Effects of alcohol on a problem solving task

Abstract

Abstract : Twenty subjects were tested on two separate days on a simple problem-solving task. Half of the subjects received alcohol on the first day of testing and half on the second day of testing. A control group of 11 subjects was also tested on two days and they were given a placebo on the first day of testing. All 31 subjects were also serving in a vestibular stimulation experiment. A significant effect was found for alcohol with five of the eleven measures analyzed; four of the measures were time measures and one was an error measure. Analysis of the simple effects indicated that alcohol had a greater effect on the group that had alcohol on the first session than on the group that had alcohol second. There was also suggestive evidence of a residual effect of the vestibular stimulation on the problem-solving performance of the control group. In general, the findings provide supportive evidence of the potential deleterious effects of alcohol on a skill of importance to aviation operations. (Author)