Aims To test whether an expectancy challenge (EC) changes implicit and explicit alcohol-related cognitions and binge drinking in young heavy drinkers. This is important for theoretical and practical reasons: the EC presents a critical test for the hypothesized mediational role of alcohol cognitions and the EC has been presented as a promising intervention to counter alcohol problems in heavy drinking youth. Setting, participants and intervention Ninety-two heavy drinking college and university students (half women) were assigned randomly to the EC or control condition (a sham alcohol experiment in the same bar-laboratory). Measurements Explicit alcohol cognitions and alcohol use were assessed with paper-and-pencil measures. Alcohol use was assessed prior to the experiment and during a 1-month follow-up. Implicit alcohol-related cognitions were assessed with two versions of the Implicit Association Test (IAT), adapted to assess implicit valence and arousal associations with alcohol. Findings and conclusions The EC resulted in decreased explicit positive arousal expectancies in men and women alike. There was some evidence for a differential reduction in implicit arousal associations, but findings depended on the version of the IAT and on the scoring-algorithm used. In men (but not in women) there was a short-lived differential reduction in prospective alcohol use (significant in week 3 of the follow-up), and this reduction was partially mediated by the decrease in explicit positive arousal expectancies. These findings suggest that an EC successfully changes explicit alcohol cognitions and that this may have short-lived beneficial effects in heavy drinking young men.

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.

The Alcohol Expectancy Challenge (EC) is a promising program for changing alcohol expectancies and reducing alcohol consumption in "heavy drinking" young men in a bar-lab setting. In this study the EC was adapted for use in mixed-gender groups in a holiday setting and its feasibility tested in camping resorts in the Netherlands where a lot of binge drinking takes place (summer 2002). Male and female participants (N = 170; mean age, 18.8 years) were randomly assigned to an EC or to an assessment-only control group. One day before the intervention, alcohol expectancies were measured by a Visual Analogue Scale of arousal-sedation expectancies (VAS expectancies questionnaire). At the same time, alcohol use in everyday life and on holiday was assessed by a General Drinking Questionnaire and a 24-hour drinking diary, respectively. Twenty-four hours after the intervention, the VAS expectancies questionnaire was administered again and alcohol use over the previous 24 hours was reported in the drinking diary. Six weeks after the intervention, participants were telephoned and administered oral versions of the VAS expectancies questionnaire and General Drinking Questionnaire. Data were analyzed using mixed ANOVAs. Although the study was hampered by recruitment difficulties, the EC proved feasible in this setting, was well received by youngsters, and effects on their alcohol expectancies may have been present. No effect was found on alcohol use. In conclusion, implementation must be improved and more studies are needed to come to more definite conclusions about the value of the EC in a real-life targeted intervention.

This paper presents a case study of a community intervention aimed at reducing excessive drinking in young men on holiday in seaside camping resorts in the Netherlands. The self-regulated voluntary covenant of parties concerned was evaluated on the basis of several types of data (all collected in 2004 ): questionnaires administered to young men (N = 191), observations carried out by trained "peers," nuisance questionnaires among city center residents (N = 121), and interviews with local actors. Compliance with measures as well as the effects of measures are discussed. Limitations are noted and recommendations for optimizing the potential of community interventions are made.

Binge drinking among young people is a problem in the Netherlands. This article outlines the current Dutch approach to alcohol prevention in this target group. It is argued that well-enforced evidence-based control measures are lacking despite renewed political interest in them. Politicians often favor alcohol education, but to increase the effectiveness of alcohol prevention, a combined approach of policy measures, enforcement, and education is needed. Translation of education and policy-based measures is discussed.