Statistics anxiety and predictions of exam performance in UK psychology students.

BACKGROUND: Statistics anxiety is common among social science students. Despite much evidence examining statistics anxiety and test performance, little research has explored the role of student self-prediction on test performance in a higher education setting. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between statistics anxiety and both students' self-prediction of their future exam performance and actual test performance on a formal statistics assessment at undergraduate level in psychology students in the UK. METHOD: Using a cross-sectional design, two hundred and two students were required to complete Statistics Anxiety Rating Scales, the Mathematical Prerequisites for Psychometrics Scale, and provided self-predicted test performance scores. Test performance data was obtained from a formal statistics assessment. RESULTS: As predicted, we demonstrated statistics test anxiety to be negatively associated with self-predicted performance. Additionally, we found statistics anxiety was positively associated with test performance. CONCLUSION: The findings highlight the complex relationship between statistics anxiety and test performance, suggesting there may be an optimal level of anxiety for performance in statistics assessments. IMPLICATIONS: The results we report have implications for psychology research methods and statistics instructors who may wish to incorporate the findings into statistics instruction modules in order to assuage high levels of statistics anxiety and foster student well-being.

The labels and models used to describe problematic substance use impact discrete elements of stigma: A registered report.

OBJECTIVES: Problematic substance use is one of the most stigmatized health conditions leading research to examine how the labels and models used to describe it influence public stigma. Two recent studies examine whether beliefs in a disease model of addiction influence public stigma but result in equivocal findings-in line with the mixed-blessings model, Kelly et al. (2021) found that while the label "chronically relapsing brain disease" reduced blame attribution, it decreased prognostic optimism and increased perceived danger and need for continued care; however, Rundle et al. (2021) conclude absence of evidence. This study isolates the different factors used in these two studies to assess whether health condition (drug use vs. health concern), etiological label (brain disease vs. problem), and attributional judgment (low vs. high treatment stability) influence public stigma toward problematic substance use. METHOD: Overall, 1,613 participants were assigned randomly to one of the eight vignette conditions that manipulated these factors. They completed self-report measures of discrete and general public stigma and an indirect measure of discrimination. RESULTS: Greater social distance, danger, and public stigma but lower blame were ascribed to drug use relative to a health concern. Greater (genetic) blame was reported when drug use was labeled as a "chronically relapsing brain disease" relative to a "problem." Findings for attributional judgment were either inconclusive or statistically equivalent. DISCUSSION: The labels used to describe problematic substance use appear to impact discrete elements of stigma. We suggest that addiction is a functional attribution, which may explain the mixed literature on the impact of etiological labels on stigma to date. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

In people who drink more, facets of theory of mind may be impaired by alcohol stimuli.

BACKGROUND: Theory of mind (ToM) - the ability to understand others' beliefs, mental states, and knowledge - is an important part of successful social interaction. There is a growing (albeit mixed) evidence base suggesting that individuals with substance use disorder or who are intoxicated (relative to sober controls) perform worse on a number of ToM tasks. The aim of this study was to explore the hitherto little explored notion that ToM-related capabilities such as the ability to see the world from another person's perspective (termed Visual Perspective Taking; VPT), may be impacted by alcohol-related stimuli. METHOD: In this pre-registered study, 108 participants (M age = 25.75, SD age = 5.67) completed a revised version of the director task where they followed the instructions of an avatar to move both alcohol beverages and soft drinks that were mutually visible (target objects) while avoiding those only visible to the participant (distractor items). RESULTS: Contrary to predictions, accuracy was lower when the target drink was alcohol and the distractor was a soft drink, although higher AUDIT scores were associated with significantly lower accuracy when alcohol drinks were the distractor items. CONCLUSIONS: There may be some contexts when being able to see alcohol beverages makes it harder to take another person's perspective. It also appears that poorer VPT and perhaps ToM capacity may be evident in individuals who consume more alcohol. Future research is warranted to examine how alcohol beverages, alcohol consumption behaviours, and intoxication interact to impact VPT capacity.

The impact of alcohol priming on craving and motivation to drink: a meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: An initial dose of alcohol can motivate-or prime-further drinking and may precipitate (re)lapse and bingeing. Lab-based studies have investigated the alcohol priming effect; however, heterogeneity in designs has resulted in some inconsistent findings. The aims of this meta-analysis were to (i) determine the pooled effect size for motivation to drink following priming, measured by alcohol consumption and craving, and (ii) examine whether design characteristics influenced any priming effect. METHODS: Literature searches of PsycINFO, PubMed and Scopus in October 2020 (updated October 2021) identified lab-based alcohol priming studies that assessed effect of priming on motivation to drink. A tailored risk-of-bias tool assessed quality of lab-based studies. Random effects meta-analyses were computed on outcome data from 38 studies comparing the effect of a priming dose of alcohol against control on subsequent alcohol consumption/self-reported craving. Study characteristics that might have affected outcomes were design type (within/between-participant), dose of prime, time of motivation assessment, type of control drink (placebo alcohol/soft drink). RESULTS: Relative to control, alcohol had a small-to-moderate priming effect on subsequent alcohol consumption (standardised mean difference [SMD] = 0.336 [95% CI, 0.171, 0.500]) and craving (SMD = 0.431 [95% CI, 0.306, 0.555]). Aspects of study design differentially affected consumption and craving. The size of the priming dose had no effect on consumption, but larger doses were sometimes associated with greater craving (with craving generally following the blood alcohol curve). Alcohol priming effects for consumption, but not craving, were smaller when compared with placebo, relative to soft drink, control. CONCLUSIONS: Lab-based alcohol priming studies are a valid paradigm from which to investigate the impact of acute intoxication on alcohol motivation. Designs are needed that assess the impact of acute consumption on motivation to drink in more varied and realistic ways.

Longitudinal associations with alcohol consumption during the first COVID-19 lockdown: Associations with mood, drinking motives, context of drinking, and mental health.

BACKGROUND: Coronavirus (COVID-19) resulted in lockdown measures in the UK, which has impacted alcohol use. Alcohol is often used as a coping mechanism and there are public health concerns regarding excessive consumption due to the pandemic. We aimed to longitudinally assess drinking behaviors, and associated factors, during the first UK government-mandated lockdown. METHODS: An online survey was distributed through social media (8th April 2020, onwards). Fortnightly follow up surveys were emailed to participants. The primary outcome measure was 'weekly unit consumption' and data was collected on a range of potentially related factors: demographics, factors relating to COVID-19 (e.g., health, work status), drinking motives, context of drinking, drinking intentions, mood, depression and anxiety. FINDINGS: A total of 539 self-selected participants completed the baseline survey, with 186 completing at least 3 follow up surveys for multilevel modelling analysis. Personal coping motives, anxiety, drinking at home alone, and drinking at home with others were positively associated with alcohol consumption during lockdown. The following baseline measures also predicted increased consumption: male gender, lower education, and higher AUDIT scores (based on behavior prior to lockdown). Findings were consistent when utilizing an inverse probability weight to account for predictors of attrition (female, younger age, higher baseline AUDIT scores). CONCLUSIONS: Those already drinking at hazardous levels were more likely to increase their consumption, as were those who were drinking to cope. As we recover from the pandemic, there is a need for widespread alcohol support, and certain groups may need targeted support.

A meta-analytic investigation of the role of reward on inhibitory control.

Contemporary theories predict that inhibitory control (IC) can be improved when rewards are available for successfully inhibiting. In non-clinical samples empirical research has demonstrated some support; however, "null" findings have also been published. The aim of this meta-analysis was to clarify the magnitude of the effect of reward on IC and identify potential moderators. A total of 73 articles (contributing k = 80 studies) were identified from PubMed, PsycInfo, and Scopus, published between 1997 and 2020, using a systematic search strategy. A random effects meta-analysis was performed on effect sizes generated from IC tasks, which included rewarded and non-rewarded inhibition trials. Moderator analyses were conducted on clinical samples (vs "healthy controls"), task type (go/no-go vs stop signal vs Flanker vs Simon vs Stroop vs Anti-saccade), reward type (monetary vs points vs other), and age (adults vs children). The prospect of reward for successful inhibition significantly improved IC (SMD = 0.429, 95% CI = 0.288, 0.570, I2 = 96.7%) compared with no reward conditions/groups. This finding was robust against influential cases and outliers. The significant effect was present across all IC tasks. There was no evidence of the effect moderated by type of reward, age, or clinical samples. Moderator analyses did not resolve the considerable heterogeneity. The findings suggest that IC is a transient state that fluctuates in response to motivations driven by reward. Future research might examine the potential of improving IC through rewards as a behavioural intervention.

The effect of beliefs about alcohol's acute effects on alcohol priming and alcohol-induced impairments of inhibitory control.

Acute alcohol administration can lead to a loss of control over drinking. Several models argue that this 'alcohol priming effect' is mediated by the effect of alcohol on inhibitory control. Alternatively, beliefs about how alcohol affects behavioural regulation may also underlie alcohol priming and alcohol-induced inhibitory impairments. Here two studies examine the extent to which the alcohol priming effect and inhibitory impairments are moderated by beliefs regarding the effects of alcohol on the ability to control behaviour. In study 1, following a priming drink (placebo or .5g/kg of alcohol), participants were provided with bogus feedback regarding their performance on a measure of inhibitory control (stop-signal task; SST) suggesting that they had high or average self-control. However, the bogus feedback manipulation was not successful. In study 2, before a SST, participants were exposed to a neutral or experimental message suggesting acute doses of alcohol reduce the urge to drink and consumed a priming drink and this manipulation was successful. In both studies craving was assessed throughout and a bogus taste test which measured ad libitum drinking was completed. Results suggest no effect of beliefs on craving or ad lib consumption within either study. However, within study 2, participants exposed to the experimental message displayed evidence of alcohol-induced impairments of inhibitory control, while those exposed to the neutral message did not. These findings do not suggest beliefs about the effects of alcohol moderate the alcohol priming effect but do suggest beliefs may, in part, underlie the effect of alcohol on inhibitory control.

Pour Guess: The Effect of Glass Shape and an Ice Substitute on Alcohol Pouring and Estimation.

BACKGROUND: Research suggests that people are poor at estimating the amount of alcohol they have served themselves. Glass shape, the presence of ice, and alcohol consumption may influence the amount of alcohol people pour and estimate they have poured. The aim of these studies was to examine whether these factors would affect pouring behavior, in the laboratory and in real-world environments. METHODS: Across 4 studies, 1 laboratory study and 3 conducted during public engagement events, we tested the effect of glass shape (straight sided highball and tumbler glasses) and, using an ice substitute (whiskey stones), the effect of ice on pouring and estimating a self-defined typical drink. We also assessed the association between alcohol consumption and pouring accuracy. RESULTS: Overall, participants consistently overestimated their typical serving of alcohol, and poured more than 1 U.K. unit when pouring into an empty glass. Findings demonstrate no credible effect of glass shape or ice substitute on alcohol unit estimation or the amount of a typical serving. However, while alcohol consumption was not related to accuracy, the presence of an ice substitute improved accuracy when pouring a single U.K. unit. CONCLUSIONS: Given that participants overestimated the amount of alcohol in their typical alcoholic drink, self-report measures of alcohol consumption may be overstating the amount of alcohol individuals consume. Additionally, the presence of ice may improve accuracy when pouring standard servings (U.K. units) of alcohol. Therefore, self-report measures may be improved if the presence of ice is considered.

Bibi ergo sum: the effects of a placebo and contextual alcohol cues on motivation to drink alcohol.

RATIONALE: Acute 'priming' doses of alcohol reliably increase alcohol-seeking behaviour in social drinkers. However, the effects of the anticipated (rather than pharmacological) effects of alcohol, and their interaction with contextual alcohol cues, are not well understood. OBJECTIVES: This study aims to determine the extent to which an alcohol-placebo drink increases craving, subjective intoxication and beer consumption, while conjointly investigating the impact of contextual alcohol cues. METHODS: On a within-subject basis, 64 undergraduate social drinkers consumed both a placebo (which they believed to contain alcohol) and a control drink (which they knew did not contain alcohol) in different sessions. Participants completed the study procedures in a bar laboratory designed to look like a 'pub' or a standard psychology lab containing no alcohol-related cues. Craving (Desires for Alcohol Questionnaire) and subjective intoxication were measured pre- and post-drink, and a bogus taste test to measure ad-lib alcohol consumption was completed at the end of each session. RESULTS: Compared to the control drink, placebo significantly increased craving, ad-lib consumption and subjective intoxication, regardless of environmental context. CONCLUSIONS: Increased craving and ad-lib alcohol consumption after consuming a priming dose of alcohol is at least partly attributable to the anticipated rather than the pharmacological effects of the priming dose.