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The effects of a cumulative alcohol dosing procedure on laboratory aggression in women and men
D M Dougherty1, J M Bjork, R H Bennett
1Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Texas-Houston Medical School, 77030, USA.
Objective:
This study directly compared the effects of cumulative alcohol dosing procedure on aggression in both women and men.
Method:
Thirteen women and 13 men consumed three beverages 1 hour apart. There were two experimental conditions: (1) a placebo day, when subjects consumed three 240 ml beverages, each containing only 1 ml of alcohol; and (2) an alcohol day, when subjects consumed three 240 ml beverages, each containing 0.35 g/kg of 95% alcohol. Alcohol doses for women were reduced by 8%. Prior to beverage consumption, and periodically after consumption, subjects participated in 25-minute laboratory testing sessions designed to measure aggression. In this paradigm, subjects could earn points by responding on a button, or aggress toward a fictitious opponent who ostensibly subtracted earnings from them.
Results:
Both women and men showed an increase in aggressive responding after drinking alcohol but not placebo. As a group the greatest increases were observed after consuming the second alcohol drink (BAC = 0.08%). Aggressive responding, however, remained elevated for several hours after alcohol consumption. A post hoc analysis of the data indicated that subjects with high aggression levels under placebo conditions showed the greatest increases in aggression under alcohol conditions.
Conclusions:
These results indicate that at least under these conditions, alcohol does increase aggression in both women and men. The aggression-increasing effects of alcohol appear to be long-lasting and specific to individuals with the higher aggressive tendencies while sober.