Alcohol and Emotion Regulation Interventions: Effects on Men's Sexual Arousal, Impulsivity, Cognitions Regarding Sexual Consequences, and Sexually Coercive Tactics
Abstract
Alcohol's cognitive effects exacerbate sexual assault perpetration by men against women. Emotion regulation interventions may reduce perpetration by modifying men's responses during sexual situations. The present study's goal was to examine how alcohol intoxication and emotion regulation interventions interacted to predict men's cognitive and behavioral reactions regarding sexual assault perpetration. Young men with self-reported sexual assault perpetration histories (N = 206) were randomly assigned to receive either a cognitive restructuring, mindfulness, or control intervention and to consume alcoholic or non-alcoholic beverages before projecting themselves into a hypothetical, sexual scenario and completing in-the-moment assessments of their sexual arousal, impulsivity, cognitions, and sexual coercion. Results revealed that intoxicated men in the control intervention experienced more sexual arousal. Sexual arousal was subsequently associated with impulsivity, cognitions regarding sexual consequences, and sexual coercion. Findings support emotion regulation interventions as tools to prevent alcohol-involved perpetration and suggest a mechanism through which perpetration may be prevented.
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