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Negative affect words prime beer consumption in young drinkers
Martin Zack1, Constantine X Poulos, Fofo Fragopoulos
1Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. martin_zack@camh.net
Addictive Behaviors
|June 1, 2005
Summary
Exposure to negative affect words primes alcohol drinking behavior in young adults. This priming effect is stronger in individuals with more severe alcohol problems, highlighting a link between negative emotions and problematic alcohol use.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Neuroscience
- Addiction Research
Background:
- Negative affect is strongly linked to problematic alcohol use.
- Negative affect cues may prime alcohol motivation, contributing to this association.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if negative affect word exposure primes actual drinking behavior.
- To determine if this priming effect relates to alcohol problem severity.
- To examine moderation by gender and anxiety sensitivity.
Main Methods:
- Participants completed a synonym generation task with negative, positive, or neutral prime words.
- Primed drinking behavior was assessed using a placebo beer taste-test procedure.
- Alcohol problem severity and anxiety sensitivity were measured.
Main Results:
- Drinking scores were significantly higher in the negative affect word condition compared to neutral or positive conditions.
- Alcohol problem severity directly predicted the priming effect of negative affect words.
- Anxiety sensitivity did not moderate drinking behavior in any condition.
Conclusions:
- Even subtle exposure to negative affect cues can prime drinking behavior in young adults.
- The link between negative affect priming and drinking is associated with the severity of alcohol problems.