Operant acquisition of alcohol by women

Alcohol acquisition and use patterns were studied in 26 women on a clinical research ward. Women could earn alcohol (beer, wine or distilled spirits) or 50 for 30 min of performance on a second-order fixed ratio 300 (fixed interval 1 sec: S) schedule of reinforcement. Points earned for money and for alcohol were not interchangeable. A 7-day drug-free base line was followed by 21 days of alcohol availability and a postalcohol drug-free period of 7 days. Heavy, moderate and occasional drinkers differed significantly in the average number of alcohol drinks purchased (P less than .001). Five heavy drinkers purchased an average of 164 (+/- 14) drinks during the study; 12 moderate drinkers purchased an average of 80 (+/- 4) drinks; 9 occasional drinkers purchased an average of 26 (+/- 4) drinks. Individual drinking patterns fluctuated markedly from day-to-day. Daily peak blood alcohol levels (milligrams per deciliter) were significantly correlated with variations in daily drinking patterns in 22 of the 26 subjects (P less than .02-.0001). Computer analysis of daily alcohol consumption patterns (alcohol peak frequency and peak amplitude) showed that moderate drinkers had significantly more peaks in alcohol consumption than occasional drinkers (P less than .05). The average number of drinks constituting each peak was significantly greater for the heavy and moderate drinkers than for the occasional drinkers (P less than .05). The interval between successive peaks in alcohol consumption averaged 4.6 (+/- 0.8) days for the occasional drinkers, 3.2 (+/- 0.2) days for the moderate drinkers and 3.6 (+/- 0.17) days for the heavy drinkers but these differences were not statistically significant.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)