Ambivalence in Adolescents’ Alcohol Expectancies: A Longitudinal Mixed Methods Study Among 12-to-18-Year-Olds

Abstract

Drawing on the framework of alcohol expectancies and their importance for drinking behaviors, this longitudinal mixed-methods study examined changes and continuities in the development of alcohol expectancies during adolescence. Quantitative and qualitative data were prospectively collected at four time points between 2015 and 2020 from nationwide, socio-economic, and gender-balanced samples of Norwegian adolescents aged 12–18. Quantitative data (n = 3425) were analyzed using linear mixed-effects models, and qualitative data (n_T1 = 118) using thematic analysis. Quantitative and qualitative results were juxtaposed in the discussion. Quantitative results indicated an increase in social facilitation and tension reduction expectancies from age 13 to 18, and a simultaneous decrease in negative emotional expectancies. This development could partly be explained by experience with alcohol use in adolescence. Similarly, qualitative findings showed adolescents’ expectancies of alcohol evolving with age, from one-sided negative expectancies of aggression and harm to increased positive expectancies of fun, sociability, and relaxation. Both analyses showed that negative expectances remained high throughout the study period, but by late adolescence, many participants held positive and negative expectations simultaneously. The qualitative data illustrated how adolescents’ alcohol expectancies became increasingly ambivalent and complex with age, as alcohol use became more common. Prevention strategies aiming to reduce underage alcohol use should acknowledge this complexity.