Extraversion and Altered State of Awareness Predict Alcohol Cue-Reactivity

Abstract

Studies have shown that regular drinkers respond to alcohol-related stimuli with increases in urge to drink and changes in affect. Evidence indicates that there is individual variability in responses to alcohol-related cues. The current study aimed to examine (1) the role of extraversion in understanding variability in responses to alcohol cues and (2) whether cue-elicited altered states of awareness are related to urge to drink and affective responses. Forty-one participants were exposed first to a neutral and then to an alcohol cue; urge and affective responses were then measured. Extraversion was a significant positive predictor of urge to drink, while altered state of awareness was a significant positive predictor of urge to drink and positive affect. Interestingly, altered state of awareness significantly improved prediction of both urge to drink and positive affect after controlling for levels of extraversion. These findings suggest that changes in states of awareness following presentation of alcohol cues may facilitate the observed increases in urge to drink and positive affect.