Many witnesses to violent
crimes are alcohol intoxicated, but research is lacking regarding how alcohol
affects their perception of aggression and guilt. This study investigated to
what extent alcohol intoxicated eyewitnesses differed from sober witnesses
regarding how aggressive and guilty they perceived the involved parts in an
intimate partner violence (IPV) situation.
Eighty-seven healthy men (n =
44) and women (n =
43) were randomized to an alcohol group (0.7 g/kg) or a non-alcohol group. In a
laboratory setting, alcoholic/non-alcoholic drinks were consumed before viewing
a film depicting IPV between a man and a woman. Ten min after viewing, in an
interview, the participants rated how aggressive and guilty they perceived the
involved parts to be.
Alcohol intoxicated participants perceived both parts’
physically aggressive behavior as comparatively less severe, but their neutral
behavior as more hostile. Sober witnesses perceived the man to be the most
guilty part, whereas intoxicated witnesses distributed guilt more evenly.
Alcohol had a strong but complex impact on the perception of aggression in IPV
(i.e., heightened during the neutral interaction and lowered during physical
aggression).
These results may be explained by the cognitive consequences of
alcohol’s anxiety-dampening effects. Regarding the asymmetric difference in
perceived guilt, stereotypical expectations of gender-appropriate behavior in
an IPV situation may need to be considered.
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By: Malin Hildebrand Karlén1, Emma Roos af Hjelmsäter1, Claudia Fahlke1, Pär Anders Granhag1,2, Anna Söderpalm Gordh3
- 1Department of Psychology, University of Gothenburg, Sweden
- 2Norwegian Police University College, Oslo, Norway
- 3The Section of Psychiatry and Neurochemistry, Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Sweden
- Malin Hildebrand Karlén, Department of Psychology, University of Gothenburg, Haraldsgatan 1, Box 500, S-405 30 Gothenburg, Sweden. Email:malin.karlen@psy.gu.se
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