Importance of alcohol-related expectations and emotional expressivity for prediction of motivation to refuse alcohol in alcohol-dependent patients

Abstract

Background and objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the importance of alcohol-dependent patients' emotional expressivity, alcohol-related expectations and socio-demographic factors for prediction of motivation to refuse alcohol consumption.

Materials and methods: The study sample consisted of 136 alcohol-dependent patients (100 men and 36 women) undergoing treatment in Kaunas center for addictive disorders.

Results: Only higher expression of negative alcohol-related expectations (std. beta=0.192, P=0.023), higher emotional impulse intensity (std. beta=0.229, P=0.021) and higher expression of positive emotional expressiveness (std. beta=0.021, P=0.020) as well as gender (std. beta=0.180, P=0.049), education (std. beta=-0.137, P=0.038) and alcohol dependency treatment conditions (members of support group after rehabilitation program) (std. beta=0.288, P=0.001; std. beta=0.608, P=0.001) were significant factors for predicting the different level of alcohol-dependent patients motivation to refuse alcohol consumption.

Conclusions: Negative alcohol-related expectations, emotional impulse intensity and positive emotional expressiveness were significant even though quite weak triggers for alcohol-dependent patients' different level of motivation to refuse alcohol consumption. An assumption could be made that by changing these triggers it is possible to change addictive behavior.

Keywords: Alcohol dependency; Alcohol-related expectations; Emotional expressivity; Motivation to refuse alcohol consumption.