When Drinking Makes It Worse: The Malevolence Assumption, Appraisals, and Communication Goals

Abstract

This investigation examined the influence of perceived alcohol consumption on appraisals of and communicative goals for problematic events in college students' dating relationships. We suggested that problematic events during which the offender was drinking would lessen offender judgments of responsibility and severity, as well as the likelihood that the offender would consider accepting fault for the event to be an important goal. We also posited that the importance of the goals to maintain the relationship and to manage positive face would vary as a function of who was drinking during the problematic behavior. Using a questionnaire, respondents (N = 228) were asked to imagine that they were an offender in one of two problematic event scenarios that described one of four offender-partner drinking conditions. Respondents then completed measures assessing their appraisals of and communicative intentions for the situation. The results indicated a pattern opposite of what was predicted in several cases, yet highlight unique implications for appraisals and communicative goals based on who was drinking during the problematic event.

Keywords:

• Appraisals
• Dating Relationships
• Drinking
• Goals

Notes

^a Mean significantly higher than means for other conditions.

^b Mean significantly lower than means for other conditions.

^c Means refer to “The Slap” scenario. No significant mean differences were observed for “The Surprise Party” scenario.

^a Mean significantly higher than means for other conditions.

^b Mean significantly lower than means for other conditions.

1. All procedures were approved by the Institutional Review Boards at both institutions.

2. The two samples could not be statistically distinguished on any of the demographic or dependent variables. Therefore, the data from the combined sample are reported.

3. For the scenarios that referenced alcohol consumption, we decided to refer to the general phenomenon of “drinking” instead of specifying a specific number of drinks for several reasons. The results of the largest survey to date of college students (N = 65,000) reported that on average, college students drank approximately six alcoholic beverages a week, and nearly half reported consuming five or more drinks in one sitting (Wechsler & Kuo, 2000). However, due to the size of a drink, body weight of the drinker, and length of time of the drinking experience, the effects of one drink or more may vary across individuals. Therefore, specifying a number of drinks is likely to generate different reference points concerning drinking behavior. In addition, research has found that college students vary in their definition of the typical drinking behavior of themselves and their peers (Prentice & Miller, 1993), as well as how many alcoholic beverages constitute “moderate” or “heavy” alcohol consumption (Borsari & Carey, 2003). In turn, such labels for drinking amount may fall subject to the same point-of-reference problem. Perhaps most importantly, a common assumption in research on alcohol expectancies is that individuals' expectancies about the effects of alcohol are often generated with respect to judgments about “drinking” in general, without reference to a set number of drinks or a specified amount of alcohol (e.g., Gustafson, 1993; Leigh, 1999; Rohsenow, 1983). Thus, we allowed our respondents to interpret “drinking” according to their own subjective standards.

4. Scholars have suggested that the amount of alcohol the offender consumes in general should also moderate judgments about the acceptability of alcohol-involving situations (Leigh, 1999). For example, heavier drinkers tend to perceive alcohol effects less negatively than do lighter drinkers and non-drinkers (Gustafson, 1993). Heavier drinkers are also more tolerant of deviant behaviors than are light and moderate drinkers (McMahon & Jones, 1994). Separate tests of hypotheses were conducted where the amount of alcohol typically consumed by offenders was included as a moderator. No analyses with this variable were statistically significant.

5. Analyses were also conducted with the drinking conditions collapsed according to whether the offender was drinking or was not drinking. Because the four drinking conditions provide a more detailed understanding of the operation of alcohol consumption on appraisals and judgments of goal importance, analyses associated with the larger number of categories are reported.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Jennifer A. Samp

Jennifer A. Samp (PhD, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1999) is Assistant Professor in the Department of Speech Communication at the University of Georgia

Ann N. Miller

Ann N. Miller (PhD, University of Georgia, 2005) is an Instructor in the Department of Communication at Daystar University.