This article selectively reviews psychological research pertinent to the role of drinking in interpersonal aggression. The underlying theme is that individual differences represent a neglected area in studies of the alcohol-aggression relation. Relevant expectancy surveys, popular beliefs about how alcohol affects aggression, and balanced-placebo experiments designed to disentangle psychological and physiological causes of alcohol-related behavior are reviewed in pursuing this theme. Finally, the scant evidence indicating how person variables might influence the determination of aggression through a drinking × person × situation interaction is summarized, and recommendations for future research are made.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
Berry, M. , & Brain, P. (1986). Neurophysiological and endocrinological consequences of alcohol. In P. Brain (Ed.), Alcohol and aggression (pp. 19-54). London: Croom Helm.
2.
Boyatzis, R. (1975). The predisposition toward alcohol-related interpersonal aggression in men. Journal of Studies on Alcohol, 36, 1196-1207.
3.
Brain, P. (1986). Alcohol and aggression. London: Croom Helm.
4.
Brown, S. , Goldman, M., Inn, A., & Anderson, L. (1980). Expectations of reinforcement from alcohol: Their domain and relation to drinking patterns. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 48, 419-426.
5.
Brown, S. , & Munson, E. (1987). Extroversion, anxiety, and the perceived effects of alcohol. Journal of Studies on Alcohol, 48, 272-276.
6.
Cameron, T. (1981). Alcohol and alcohol problems: Public opinion in California 1974-1980. Unpublished manuscript, Social Research Group.
7.
Coid, J. (1982). Alcoholism and violence. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 9, 1-13.
8.
Coid, J. (1986). Socio-cultural factors in alcohol-related aggression. In P. Brain (Ed.), Alcohol and aggression (pp. 184-211). London: Croom Helm.
9.
Collins, J. (1981). Drinking and crime: Perspective on the relationships between alcohol consumption and criminal behavior:New York: Guilford Press.
10.
Cordilia, A. (1985). Alcohol and property crime: Exploring the causal nexus. Journal of Studies on Alcohol, 46, 161-171.
11.
Corenblum, B. (1983). Reactions to alcohol-related marital violence. Journal of Studies on Alcohol, 44, 665-674.
12.
Crawford, A. (1984a). Alcohol and expectancy: I. Perceived sex differences in the effects of drinking. Alcohol and Alcholism, 19, 63-69.
13.
Crawford, A. (1984b). Alcohol and expectancy: II. Perceived sex differences in the role of alcohol as a source of aggression. Alcohol and Alcoholism, 19, 71-75.
14.
Critchlow, B. (1983). Blaming the booze: The attribution of responsibility for drunken behavior. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 9, 451-473.
15.
Critchlow, B. (1986). The powers of John Barleycorn: Beliefs about the effects of alcohol on social behavior. American Psychologist, 41, 751-764.
16.
Dobash, R. E. , & Dobash, R. (1979). Violence against wives: A case against the patriarchy. New York: Free Press.
17.
Engle, G. (1977). The need for a new medical model: A challenge for biomedicine. Science, 196, 129-136.
18.
Epstein, T. (1978). A socio-legal examination of intoxication in the criminal law. Contemporary Drug Problems, 7, 401-469.
19.
Feldman, M. (1977). Criminal behavior: A psychological analysis. London: Wiley.
20.
Gelles, R. (1974). The violent home: A study of physical aggression between husbands and wives. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage.
21.
Gottheil, E. , Druley, K., Skoloda, T., & Waxman, H. (1983). Alcohol, drug abuse, and aggression. Springfield, IL: Charles Ck Thomas.
22.
Graham, K. , LaRocque, L., Yetman, R., Ross, T., & Guistra, E. (1980). Aggression and barroom environments. Journal of Studies on Alcohol, 41, 277-292.
23.
Greenberg, S. (1981). Alcohol and crime: A methodological critique of the literature. In J. Collins (Ed.), Drinking and crime (pp. 70-119). New York: Guilford Press.
24.
Gustafson, R. (1985). Alcohol and aggression - Pharmacological versus expectancy effects. Psychological Reports, 57, 955-966.
25.
Gustafson, R. (1986a). Alcohol, frustration, and aggression: An experiment using the balanced placebo design. Psychological Reports, 59, 207-218.
26.
Gustafson, R. (1986b). Threat as a determinant of alcohol-related aggression. Psychological Reports, 58, 287-297.
27.
Gustafson, R. (1987a). Lack of correspondence between alcohol-related aggressive expectancies for self and others. Psychological Reports, 60, 707-710.
28.
Gustafson, R. (1987b). Alcohol and human physical aggression: An experiment using a “backward” balanced placebo design. Journal of Social Behavior and Personality, 2, 135-144.
29.
Hull, J. , & Bond, C. (1986). Social and behavioral consequences of alcohol consumption and expectancy: A meta-analysis. Psychological Bulletin, 99, 347-360.
30.
Jeavons, C. , & Taylor, S. (1985). The control of alcohol-related aggression: Redirecting the inebriate's attention to socially appropriate conduct. Aggressive Behavior, 11, 93-101.
31.
Kidder, L. , & Cohn, E. (1979). Public views of crime and crime prevention. In I. Frieze, D. Bar-Tal, & J. Carroll (Eds.), New approaches to social problems. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.
32.
Kreutzer, J. , Schneider, H., & Myatt, C. (1984). Alcohol, aggression, and assertiveness in men: Dosage and expectancy effects. Journal of Studies on Alcohol, 45, 275-278.
33.
Lang, A. (1983a). Drinking and disinhibition: Contribution from psychological research. In R. Room & G. Collins (Eds.), Alcohol and disinhibition: Nature and meaning of the link (National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism Research Monograph No. 12, pp. 48-90). Washington, DC: Government Printing Office.
34.
Lang, A. (1983b). Addictive personality: A viable construct? In P. Levison, D. Gerstein, & D. Maloff (Eds.), Commonalities in substance abuse and habitual behavior (pp. 157-236). Lexington, MA: Lexington Books.
35.
Lang, A. , Goeckner, D., Adesso, U., & Marlatt, G. (1975). Effects of alcohol on aggression in male social drinkers. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 84, 508-518.
36.
Leonard, K. , Bromet, E., Parkinson, D., Day, N., & Ryan, C. (1985). Patterns of alcohol use and physically aggressive behavior in men. Journal of Studies on Alcohol, 46, 279-282.
37.
Levenson, R. , Oyama, O., & Meek, P. (1987). Greater reinforcement from alcohol for those at risk: parental risk, personality risk, and sex. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 96, 242-253.
38.
Levine, H. (1983). The good creature of God and the demon rum: Colonial American and 19th century ideas about alcohol, crime, and accidents. In R. Room & G. Collins (Eds)., Alcohol and disinhibition. Nature and meaning of the link (National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism Research Monograph No. 12, pp. 111-161). Washington, DC: Government Printing Office.
39.
Lindman, R. , Järvinen, P., & Vidjeskog, J. (1987). Verbal interactions of aggressively and non-aggressively predisposed males in a drinking situation. Aggressive Behavior, 13, 187-196.
40.
MacAndrew, C. , & Edgerton, R. (1969). Drunken comportment: A social explanation. Chicago: Aldine.
41.
Maletzky, B. (1976). The diagnosis of pathological intoxication. Journal of Studies on Alcohol, 37, 1215-1228.
42.
Marlatt, G. , Demming, B., & Reid, J. (1973). Loss of control drinking in alcoholics: An experimental analogue. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 81, 233-241.
43.
Marlatt, G. , & Rohsenow, D. (1980). Cognitive processes in alcohol use: Expectancy and the balanced placebo design. In N. Mello (Ed.), Advances in substance abuse: Behavioral and biological research. Greenwich, CT: JAI Press.
44.
Massey, R. F. (1989). Intoxification as a defense against criminal charges in Florida: The research and the law. Criminal Justice and Behavior, 16, 325-344.
45.
Mayfield, D. (1976). Alcoholism, alcohol intoxication, and assaultive behavior. Diseases of the Nervous System, 37, 288-291.
46.
McCaghy, C. (1968). Drinking and deviance disavowal: The case of child molesters. Social Problems, 16, 43-49.
47.
Murdoch, D. , & Pihl, R. (1985). Alcohol and aggression in group interaction. Addictive Behaviors, 10, 97-101.
48.
Nathan, P. , Titler, N., Lowenstein, L., Solomon, P., & Ross, A. (1970). Behavioral analysis of chronic alcoholism. Archives of General Psychiatry, 22, 419-430.
49.
Orcutt, J. (1978). Normative definitions of intoxicated states: A test of several sociological theories. Social Problems, 25, 385-396.
50.
Pernanen, K. (1981). Theoretical aspects of the relationship between alcohol use and crime. In J. Collins (Ed.), Drinking and crime (pp. 1-69). New York: Guilford Press.
51.
Perr, I. (1985a). Pathological intoxication and alcohol idiosyncratic intoxication - I: Diagnostic and clinical aspects. Journal of Forensic Science, 31, 806-811.
52.
Perr, I. (1985b). Pathological intoxication and alcohol idiosyncratic intoxication - II: Legal aspects. Journal of Forensic Science, 31, 812-817.
53.
Pihl, R. (1983). Alcohol and aggression: A psychological perspective. In E. Gottheilet al. (Eds.), Alcohol, drug abuse, and aggression (pp. 292-313). Springfield, IL: Charles C Thomas.
54.
Pihl, R. , & Zacchia, C. (1986). Alcohol and aggression: A test of the affect-arousal hypothesis. Aggressive Behavior, 12, 367-375.
55.
Pihl, R. , Zacchia, C., & Zeichner, A. (1982). Predicting levels of aggression after alcohol intake in men social drinkers: A preliminary investigation. Journal of Studies on Alcohol, 43, 599-602.
56.
Pihl, R. , Zeichner, A., Niaura, R., Nagy, K., & Zacchia, C. (1981). Attribution and alcohol mediated-aggression. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 90, 468-475.
57.
Pollock, V.et al. (1983). The EEG after alcohol in men at risk for alcoholism. Archives of General Psychiatry, 40, 857-861.
58.
Richardson, D. , & Campbell, J. (1980). Alcohol and wife abuse: The effect of alcohol on attributions of blame for wife abuse. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 6, 51-56.
59.
Richardson, D. , & Campbell, J. (1982). Alcohol and rape: The effect of alcohol on attributions of blame for rape. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 8, 468-476.
60.
Rohsenow, D. (1983). Drinking habits and expectancies about alcohol's effects for self versus others. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 51, 752-756.
61.
Rohsenow, D. , & Bachorowski, J. (1984). Effects of alcohol and expectancies on verbal aggression in men and women. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 13, 418-432.
62.
Roizen, R. (1983). Loosening up: General population views of the effects of alcohol. In R. Room & G. Collins (Eds.), Drinking and disinhibition: Nature and meaning of the link (National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism Research Monograph No. 12, pp. 236-257). Washington, DC: Government Printing Office.
63.
Rosenbaum, C. , Adams, J., Scott, K., Renson, G., Tinklenberg, J., & Hanks, S. (1981). Alcohol and violence: A clinical study. In D. Hamburg & M. Trudeau (Eds.), Biobehavioral aspects of aggression (pp. 169-226). New York: Alan R. Liss.
64.
Ross, S. , Krugman, A., Lyerly, S., & Clyde, D. (1962). Drugs or placebos: A model design. Psychological Reports, 10, 383-392.
65.
Sher, K. (1985). Subjective effects of alcohol: The influence of setting and individual differences in alcohol expectancies. Journal of Studies on Alcohol, 46, 137-146.
66.
Skelton, W. (1970). Alcohol, violent behavior, and the electroencephalogram. Southern Medical Journal, 63, 465-466.
67.
Sobell, C. , & Sobell, M. (1975). Drunkenness, a “special circumstance” in crimes of violence: Sometimes. International Journal of the Addictions, 10, 869-882.
68.
Southwick, L. , Steel, C., Marlatt, A., & Lindell, M. (1981). Alcohol-related expectancies: Defined by phase of intoxication and drinking experience. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 49, 713-721.
69.
Tamerin, J. , Weiner, S., & Mendelson, J. (1970). Alcoholics' expectancies and recall experiences during intoxication. American Journal of Psychiatry, 126, 1697-1704.
70.
Taylor, S. , & Leonard, K. (1983). Alcohol and human physical aggression. In R. Geen & E. Donnerstein (Eds.), Aggression: Theoretical and empirical reviews (Vol. 2). New York: Academic Press.
71.
Virkkunen, M. (1987). Metabolic dysfunctions among habitually violent offenders: Reactive hypoglycemia and cholesterol levels. In S. Mednick, T. Moffitt, & S. Stack (Eds.), The causes of crime: New biological perspectives (pp. 292-311). Cambridge, United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press.
72.
Yankofsky, L. , Wilson, G., Adler, J., Hay, W., & Vrana, S. (1986). The effect of alcohol on self-evaluation and perception of negative interpersonal feedback. Journal of Studies on Alcohol, 47, 26-33.
73.
Zeichner, A. , & Pihl, R. (1979). Effects of alcohol and behavior contingencies on human aggression. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 88, 153-160.
74.
Zeichner, A. , & Pihl, R. (1980). Effects of alcohol and instigator intent on human aggression. Journal of Studies on Alcohol, 41, 265-276.
