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Gender‐Specific Effects of Mood on Alcohol‐Seeking Behaviors: Preliminary Findings Using Intravenous Alcohol Self‐Administration
Author(s) -
Cyders Melissa A.,
VanderVeen J. Davis,
Plawecki Martin,
Millward James B.,
Hays James,
Kareken David A.,
O'Connor Sean
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
alcoholism: clinical and experimental research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.267
H-Index - 153
eISSN - 1530-0277
pISSN - 0145-6008
DOI - 10.1111/acer.12955
Subject(s) - mood , alcohol , alcohol use disorders identification test , medicine , psychology , affect (linguistics) , young adult , clinical psychology , psychiatry , poison control , injury prevention , biochemistry , chemistry , environmental health , communication
Background Although negative mood has long been implicated in differences in alcohol seeking by men and women, little research has used precise, well‐controlled laboratory experiments to examine how negative mood affects alcohol‐seeking behaviors. Methods A total of 34 (19 women) community‐dwelling, alcohol‐using adults aged 21 to 32 (mean age = 24.86, SD = 3.40, 74.3% Caucasian; Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test [AUDIT] = 10.1, SD = 3.4) completed 2 counterbalanced intravenous alcohol self‐administration sessions: one under negative mood and one under neutral mood. Fourteen individuals (9 women; mean age = 25.00, SD = 2.77) participated in an alcohol “liking” experiment (i.e., free access [FA] drinking) and 20 individuals (10 women; mean age = 24.77, SD = 3.73) participated in an alcohol “wanting” experiment, in which gaining access to alcohol required progressively effortful work. There was no significant difference between men and women on the AUDIT, t (32) = −0.38, p = 0.71. Results Priming with negative mood induction caused a significant decrease in self‐reported mood (mean change = −1.85, t(32) = −6.81, p < 0.001), as intended. In FA, negative mood was associated with a significantly increased peak breath alcohol concentration (BrAC; F = 9.41, p = 0.01), with a trend toward a greater effect in men than in women ( F = 2.67, p = 0.13). Negative mood also had a significant effect on peak BrAC achieved in the progressive work paradigm ( F = 5.28, p = 0.04), with a significantly stronger effect in men ( F = 5.35, p = 0.03) than women; men also trended toward more consistent work for alcohol across both neutral and negative sessions. Conclusions These preliminary findings demonstrate a gender‐specific response on how mood affects alcohol seeking and suggest gender‐specific interventions to prevent mood‐based alcohol consumption.