AbstractsPsychology

Ethnic differences in alcohol outcome expectancies and drinking patterns

by Fransing Daisy




Institution: University of Washington
Department:
Degree: PhD
Year: 1989
Keywords: Psychology
Record ID: 1632793
Full text PDF: http://hdl.handle.net/1773/9176


Abstract

The beliefs and attitudes about the effect of alcohol consumption upon behavior were compared using self-report measures of alcohol outcome expectancy, attitude toward drinking, and level of drinking habit within four different ethnic groups: Asian American, American Indian, Black American, and Caucasian. The purpose of the study was to investigate the association between alcohol outcome expectancies and attitudes toward drinking in relation to self-reported consumption patterns among ethnic groups as well as between men and women across ethnic groups. Two hundred and eighty nine college-age subjects were administered a questionnaire packet which included a quantity/frequency measure of drinking habit, the Alcohol Expectancy Questionnaire, an Attitudes Toward Drinking assessment and a demographic questionnaire. Group differences in self-reported drinking habit found that regardless of gender, the Caucasian and American Indian groups drank significantly more, the Asian American group significantly less, and the Black American group demonstrated an intermediate drinking habit. Group differences in alcohol outcome expectancies found that American Indian and Caucasian groups had significantly stronger positive expectancies for anticipation of global, positive change, social and physical pleasure, and social assertiveness than did Asian American and Black American groups. The Caucasian group was found to have stronger positive expectancies for tension reduction than the Black American group; and the American Indian group was found to have stronger positive expectancies of arousal and feelings of power than the Black American group. Group differences in alcohol outcome expectancies were also found for men across ethnic groups. Men were found to have significantly stronger positive expectancies for anticipation of global, positive change, social and physical pleasure, tension reduction, and arousal with feelings of power than did women. Group comparisons on attitudes toward drinking found that men had significantly more positive attitudes toward drinking than did women. Finally, investigation of the relationship among alcohol outcome expectancies, attitudes toward drinking, ethnicity, and sex upon self-reported drinking habit found that expectation of social and physical pleasure, subject's attitude toward drinking, and not being of Asian American ethnicity provided the greatest level of discrimination of alcohol consumption. The findings are discussed in terms of the relationship of cognitive factors to drinking habit within ethnic minority groups.