Effects of Content and Valence of Episodic Future Thinking on Delay Discounting and Alcohol Demand

• Published in: Psychology of addictive behaviors 2023-02, Vol.37 (1), p.177-189
• Main Authors: Chang, Yi-Chun, Ladd, Benjamin O.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult; Affective Valence; Alcohol; Alcohol Use; Alcohol-Related Disorders; Assignment; College Students; Cross-Sectional Studies; Cues; Delay Discounting; Discounting; Ethanol; Female; Future; Human; Humans; Male; Reward; Rewards; Self report; Social relations; Thinking; Valuation; Young Adult
• ISSN: 0893-164X; 1939-1501
• DOI: 10.1037/adb0000862

Objective: This study examined whether the content (alcohol vs. nonalcohol) and valence (positive vs. negative) of episodic future thinking (EFT) are associated with delay discounting (DD) and alcohol demand. Method: Participants (N = 360) were college students (Mage = 21.64 years, 84.44% female, 76.11% White) reporting alcohol consumption in the past month recruited to participate in an online, cross-sectional study. Participants were randomly assigned to a control condition or one of four EFT cue-generation conditions (positive alcohol, negative alcohol, positive nonalcohol, and negative nonalcohol). Then participants in EFT conditions generated EFT cues based on the assigned condition. Afterward, all participants completed the DD task and alcohol purchase task; participants in the EFT conditions completed modified tasks during which their EFT cues were displayed. Finally, participants completed a self-report battery assessing alcohol consumption, alcohol-related problems, and demographics. Results: Participants assigned to nonalcohol EFT conditions discounted future rewards significantly less than those in alcohol EFT conditions, F(1, 266) = 6.87, p = .009, ηp2 = .025. However, there was no main effect of EFT valence on DD. EFT content around professional work, but not social relationships, was associated with less steep DD (β = −.24, p < .001). No effect of EFT on alcohol demand intensity was found. Conclusions: EFT effect on DD may lie in content rather than valence, in which alcohol-free EFT, whether positive or negative, was associated with preference for later but larger rewards. Incorporating a professional goal into imagined events might play a key role in EFT effects on promoting the valuation of future consequences. Public Health Significance Statement This study indicates that imagining an alcohol-free future event, especially related to academic work, was associated with higher valuations of future consequences among college students who drink. Therefore, substance-free episodic future thinking may hold promise as a potential prevention or early intervention tool, particularly in opportunistic contexts where individuals may not want or be ready to directly think about their alcohol use.