Alcohol Expectancies in Relation to Personality and Aggression Among Juvenile Delinquents in Northern Russia

• NCJ Number: 212181
• Journal: Journal of Drug Education Volume: 35 Issue: 2 Dated: 2005 Pages: 111-130
• Author(s): Roman A. Koposov M.D.; Vladislav V. Ruchkin Ph.D.; Martin Eisemann Ph.D.; Pavel I. Sidorov Ph.D.
• Date Published: 2005
• Length: 20 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This study examined the links between expectations of alcohol effects, level of alcohol use, alcohol-related problems, aggression, and personality factors for 198 Russian male juvenile delinquents.

Abstract

The subjects were volunteers recruited from approximately 300 male adolescent inmates who had been sent to the juvenile detention center in the Arkhangelsk region of Northern Russia. The sample was administered the Alcohol Effects Questionnaire-2 (AEQ-2), which assesses an individual's expectations about the effects of alcohol use. Using a true-false response format, the AEQ-2 measures expectations for six positive and two negative effects of alcohol. The six positive effects are global/positive changes; enhanced sexual performance and experience; social and physical pleasure; increased social assertion; relaxation and tension reduction; and increased power and aggression. The two negative effects measured are cognitive and physical impairment, as well as careless unconcern. Other instruments identified drinking problems; assessed problem drinking; measured the level of various aspects of aggression; and determined the four temperament and three character dimensions based on Cloninger's unified biosocial theory of personality. A K-means cluster analytical procedure was used to identify the most common individual profiles based on various aspects of alcohol expectations. Three major clusters were identified, and level of alcohol use, alcohol-related problems, aggression, and personality factors were compared across the identified clusters. The study found that juvenile delinquents with a high level of positive alcohol expectations and aggression constituted a risk group for higher involvement in drinking behavior, including problem drinking, which in turn were related to specific personality traits. Implications are discussed for alcohol prevention. 1 figure, 3 tables, and 53 references