Alcohol Expectancies in Relation to Personality and Aggression among Juvenile Delinquents in Northern Russia

Abstract

The relationships between alcohol expectancies, level of alcohol use, alcohol-related problems, aggression, and personality factors in 198 Russian male juvenile delinquents were assessed. A clustering procedure was used in order to establish main patterns of alcohol expectancies, yielding three major clusters. Level of alcohol use, alcohol-related problems, aggression, and personality factors were compared across the identified clusters. It was established that juvenile delinquents with a high level of positive alcohol expectancies and aggression represented a risk-group for higher involvement in drinking behavior as well as problem drinking, which in turn are related to specific personality traits. Implications of these findings for alcohol prevention among the youth are discussed.

Social Self-control, Sensation Seeking and Substance Use in Samples of US and Russian Adolescents

“…21 In addition, Russian adolescents may drink because they believe that drinking alcohol enhances sexual experience, makes one feel more comfortable or gregarious in social situations, and makes one feel more powerful and aggressive. 21,22 …”

“…Among a sample of delinquent boys from Arkhangelsk, Russia, sensation seeking was found to correlate with problem drinking and high positive alcohol expectancies. 22,28 Similarly, in a cross-sectional sample of regular adolescents from Novosibirsk, Kyazev 29 found behavioral activation system (BAS), a measure that taps impulsive sensation seeking, to be the strongest personality-based predictor of substance use (ie, tobacco, alcohol, and illicit drug use).…”

“…In addition, low self-directedness, which taps low impulse control and irresponsible behavior, and lack of cooperativeness have been associated with problem drinking among Russian delinquent boys. 22,28 …”