Subjective Stimulant and Sedative Effects of Alcohol During Early Drinking Experiences Predict Alcohol Involvement in Treated Adolescents

Research on low subjective response to alcohol has focused primarily on alcohol's sedative effects during early drinking experiences. This study examined subjective response to both stimulant and sedative effects of alcohol during initial drinking experiences as predictors of treated adolescents' severity of alcohol involvement before treatment and over 1-year follow-up. Adolescents (N = 169) recruited from addictions treatment reported on the number of drinks needed to obtain stimulant and sedative effects of alcohol for early and heavy drinking periods. The number of drinks needed to obtain stimulant and sedative effects, as well as the degree of stimulant and sedative effect obtained, were examined as predictors of adolescents' alcohol involvement at baseline (before treatment) and 1-year follow-up. During early drinking experiences, females reported a greater degree of sedative effect compared with males; there was no gender difference in degree of stimulant effect reported during early drinking experiences. Both early subjective stimulant and sedative effects of alcohol predicted the usual number of drinks needed to become intoxicated and the maximum drinking quantity per day before treatment. However, at 1-year follow-up, only early sedative effects predicted 1-year outcomes. Study findings suggest potentially important roles for both early subjective stimulant and sedative effects of alcohol in relation to adolescent alcohol involvement.