Indirect Effects of Acute Alcohol Intoxication on Sexual Risk-taking: The Roles of Subjective and Physiological Sexual Arousal

George, William H.; Davis, Kelly Cue; Norris, Jeanette; Heiman, Julia R.; Stoner, Susan A.; Schacht, Rebecca L.; Hendershot, Christian S.; Kajumulo, Kelly F.

doi:10.1007/s10508-008-9346-9

Cited by 156 publications

(190 citation statements)

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“…One of the strengths of experimental methods is the capacity to capture in-the-moment mechanisms that may play a crucial role in the moments preceding a risky sexual decision (George et al, 2009). In particular, alcohol administration experiments have provided evidence that perceptions of two acute states-level of intoxication and level of sexual arousal-play an important role in alcohol's effects on risky sexual intentions.…”

Section: Alcohol's Effects On Sexual Risk Takingmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Effects of Alcohol and Blood Alcohol Concentration Limb on Sexual Risk-Taking Intentions

Davis

George

Norris

et al. 2009

J. Stud. Alcohol Drugs

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ABSTRACT. Objective: Although there have been numerous investigations of alcohol's relationship to sexual risk taking, the vast majority of these studies have not examined whether the biphasic nature of alcohol intoxication differentially influences risky sexual decisions. Thus, a laboratory study was conducted to investigate the effects of alcohol consumption and blood alcohol concentration (BAC) limb on sexual risk-taking intentions. Method: Participants (N = 150; 51.3% male) were randomly assigned to consume alcoholic drinks (target peak BAC = .08%) or nonalcoholic drinks and then completed a hypothetical sexual risk assessment involving an opposite-gender new partner while on either the ascending BAC limb or descending BAC limb. Results: Alcohol intoxication resulted in increased sexual risk-taking intentions indirectly through its infl uence on perceived intoxication and, subsequently, sexual arousal. An interaction of beverage condition and BAC limb condition indicated that alcohol's effects on perceived intoxication varied signifi cantly by limb, with those on the ascending limb reporting greater perceived intoxication than those on the descending limb. Conclusions: Findings suggest that future research and prevention efforts would be better informed through a more comprehensive consideration of BAC limb effects on sexual risk behaviors. Moreover, results indicate that prevention programs should address in-the-moment states, such as perceived intoxication and sexual arousal, in interventions targeting risky sexual decision-making processes. (J. Stud. Alcohol Drugs 70: [499][500][501][502][503][504][505][506][507] 2009)

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Section: Alcohol's Effects On Sexual Risk Takingmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Three separate studies have investigated the joint infl uence of being both sexually aroused and intoxicated (Abbey et al, 2005;George et al, 2009;MacDonald et al, 2000). Abbey et al (2005) found that men's and women's perceived sexual arousal predicted their risky sex intentions over and above alcohol's effects.…”

Section: Alcohol's Effects On Sexual Risk Takingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of Alcohol and Blood Alcohol Concentration Limb on Sexual Risk-Taking Intentions

Davis

George

Norris

et al. 2009

J. Stud. Alcohol Drugs

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“…The acute effects of alcohol can also increase risk-taking behavior by narrowing an individual's focus to only the most salient cues in the environment, a process referred to as alcohol myopia (Steele and Josephs, 1990;Taylor and Leonard, 1983). In a sexual encounter involving alcohol, the most salient cue may be sexual arousal rather than the potential risk associated with a sexual partner (e.g., Davis et al, 2007;George et al, 2009;MacDonald et al, 2000), thereby increasing the likelihood of risk-taking behavior (Adefuye et al, 2009).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Patterns of Alcohol Use and Expectancies Predict Sexual Risk Taking Among Non-Problem Drinking Women

Stappenbeck

Norris

Kiekel

et al. 2013

J. Stud. Alcohol Drugs

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ABSTRACT. Objective: Although alcohol consumption and sexual risk taking are associated, not everyone who drinks alcohol engages in risky sexual behavior. The purposes of the present study were to identify patterns of alcohol use behaviors and alcohol expectancies among women who are non-problem drinkers and to examine how these patterns are associated with indices of sexual risk. Method: Data from 758 non-problem drinking women who have sex with men and were not in committed relationships were analyzed using latent profi le analysis to determine patterns of alcohol use and alcohol-related expectancies. Results: Of the four patterns observed, three classes had similar alcohol-related expectancies but differed with respect to drinking behavior (moderate drinking, regular heavy episodes, and frequent heavy episodes), and the fourth class consisted of moderate drinkers with low expectancies (low expectancies). Results revealed that those in the frequent heavy episodes class had the greatest number of sexual partners in the past year and drank the most alcohol before having sex compared with the other women. Both the regular and frequent heavy episodes classes reported greater likelihood of having unprotected sex in the future, more positive beliefs about casual sex, and greater subjective intoxication before having sex than women in the moderate drinking or low expectancies classes. Women in the low expectancies class reported less positive beliefs about condoms than those in the moderate drinking and regular heavy episodes classes. Conclusions: Results suggest that different patterns of expectancies and drinking behaviors are associated with different indices of sexual risk taking and highlight the importance of individually tailored programs for prevention of sexually transmitted infections. (J. Stud. Alcohol Drugs, 74, 223-232, 2013)

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“…Literature has accumulated much evidence about the effects of alcohol on social behavior and emotions, which vary widely and are highly irregular (Davis, Hendershot, George, Norris, & Heiman, 2007;George et al, 2008;Phillips & Giancola, 2008). Therefore, acute alcohol intoxication can both increase aggressive (Zeichner & Pihl, 1980) and enhance altruistic (Levenson, Sher, Grossman, Newman, & Newlin, 1980) behaviors or even reduce anxiety states (Levenson et al, 1980), among other behavioral effects.…”

Section: Alcohol Myopia Theorymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In addition to the violent behavior, the alcohol consumption among adolescents is also related to risky sexual behavior (Davis et al, 2007;George et al, 2008;and MacDonald et al, 1996). Intoxicated volunteers are more susceptible to environmental cues inducing to unsafe sexual practice compared to sober individuals.…”

Section: Risky Behavior Under the Perspective Of Alcohol Myopiamentioning

confidence: 99%

Alcohol, emotion and attention: revisiting the Alcohol Myopia Theory

Mocaiber

David

Oliveira

et al. 2011

Psicol. Reflex. Crit.

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Among the known effects of alcohol on behavior, the modulation of cognitive functions (such as attention and memory), emotion, risk-taking and aggressive behavior are noteworthy. Here, we performed literature review in order to reinterpret alcohol effects on behavior according to the Alcohol Myopia Theory. According to this construct, there is a reduction of attentional resources during alcohol intoxication, which are primarily allocated to the most salient events in a given situation. The consequence is a hyperfocus directed to emotional situations when they are sufficiently relevant to grab attention, or a reduced attentional focus to emotional events in the presence of a relevant demanding task. The understanding of the mechanism mentioned above support the discussion of propositions toward the prevention of problems related to alcohol consumption. Importantly, the attentional allocation model provides inputs for a discussion on the scientifically-supported public health propositions aimed at preventing problems related to acute alcohol intoxication. Keywords: Alcohol; Attention; Emotion; Alcohol Myopia; Context. ResumoDentre os efeitos associados ao consumo alcoólico, destaca-se a modulação sobre funções cognitivas, como atenção e memória, bem como sobre as emoções, comportamento de risco e agressividade. No presente estudo apresentamos uma revisão crítica da literatura propondo uma reinterpretação para os efeitos comportamentais do álcool com base na teoria da Miopia Alcoólica. Durante a intoxicação, existiria uma redução de recursos atencionais, os quais seriam direcionados para eventos mais relevantes. A repercussão, então, seria um aumento do foco atencional para situações emocionais, quando estas fossem suficientemente relevantes ou, em contrapartida, uma diminuição para tais situações na presença de uma tarefa-alvo demandante. A reinterpretação dos efeitos do álcool, com base na teoria da Miopia Alcoólica, fornece subsídios para a mudança de paradigma na intervenção clínica.

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Indirect Effects of Acute Alcohol Intoxication on Sexual Risk-taking: The Roles of Subjective and Physiological Sexual Arousal

Cited by 156 publications

References 57 publications

Effects of Alcohol and Blood Alcohol Concentration Limb on Sexual Risk-Taking Intentions

Effects of Alcohol and Blood Alcohol Concentration Limb on Sexual Risk-Taking Intentions

Patterns of Alcohol Use and Expectancies Predict Sexual Risk Taking Among Non-Problem Drinking Women

Alcohol, emotion and attention: revisiting the Alcohol Myopia Theory

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