Gender-Specific Effects of Mood on Alcohol-Seeking Behaviors: Preliminary Findings Using Intravenous Alcohol Self-Administration

BackgroundAlthough negative mood has long been implicated in differences in alcohol seeking by men and women, little research has used precise, well-controlled laboratory experiments to examine how negative mood affects alcohol-seeking behaviors. MethodsA total of 34 (19 women) community-dwelling, alcohol-using adults aged 21 to 32 (mean age=24.86, SD=3.40, 74.3% Caucasian; Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test [AUDIT]=10.1, SD=3.4) completed 2 counterbalanced intravenous alcohol self-administration sessions: one under negative mood and one under neutral mood. Fourteen individuals (9 women; mean age=25.00, SD=2.77) participated in an alcohol liking experiment (i.e., free access [FA] drinking) and 20 individuals (10 women; mean age=24.77, SD=3.73) participated in an alcohol wanting experiment, in which gaining access to alcohol required progressively effortful work. There was no significant difference between men and women on the AUDIT, t(32)=-0.38, p=0.71. ResultsPriming with negative mood induction caused a significant decrease in self-reported mood (mean change=-1.85, t(32)=-6.81, p<0.001), as intended. In FA, negative mood was associated with a significantly increased peak breath alcohol concentration (BrAC; F=9.41, p=0.01), with a trend toward a greater effect in men than in women (F=2.67, p=0.13). Negative mood also had a significant effect on peak BrAC achieved in the progressive work paradigm (F=5.28, p=0.04), with a significantly stronger effect in men (F=5.35, p=0.03) than women; men also trended toward more consistent work for alcohol across both neutral and negative sessions. ConclusionsThese preliminary findings demonstrate a gender-specific response on how mood affects alcohol seeking and suggest gender-specific interventions to prevent mood-based alcohol consumption.