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Alcohol and disgust: An intimate relationship
Lorenzo D Stafford1, Alistair Sekulla1, Edward Morrison1
1Centre for Comparative and Evolutionary Psychology, Department of Psychology, University of Portsmouth, UK.
Drug and Alcohol Dependence
|December 14, 2019
Summary
Alcohol intoxication may lower disgust sensitivity, particularly for pathogen-related stimuli. This finding could help explain increased risk-taking behavior observed under alcohol
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Neuroscience
- Toxicology
Background:
- Alcohol intoxication is linked to increased risk-taking and altered emotional perception.
- Theories of disgust offer a potential explanation for these alcohol-induced behavioral changes.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationship between alcohol consumption and disgust sensitivity.
- To explore if disgust sensitivity mediates alcohol's effects on risk-taking behavior.
Main Methods:
- A single-blind study with 73 participants randomly assigned to alcohol or placebo conditions.
- Participants consumed a standardized dose of alcohol (Males: 0.68 g/kg; Females: 0.60 g/kg) or placebo.
- The Thiel Disgust Scale (TDDS) was used to measure disgust sensitivity.
Main Results:
- A non-significant trend indicated lower disgust sensitivity in the alcohol group compared to the placebo group.
- A significant negative correlation was found between breath alcohol level and pathogen disgust sensitivity.
- Higher breath alcohol levels were associated with decreased sensitivity to pathogen-related disgust.
Conclusions:
- Alcohol consumption is associated with reduced disgust sensitivity.
- The relationship between alcohol and disgust sensitivity, particularly for pathogen-related stimuli, may help explain alcohol-related increases in risk-taking behavior.
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