Real-time and next-morning correlates of subjective alcohol consequence evaluations

There is considerable variation in how college student drinkers evaluate alcohol-related consequences across time and consequence type. Previous qualitative work suggested that students perceive consequences less negatively under certain circumstances (i.e., higher intoxication, when less time has passed, positive mood, after discussing with friends). The present study sought to confirm these patterns, using ecological momentary assessment (EMA) during drinking episodes paired with retrospective next-day assessments.

For 28 days, heavy-drinking college students (n = 90, 50% female) completed self-reports during drinking episodes and the next morning. Measures included alcohol use, subjective intoxication, mood, negative consequences (e.g., being aggressive) and positive consequences (e.g., new friend), and consequence-specific evaluations.

Consistent with hypotheses, multilevel models revealed that during drinking events compared to the next morning, average evaluations of negative and positive consequences were less negative and more positive, respectively. During drinking events, neither subjective intoxication nor estimated blood alcohol concentration (eBAC) was associated with positive or negative evaluations. In morning reports, more positive mood was associated with less negative evaluations of negative consequences and more positive evaluations of positive consequences. Next-day discussion with friends was not significantly associated with consequence evaluations.

This study is the first to assess subjective consequence evaluations in real time as well as retrospectively, for the same events. Findings continue to support the role of context (timing, mood) on subjective consequence evaluations, and suggest that ecological momentary interventions targeting alcohol consequences and related cognitions might best be delivered the morning after drinking, to capitalize on relatively more negative perceptions of one's drinking experiences. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).