This paper presents some results of an American study of the effects of `instructional sets' on impairment of visual-motor performance by alcohol. The research aimed to evaluate the following hypotheses: (1) instructional sets can produce behavioural resistance to alcohol impairment following a single drinking session; (2) instructional sets raise the level of concentration; (3) instructional sets then attenuate the pharmacological effects of alcohol. The sample consisted of heavy-drinking young male experienced drivers. They admitted driving often after at least five drinks, and had an average of 1.5 accidents and 1.7 traffic tickets. 40 minutes after a subject had drunk 1.1g of ethanol per kg of body weight in tonic water with lime juice, his blood alcohol was measured. Then he was given a modified pursuit rotor task, and a driver simulator task. Placebo subjects were given the same drink without alcohol, and otherwise had identical treatment. Each subject in the instruction set condition was told to concentrate as hard as he could, just before doing a task. Analyses of variance on drinking and driving characteristics showed no significant effects. The task results suggested that the subjects used an existing capacity to resist alcohol impairment, and did not appear to support a learning paradigm.
Samenvatting