Abstract
The personality trait of extraversion has been linked to problematic drinking patterns. Researchers have long hypothesized that such associations are attributable to increased alcohol-reward sensitivity among extraverted individuals, and surveys suggest that individuals high in extraversion gain greater mood enhancement from alcohol than those low in extraversion. Surprisingly, however, alcohol administration studies have not found individuals high in extraversion to experience enhanced mood following alcohol consumption. Of note, prior studies have examined extraverted participants-individuals who self-identify as being highly social-consuming alcohol in isolation. In the present research, we used a group drinking paradigm to examine whether individuals high in extraversion gained greater reward from alcohol than did those low in extraversion and, further, whether a particular social mechanism (partners’ Duchenne smiling) might underlie alcohol reward sensitivity among extraverted individuals. Social drinkers (n 720) consumed a moderate dose of alcohol, placebo, or control beverage in groups of 3 over the course of 36 min. This social interaction was video-recorded, and Duchenne smiling was coded using the Facial Action Coding System. Results indicated that participants high in extraversion reported significantly more mood enhancement from alcohol than did those low in extraversion. Further, mediated moderation analyses focusing on Duchenne smiling of group members indicated that social processes fully and uniquely accounted for alcohol reward-sensitivity among individuals high in extraversion. Results provide initial experimental evidence that individuals high in extraversion experience increased mood-enhancement from alcohol and further highlight the importance of considering social processes in the etiology of alcohol use disorder.
Highlights
The personality trait of extraversion has been linked to problematic drinking patterns
Researchers have observed that some individuals experience greater emotional reward in response to alcohol consumption than others and, noting that alcohol reward tends to covary with alcohol use disorder (AUD) risk profile, have suggested that an examination of alcohol’s emotional rewards in a laboratory setting could help elucidate factors that reinforce problematic drinking (Levenson, Oyama, & Meek, 1987)
Participants administered alcohol were on the ascending limb of the blood alcohol content (BAC) curve with a BAC rising to about .06% immediately following the interaction period
Summary
The personality trait of extraversion has been linked to problematic drinking patterns. We used a group drinking paradigm to examine whether individuals high in extraversion gained greater reward from alcohol than did those low in extraversion and, further, whether a particular social mechanism (partners’ Duchenne smiling) might underlie alcohol reward sensitivity among extraverted individuals. Researchers have observed that some individuals experience greater emotional reward in response to alcohol consumption than others and, noting that alcohol reward tends to covary with AUD risk profile, have suggested that an examination of alcohol’s emotional rewards in a laboratory setting could help elucidate factors that reinforce problematic drinking (Levenson, Oyama, & Meek, 1987). Laboratory studies have examined alcohol’s mood-enhancing effects among individuals displaying a range of AUD risk factors, including family history of alcoholism, male gender, and personality characteristics (see Sher & Wood, 2005). Impulsivity are believed to represent more powerful predictors of AUD, extraversion has received a great deal of attention as a risk factor for heavy drinking and AUD
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