Alcohol and stress response dampening: Pharmacological effects, expectancy, and tension reduction.

TLDR: Results indicated strong effects of alcohol consumption on prestress levels, consisting of accelerated heart rate, lower HR variability, higher skin conductance, longer pulse transmission time (PTT), higher "cheerfulness" and lower "anxiety" (ANX).

Abstract: Alcohol consumption and alcohol expectation were separately evaluated in terms of effects on psychophysiol ogical levels prior to stress and reduction of the magnitude of response to stress. Ninety-six male, experienced drinkers were assigned to eight conditions in a between-subjects design in which beverage consumed (alcohol or tonic), beverage expected (alcohol or tonic), and stressor (self-disclosing speech or threat of shock) were manipulated. Dosage for subjects receiving alcohol was 1 g ethanol/kg body weight. Results indicated strong effects of alcohol consumption on prestress levels, consisting of accelerated heart rate (HR), lower HR variability, higher skin conductance, longer pulse transmission time (PTT), higher "cheerfulness" and lower "anxiety" (ANX). This pattern of effects is related to previous unsuccessful attempts to specify a simple relationship between alcohol consumption and "tension." In addition, alcohol consumption significantly reduced the magnitude of the HR, PTT, and ANX responses of subjects to the stressors. No effects attributable to alcohol expectation were found. These results are integrated with the existing literature concerned with pharmacological and cognitive effects of alcohol as they pertain to stress, psychophysiological responses to stress, and "tension reduction." The relationship between alcohol and iological response to stressful stimuli. This stress has long been a concern in the alcohol reduction in response magnitude has been research literature. It is ironic that after ex- demonstrated for the electrodermal response tensive study, little consensus exists as to to loud tones (Carpenter, 1957; Greenberg & the nature of this relationship. Similarly, it Carpenter, 1957), the electrodermal response is not uncommon for social drinkers to as- to verbal stimuli (Coopersmith, 1964; Liesert that alcohol has a beneficial action vis- nert & Traxel, 1959), and the cardiac rea-vis stress without being able to precisely sponse to loud tones (Lehrer & Taylor, formulate the nature of this action. 1974). It should be noted that these studies used simple laboratory stressors such as Effects of Alcohol on Response to Stress tones and high affect words. Studies that ,. , , used "real-life" stressors and included meaA number of studies have shown that sures of aflfective responses will be discussed alcohol reduces the magnitude of the physlater when the role of cognitive mediators