Priming effects of self-reported drinking and religiosity.

Authors

Lindsey M. Rodriguez, University of South Florida St. PetersburgFollow
Clayton Neighbors
Dawn W. FosterFollow

SelectedWorks Author Profiles:

Lindsey M. Rodriguez

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2014

ISSN

0893-164X

Abstract

Research has revealed negative associations between religiosity and alcohol consumption. Given these associations, the aim of the current research was to evaluate whether the order of assessing each construct might affect subsequent reports of the other. The present research provided an experimental evaluation of response biases of self-reported religiosity and alcohol consumption based on order of assessment. Participants (N = 301 undergraduate students) completed an online survey. Based on random assignment, religiosity was assessed either before or after questions regarding recent alcohol consumption. Social desirability bias was also measured. Results revealed a priming effect such that participants who answered questions about their religiosity prior to their alcohol consumption reported fewer drinks on their peak drinking occasions, drinking less on typical occasions, and drinking less frequently, even when controlling for social desirability and for the significant negative associations between their own religiosity and drinking. In contrast, assessment order was not significantly associated with religiosity. Results indicate priming religion results in reporting lower, but potentially more accurate, levels of health risk behaviors and that these effects are not simply the result of socially desirable responding. Results are interpreted utilizing several social–cognitive theories and suggest that retrospective self-reports of drinking may be more malleable than self-descriptions of religiosity. Implications and future directions are discussed.

Comments

Abstract only. Full-text article is available through licensed access provided by the publisher.

Language

en_US

Publisher

American Psychological Association

Recommended Citation

Rodriguez, L. M., Neighbors, C., & Foster, D. W. (2014). Priming effects of self-reported drinking and religiosity. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 28, 1-9. doi: 10.1037/a0031828 [PMCID: 3795945]

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.