The possible significance of cognitive and situational factors in determining the response to alcohol suggests that behavioral changes following drinking may reflect a lack of self-control not solely attributable to the pharmacological effect. In an initial experiment subjects were requested to overcome the effects of alcohol (1.32 ml/kg 95% ethanol). In comparison with a no-motivation group (n = 11), motivated subjects (n = 14) demonstrated compensation on aspects of tasks involving memory, coordination and affect. It was speculated that attributions of causality (internal or external) for relative control might influence its occurrence and maintenance. In a second experiment false dose feedback was expected to interact with relative control to affect subjects' (n = 45) attributions. A greater level of sobriety was achieved by subjects who were led to attribute responsibility to themselves. Also, it appeared that further drinking was affected by cognitive influences. Implications of the self-control phenomenon, especially regarding the non-pharmacological role and the etiology of excessive drinking, are discussed.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:LACETR/oai:collectionscanada.gc.ca:QMM.68598 |
| Date | January 1980 |
| Creators | Young, James A. (James Albert), 1951- |
| Publisher | McGill University |
| Source Sets | Library and Archives Canada ETDs Repository / Centre d'archives des thèses électroniques de Bibliothèque et Archives Canada |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Coverage | Doctor of Philosophy (Department of Psychology) |
| Rights | All items in eScholarship@McGill are protected by copyright with all rights reserved unless otherwise indicated. |
| Relation | alephsysno: 000112579, proquestno: AAINK52191, Theses scanned by UMI/ProQuest. |
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