Risks of alcohol consumption in laboratory studies involving human research participants

Research protocols that include alcohol consumption raise a number of critical issues with regard to potential risks to research participants, researchers, and institutions. This article seeks to highlight some of these issues by presenting some of the potential risks and discussing relevant dimensions and parameters of these risks. Risks to individual research participants are the primary focus of concern, but consideration of risks associated with aspects of the experimental, contextual, and institutional setting are also considered. The authors conclude with recommendations for individuals conducting studies involving alcohol consumption by human research participants.