Trial reportPsychopharmacology2025
Alcohol increases social engagement in dyadic interactions: role of partner's drug state.
Trial report in Psychopharmacology, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
2 citing papers in PubMed.
- Acute and delayed effects of THC on memories of stress in healthy adults.Psychopharmacology · 2026Article
- MDMA as well as amphetamine and alcohol increase feelings of social closeness in healthy adults.Scientific reports · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
Abstract
rationaleAlcohol is commonly used in social environments and is known to facilitate social behaviors. However, most controlled laboratory studies on alcohol have been conducted in isolated settings, limiting our understanding of its effects on social interactions.
objectivesThe current study was designed to examine the effects of alcohol on dyadic interactions in healthy volunteers (N = 37), with a focus on the influence of the conversation partner's drug state.
methodsUsing a 4-session, placebo-controlled, within-subjects design, participants received a moderate dose of alcohol (0.8 g/kg men) or placebo in randomized order before engaging in a 45-minute semi-structured conversation with a partner who received either alcohol or placebo. Partners were always strangers. Outcome measures included subjective responses to alcohol, self-reported closeness to partners, and facial expressions during interactions analyzed via a machine learning model.
resultsAlcohol produced its expected subjective effects, some of which were enhanced when the partner also received alcohol. Alcohol enhanced enjoyment of social interactions and feelings of connectedness, irrespective of the partner's drug condition. Facial expression analysis revealed that alcohol increased positive and decreased negative emotional expressions. For women but not men, these effects were more pronounced when their conversation partners also received alcohol. Individual emotion analysis revealed that alcohol increased the intensity of facial expressions associated with amusement, joy, and excitement, while reducing emotions such as awkwardness and contempt.
conclusionsOur findings show that alcohol increases feelings of social connectedness, and that responses to alcohol can be influenced by the drug state of interacting partners. The increased feelings of social connection may contribute to risk for escalation of use.
Indexed as
Identifiers
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.