Objective: This study examined whether the content (alcohol vs. nonalcohol) and valence (positive vs. negative) of episodic future thinking (EFT) are associated with delay discounting (DD) and alcohol demand.
Method: Participants (N = 360) were college students (Mage = 21.64 years, 84.44% female, 76.11% White) reporting alcohol consumption in the past month recruited to participate in an online, cross-sectional study. Participants were randomly assigned to a control condition or one of four EFT cue-generation conditions (positive alcohol, negative alcohol, positive nonalcohol, and negative nonalcohol). Then participants in EFT conditions generated EFT cues based on the assigned condition. Afterward, all participants completed the DD task and alcohol purchase task; participants in the EFT conditions completed modified tasks during which their EFT cues were displayed. Finally, participants completed a self-report battery assessing alcohol consumption, alcohol-related problems, and demographics.
Results: Participants assigned to nonalcohol EFT conditions discounted future rewards significantly less than those in alcohol EFT conditions, F(1, 266) = 6.87, p = .009, ηp² = .025. However, there was no main effect of EFT valence on DD. EFT content around professional work, but not social relationships, was associated with less steep DD (β = -.24, p < .001). No effect of EFT on alcohol demand intensity was found.
Conclusions: EFT effect on DD may lie in content rather than valence, in which alcohol-free EFT, whether positive or negative, was associated with preference for later but larger rewards. Incorporating a professional goal into imagined events might play a key role in EFT effects on promoting the valuation of future consequences. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).