title: Intoxicated sexual risk taking: an expectancy or cognitive impairment explanation?
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Two experimental studies tested expectancy and impairment explanations for the association between alcohol consumption and unsafe sexual behaviors.
  
  
  METHODS
  Young adults, who were administered alcohol (blood alcohol concentration mean = .08 mg%), placebo or water, rated the likelihood that potential consequences would result from risky sexual practices (Study 1, N = 161) and listed potential consequences that could result from having sex without a condom (Study 2, N = 135).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Intoxicated participants reported lower perceptions of risk (mean [+/-SD] = 4.5+/-2.1) than those who received placebo (mean = 5.8+/-1.3) or water (mean = 5.5+/-1.7). Intoxicated participants also listed fewer negative consequences (mean = 1.3+/-1.2) than those who received placebo (mean = 1.5+/-1.2) or water (mean = 2.1+/-1.5). In addition, participants who expected alcohol to disinhibit their sexual behavior reported stronger postdrinking perceptions of benefit (mean = 2.6+/-1.8) and indicated that they were more likely to engage in risky sexual practices (mean = 2.4+/-1.7) than those who did not expect sexual disinhibition (mean = 2.0+/-1.7, benefit; mean = 1.8+/-1.1, involvement).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Results support the hypotheses that (1) alcohol-related impairment reduces the drinker's perception of personal risk, and (2) positive outcome expectancies motivate drinkers to engage in risky sexual practices.
authors: Department of Psychology, University of Texas at Austin, 78712, USA.
authors: K
authors: K
authors: Fromme
authors: E J
authors: EJ
authors: D'Amico
authors: E C
authors: EC
authors: Katz
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000435:Alcoholic Intoxication / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000523:psychology; D001294:Attitude to Health; D003071:Cognition; D017280:Condoms / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007600:Judgment / Q000187:drug effects; D008297:Male; D009042:Motivation; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012309:Risk-Taking; D012737:Sex Factors; D012725:Sexual Behavior / Q000523:psychology*