Gender, alcohol consumption, and differing alcohol expectancy dimensions in college drinkers

Abstract

Examinations of gender differences in alcohol expectancies among college drinkers typically have used self-report measures to assess single expectancy dimensions and often have been confounded by drinking level. This study examined gender differences in alcohol expectancies using 2 assessment methods. College students (N = 88) completed self-report questionnaires, including expectancy likelihood and subjective evaluation endorsements of expectancies, and a computerized expectancy accessibility task. Expectancy accessibility and endorsement were modestly correlated, with higher alcohol consumption and female gender linked to greater accessibility and endorsement of social enhancement expectancies. Gender moderated the relation between consumption and sociability expectancy accessibility; among men, heavier drinking was associated with more rapid activation of expectancies. Findings suggest complexity in associations among these variables and underscore the need to capture the multidimensionality of the expectancy construct and its relationship to alcohol use.