Affective decision-making moderates the effects of automatic associations on alcohol use among drug offenders.
This study used a dual-process model of cognition in order to investigate the possible influence of automatic and deliberative processes on lifetime alcohol use in a sample of drug offenders.



The objective was to determine if automatic/implicit associations in memory can exert an influence over an individual's alcohol use and if decision-making ability could potentially modify the influence of these associations.



168 participants completed a battery of cognitive tests measuring implicit alcohol associations in memory (verb generation) as well as their affective decision-making ability (Iowa Gambling Task). Structural equation modeling procedures were used to test the relationship between implicit associations, decision-making, and lifetime alcohol use.



Results revealed that among participants with lower levels of decision-making, implicit alcohol associations more strongly predicted higher lifetime alcohol use.



These findings provide further support for the interaction between a specific decision function and its influence over automatic processes in regulating alcohol use behavior in a risky population. Understanding the interaction between automatic associations and decision processes may aid in developing more effective intervention components.
a School of Community and Global Health , Claremont Graduate University , Claremont , CA , USA.
Christopher
C
Cappelli
a School of Community and Global Health , Claremont Graduate University , Claremont , CA , USA.
Susan
S
Ames
a School of Community and Global Health , Claremont Graduate University , Claremont , CA , USA.
Yusuke
Y
Shono
a School of Community and Global Health , Claremont Graduate University , Claremont , CA , USA.
Mark
M
Dust
a School of Community and Global Health , Claremont Graduate University , Claremont , CA , USA.
Alan
A
Stacy
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000339:Affect / Q000502:physiology*; D000368:Aged; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000523:psychology*; D001244:Association; D003071:Cognition / Q000502:physiology; D057237:Criminals / Q000523:psychology*; D003657:Decision Making / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D055815:Young Adult
Dual process; alcohol use; decision-making; implicit associations