND Research addressing the influence of alcohol and groups on risky behaviour has yielded contradictory findings regarding the extent to which intoxicated groups exaggerate or minimise risk-taking. Previous work has examined the effect of intoxication on risk-taking focusing on collective group decision-making, and to date the influence of alcohol consumption and groups on individual risk-taking has yet to be explored experimentally. The current study therefore examined the impact of intoxication and groups on individual risk-taking. METHODS In a mixed design, 99 social drinkers (62 female) attended an experimental session individually (N=48) or in groups of three (N=51). Individuals completed the study in isolation while groups were tested in the same room. Participants completed two behavioural measures of risk-taking: Balloon Analogue Risk Task (BART) and Stoplight Task (SLT), both before and following consumption of an alcoholic (0.6g/kg males, 0.5g/kg females) or a placebo beverage. RESULTS Those who participated in groups took significantly more risks in both tasks than those in isolation. Alcohol did not increase risk-taking on either risk-taking tasks. However, those who consumed placebo were significantly less risky on the SLT, compared to baseline. No interactions were found between context and beverage on risk-taking. CONCLUSION The findings do not support a combined effect of alcohol and groups on individual risk-taking. Rather, results indicate that risk-taking behaviour is influenced by peer presence regardless of alcohol consumption. Targeting the influence of groups (above those of alcohol) may hold promise for reducing risk-taking behaviours in drinking environments.

The Decoy Effect Within Alcohol Purchasing Decisions

ABSTRACT Background: The decoy effect is the phenomenon where the introduction of a third choice to a decision dyad changes the distribution of preferences between options. Objectives: Examine whether this effect exists in alcohol purchasing decisions and whether testing context impacts this. Method: Fifty-two participants tested in either a bar or library context and were asked to choose one of a series of beer and water deals presented for timed intervals. In some cases, two options were presented (with similar attractiveness) and in other cases a third, less preferable, decoy option was added. Results: A basic decoy effect in both alcohol and water purchasing decisions. Specifically, there were reductions in the selection of both the original options when the decoy was added into choice dyads. A significant interaction demonstrated in the bar context there was a significant difference such that there was a slight increase in participants selecting the most cost effective option when the decoy was added, and a simultaneous decrease in those choosing the moderately cost effective option. There were no such differences observed in the library condition. Conclusion: The same product may be perceived differently across contexts and, as such, consumers in a pub environment may be particularly vulnerable to the decoy effect.

The malleability of stigmatizing attitudes: Combining imagined social contact with implicit attitude feedback

ABSTRACT Research is reported that examines whether imagined social contact combined with implicit attitude feedback may be an effective intervention for inducing changes in attitudes toward mental ill health. The Implicit Relational Assessment Procedure (IRAP) captured participants’ implicit attitudes toward individuals with a mental illness and provided a measure of attitude bias. Forty-eight participants (17 male, 95.8% White British) were randomly assigned to one of four experimental conditions: (1) Imagined social contact with implicit attitude feedback, (2) imagined social contact without feedback, (3) control with feedback, and (4) control without feedback. This resulted in a data set detailing 12,288 implicit responses, with each participant completing 256 IRAP trials. Participants then completed an attitude change assessment 24 hours later. Results revealed that imagined social contact was successful in changing implicit attitudes, with the addition of implicit attitude feedback further strengthening participants’ positive attitudes toward mental ill health. Explicit attitudes remained unaffected. These findings are the first to highlight the practical importance of combining imagined social contact with implicit attitude feedback to improve attitudes toward out-groups who are stigmatized.