DRUNK OR SOBER - LEARNED CONFORMITY TO A BEHAVIORAL STANDARD

Objective: This research tested the hypothesis that behavioral standar ds in a drinking situation are learned. Method: Two groups of male soc ial drinkers (N = 12) were reinforced with verbal feedback (FB) for ma tching either a ''sober'' (S) or an ''intoxicated'' (I) behavioral sta ndard under repeated doses (0.62 g/kg) of alcohol. The criterion measu re was time to perform a trial on a psychomotor tracking task. A fast, efficient time(115 seconds) defined the S standard. A slow, inefficie nt time (150 seconds) defined the I standard. The behavioral effect of standards was tested during a final FB training session under alcohol , and during retention under a placebo and under alcohol, with FB abse nt. Results: S and I groups approximated their respective standards wh en reinforced, and these standards were retained when reinforcement wa s subsequently withheld. Under placebo, Group S displayed sober perfor mance comparable to their drug-free baseline, whereas Group I's perfor mance was significantly impaired. These group differences remained sig nificant under alcohol, and the drug effect impaired each group's perf ormance to a similar degree. Conclusions: Prior reinforcement of a sta ndard under alcohol can lead to the display of that standard when alco hol is expected or received. The consistent difference in the groups' performance under placebo and under alcohol suggests that learned stan dards may add an effect on behavior in a drinking situation that is di stinct from the drug effect. Retention of group standards under alcoho l in the absence of reinforcement confirms that these standards were l earned and were not simply a response to situational demand.