Alcohol Myopia and Condom Use: Can Alcohol Intoxication Be Associated With More Prudent Behavior?

We tested 2 competing theories about the effects of alcohol on intentions to engage in risky behavior. Disinhibition predicts that intoxicated people will exhibit risky behavior regardless of environmental cues, whereas alcohol myopia ( C. M. Steele & R. A. Josephs, 1990 ) predicts that intoxica...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of personality and social psychology 2000-04, Vol.78 (4), p.605-619
Main Authors: MacDonald, Tara K, Fong, Geoffrey T, Zanna, Mark P, Martineau, Alanna M
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Addictive behaviors
Adult
Adult and adolescent clinical studies
Alcohol
Alcohol Intoxication
Alcohol use
Alcoholic Intoxication - psychology
Alcoholism
Biological and medical sciences
Cognitive Processes
Condoms
Cues
Female
Human
Humans
Inhibition (Psychology)
Male
Medical sciences
Models, Psychological
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychopathology. Psychiatry
Risk Perception
Risk-Taking
Sexual behavior
Sexual Behavior - psychology
Sexual Risk Taking
Sexually Transmitted Diseases - prevention & control
Sexually Transmitted Diseases - psychology
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Summary:We tested 2 competing theories about the effects of alcohol on intentions to engage in risky behavior. Disinhibition predicts that intoxicated people will exhibit risky behavior regardless of environmental cues, whereas alcohol myopia ( C. M. Steele & R. A. Josephs, 1990 ) predicts that intoxicated people will be more or less likely to exhibit risky behavior, depending on the cues provided. In 4 studies, we found an interaction between intoxication and cue type. When impelling cues were present, intoxicated people reported greater intentions to have unprotected sex than did sober people. When subtle inhibiting cues were present, intoxicated and sober people reported equally cautious intentions (Studies 1-3). When strong inhibiting cues were present, intoxicated people reported more prudent intentions than did sober people (Study 4). We suggest that alcohol myopia provides a more comprehensive account of the effects of alcohol than does disinhibition.
ISSN:0022-3514
1939-1315
DOI:10.1037/0022-3514.78.4.605