The proximal effects of acute alcohol use on female aggression: A meta-analytic review of the experimental literature.

Abstract

Experimental research on alcohol-related aggression has focused largely upon male participants, providing only a limited understanding of the proximal effects of acute alcohol use on aggression among females extrapolated from the male literature. The current meta-analysis was undertaken to summarize the effects of alcohol, compared to placebo or no alcohol, on female aggression as observed across experimental investigations. Method. A review of the literature yielded 11 articles and 12 effect sizes for further analysis. Results. The overall effect size of alcohol on female aggression was small and reached statistical significance (d = .17, p = .02, 95% CI = .03–.30). Discussion. Meta-analytic examination of the experimental literature indicated that alcohol is a significant factor in female aggression. The overall alcohol-aggression effect was smaller than has been observed among male samples. Additional research is required to evaluate the influence of other factors on alcohol-related aggressive responding among female participants.

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