Attitudes and expectancies as predictors of drinking habits: a comparison of three scales.

Research on expectations about the effects of alcohol has shown these expectancies to be related to drinking habits. Expectancies can be seen as components of attitudes toward alcohol, which are also related to drinking behavior. The relationships between attitudes, expectancies, and self-reported drinking behavior were examined. Three different measures of expectancies were included in order to compare their relative utility in predicting drinking variables. Two of the three measures performed equally in prediction. Although expectancies added significantly to explained variance in drinking when attitudes were controlled for, the increment was quite small. The improvement in prediction was larger when the measures of attitudes and behavior lacked correspondence. The results suggest that attention to the relationships between attitudes and expectancies can inform further research in this area.

Does stimulant medication improve the peer status of hyperactive children?

Although stimulants improve the social behaviors of hyperactive children, analogous changes in peer status have not been previously demonstrated. We compared peer appraisals of hyperactive boys (N = 25) after placebo, 0.3 mg/kg, and 0.6 mg/kg methylphenidate (Ritalin). With the higher dose generally producing stronger effects, methylphenidate enhanced social standing, increasing nominations of hyperactive boys as best friends, cooperative, and fun to be with. These medication-related improvements, although important, did not normalize peer appraisals, and there was marked interindividual variability in medication response.

The effect of propranolol on behavioral interactions among adult male cynomolgus monkeys (Macaca fascicularis) housed in disrupted social groupings.

We report here on the social behavior of 30 adult male cynomolgus macaques (Macaca fascicularis), half of which were chronically administered propranolol HCl. All monkeys were maintained in groups of five, fed an atherogenic diet, and subjected to a social manipulation involving repeated disruption of social groups through redistribution of group memberships. One year of intensive behavioral observations were made, involving quantification of 27 kinds of social interaction typically exhibited by this species in captivity. Propranolol treatment resulted in a significant reduction in heart rate and blood pressure. Comparisons between propranolol-treated and untreated monkeys revealed no effects of beta-blockade on social dominance, aggressiveness, or active aspects of affiliation (e.g., grooming). The fact that few behavioral differences were found between conditions in this investigation indicates to us that such effects as were observed may owe as much to chance as to the action of the drug. Overall, these findings suggest that chronic beta-adrenergic blockade has minimal effects on the most prominent features of macaque monkey social behavior, especially those behavioral factors (aggressiveness and competitiveness) associated with risk for coronary disease in this species and in human beings.

Psychotropic drug use in older developmentally disabled with behavioral difficulties.

Use of psychotropic medications with elders who are mentally retarded is a very common procedure. However, patterns of medication usage in this group are not easily determined. Objectives were to explore relationships between prescribed psychotropic treatments, the types of reported behavioral difficulties, and the size/type of living settings where these difficulties were exhibited. Subjects were moderately mentally retarded elders who were living in Congregate and Group care settings who were observed and rated by caretakers using a standard behavior rating instrument. Comprehensive medical (drug) and demographic data was obtained on each person. The study revealed that psychotropic use was more frequent in congregate care settings for these older clients. Those more elderly demonstrated a tendency toward higher utilization. Little differences were evident in the general characteristics (sex, IQ, reality orientation) of elders living in the two settings despite differences in drug use rates. Future research needs to focus on differences in behavior problems and setting factors to more fully understand drug utilization rates in elders with mental retardation.

Effects of caffeine on social behavior, exploration and locomotor activity: interactions with ethanol.

The effects of caffeine and its interaction with ethanol were examined in a test of social behavior and a holeboard test of exploration and locomotion. Male mice were injected i.p. with 15, 30 or 60 mg/kg caffeine alone or in combination with 2 g/kg ethanol. The animals were then put in pairs into a familiar arena, or examined individually in the holeboard. Only the highest dose of caffeine (60 mg/kg) had a significant effect on the time spent in social interaction and motor activity in the social behavior test: both measures were reduced. The duration and frequency of avoidance-irritability behavior was dose-dependently increased by caffeine. In the holeboard, caffeine caused a dose-dependent increase in locomotor activity. 30 mg/kg caffeine reversed the ethanol-induced reduction of time spent in social interaction, and 60 mg/kg caffeine antagonized the ethanol-induced increase in locomotor activity in both the social behavior and holeboard tests. Caffeine's effects on ethanol-induced behavioral changes are compared with those of other drugs.

Psychopharmacological profile of 1-(m-(trifluoromethyl) phenyl) piperazine (TFMPP).

The effect of TFMPP, an agonist of the 5-HT1b receptors, was studied in mice on several psychopharmacological parameters. In contrast to imipramine-like drugs, TFMPP neither antagonized reserpine-induced hypothermia nor increased yohimbine-induced toxicity. Similarly to imipramine-like drugs, TFMPP antagonized oxotremorine-induced hypothermia and was active in the behavioural despair test. In addition, TFMPP normalized a social behavioural deficit induced by isolation. The effects of TFMPP on oxotremorine-induced hypothermia in the behavioural despair test and in the isolation-induced social behavioural deficit are all antagonized by d-1 propranolol. It is concluded that TFMPP seems to possess psychotropic activity resembling only in part that of imipramine-like drugs and that these actions may be mediated through 5-HT1b receptors.

Influence of ACTH1-24 on grooming and sociosexual behavior in the rat.

The effects of intraventricular administration of ACTH 1-24 on grooming, exploratory and socio-sexual behaviors in male rats were studied. The various behavioral elements were analyzed in terms of latency, frequency, and duration, which provided a multivariate behavioral profile. Behaviors that occur early during the test procedure had decreased, whereas behaviors displayed after the animal had spent some time in the test situation increased. Sociability, sexual approaches, and sexual preference in a sociosexual test situation were not altered by this treatment. The extinction of the response after removal of the incentive animals was delayed, however. It is concluded that ACTH1-24 did not specifically influence goal-directed behaviors. The obtained change in the behavioral profile, including the grooming pattern, rather suggest that ACTH1-24 affects mechanisms associated with attention and habituation.

Beliefs about the effects of alcohol on self and others.

A questionnaire on beliefs about the effects of alcohol on the behavior of self and others was administered to a sample of college students and a sample from the general population. Respondents reported that alcohol effects are more likely to happen to others than to themselves, particularly for socially undesirable behaviors. Women reported a greater likelihood of behavioral impairment; men reported more aggressive behavior. Nondrinkers reported a greater likelihood of both positive and negative effects; heavier drinkers reported more pleasurable effects.

The Alcohol Expectancy Questionnaire: an instrument for the assessment of adolescent and adult alcohol expectancies.

Alcohol-related expectancies can influence the behavioral effects of alcohol and decisions regarding alcohol use. A standard measure of expectancies is needed for research and clinical work in the alcohol arena; the development and current status of the Alcohol Expectancy Questionnaire (AEQ) is summarized. The adolescent and adult forms of this instrument are designed to measure the degree to which individuals expect alcohol to produce a variety of general and specific effects. Research with the AEQ indicates a consistent relationship between alcohol expectancies and alcohol consumption, alcohol abuse and behavior while drinking. Data bearing on the psychometric properties and clinical and research utility of the AEQ are discussed.

Gonadal hormones and conspecific marking in male rats.

Urine deposited by a rat on a conspecific was quantified with injections of sodium fluorescein, a substance that changes the color of urine. The hypothesis examined in experiment 1 was that marking the environment and a conspecific would be similarly androgen-sensitive behaviors during each of three stages--before castration, after castration, and with restorative therapy with testosterone propionate. Findings were that castration reduced both forms of marking, and testosterone therapy to castrated males restored environmental marking in a dose-response fashion. However, the findings for social marking were more complex; for example, a physiological 200-micrograms testosterone dosage to castrated males was unable to elevate conspecific marking over the rates of marking by castrates without testosterone replacement. In experiment 2 the ontogeny conspecific marking in juvenile males was examined in relation to the pubertal surge of androgens. Results suggested that juvenile male marking of an adult male decreased despite a pubertal increase of androgens. Conclusions were that testicular hormones influenced both forms of marking but were less important in the social setting. Moreover, conspecific marking is not simply an extension of marking the environment.

The effect of season on the induction of sexual behavior by estradiol in female rhesus monkeys.

Rhesus monkeys housed in an outdoor environment are seasonal breeders, with ovulations and concomitant sexual behavior limited to the fall and winter months. To determine if there is a seasonal difference in the capacity of physiological levels of estradiol (E2) to induce sexual behavior in ovariectomized rhesus monkeys housed outdoors, subjects living in a social group were treated with subcutaneous E2 implants in a counter-balanced design during the nonbreeding season (May-July) and during the breeding season (September-November). Serum E2 levels were monitored by obtaining blood samples twice a week. Three levels of E2 were studied: baseline (less than 30 pg/ml), follicular (100 pg/ml), and periovulatory (200 pg/ml). Two of five adult males in the group were injected with human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) twice a week to insure that males with high testosterone levels were present during each season. Focal observations of behavior of 15 minutes' duration on each subject were conducted 5 days per week, with frequencies and durations of social, sexual, and solitary behaviors recorded. Concomitant 2-h group scans were made to record all occurrences of mounting behavior. Neither heterosexual serial mounting nor seminal plugs were ever observed in E2-treated females during the summer months. In contrast, copulation and seminal plugs were observed in subjects at both treatment levels during the fall. While E2-treated females engaged in homosexual mounting behavior during both summer and fall, E2 treatment resulted in heterosexual copulation only during the fall. Changes in patterns of social behavior paralleled changes in sexual behavior and were significantly affected by treatment and season, with more male-female interactions during the fall months.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Effects of lead in the laboratory mouse. Development and social behaviour after lifelong exposure to 12 microM lead in drinking fluid.

The effects of chronic exposure to 12 microM lead, from conception onwards, on development and social behaviour were investigated in the laboratory mouse. Lead was administered as 0.25% solution of lead acetate in the drinking fluid. This level of exposure did not affect reproductive success, but caused decreased birthweight and retarded early development in offspring of treated dams. Mortality prior to weaning was significantly greater in pups treated with lead, and animals treated with lead had significantly reduced body weights throughout their lives. Levels of lead in tissues were greatly increased in all treated animals, with females showing significantly higher levels than males. Behaviour was assessed by ethological methods in paired encounters between unfamiliar animals in a novel environment. At age 3-4 weeks Exploratory Behaviour and Social Investigation were significantly increased and Immobility was significantly decreased in animals of both sexes treated with lead. Social Investigation was also increased at age 7-8 weeks but Exploratory Behaviour was decreased. At age 15-16 weeks Non-Social Activity was increased in males and decreased in females, although Social and Sexual Investigation was not affected in these male-female encounters. Lead-treated males, aged 17-18 weeks, showed significantly shorter latencies to aggression towards unfamiliar males than did controls.

The effects of ethanol on the offense and defensive behaviors of male and female rats during group formation.

In order to determine the effects of ethanol on social/agonistic interactions of rats in mixed-sex groups, saline or 0.3, 0.6, or 1.2 g/kg injections of ethanol were given to one male in 3 M, 3 F groups just prior to placement of the animals in a colony situation. Scores of offensive behaviors by the treated males generally declined as a function of dose level, but only with the 1.2 g/kg dose were behavior scores significantly different from the saline control. Ethanol effects on defensive and sexual behaviors were not significant. The proportions of attacks directed at females by males given higher ethanol doses increased sharply and significantly. Females were not attacked more by untreated males in the same groups where treated males showed selective attack on females. These findings suggest that increasing levels of ethanol administration may produce changes in male rats' choices of targets for attack, with females becoming relatively more likely to be targets.