RESTRAINT & ATTRIBUTIONS--RISK FACTORS IN ALCOHOL ABUSE

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APPLICANT'S ABSTRACT: We seek to continue research on drinking restraint (i.e., the preoccupation with controlling alcohol consumption). Drinkers high in restraint try to maintain a balance between the temptation to drink and the regulation of intake. When they make self-blaming attributions for violating their limits on drinking, they experience negative affect, and may continue to drink to repair their mood, thereby drinking to excess. Our research on drinking restraint and the Abstinence/Limit Violation Effect (AVE/LVE) has included survey, laboratory, and field studies in which we have found support for the processes just described. We propose three studies in which drinking restraint and the LVE will be examined in two "high risk" populations: "underage drinkers" (ages 18-20 years) and adults (ages 21-35 years) with and without a family history of problem drinking. We also plan to modify our measure of drinking attributional style to assess "controllability". Study I will focus on young adult drinkers (ages 18-20 years). Although legally prohibited from drinking, many drink to excess. Thus, they may experience the restraint cycle of temptation to drink (norms, expectancies) and regulation of intake (negative consequences, legal sanctions). A subset of Study I participants, high and low in temptation (an aspect of restraint), will be selected for Study 2, which involves an in-depth examination of the LVE. Study 3 focuses on restraint and family history of problem drinking. Persons from problem drinking backgrounds may be attracted to alcohol (family models) yet exposure to negative consequences may raise concerns about their own potential for problem drinking. These concerns lead to attempts to regulate alcohol intake. In both populations, repetitions of the restraint cycle may increase the risk for alcohol problems. Studies 2 and 3 will continue our use of an innovative technology, the self-monitoring computer (Electronic Diary- ED), to assess drinking-related variables in the natural environment. Data from the ED will allow us to examine the contributions of restraint and the LVE to excessive drinking.