Alcohol Myopia, Objectification, and Sexual Assault

Integrating Alcohol Myopia and Objectification to Understand Sexual Assault

The present project integrates previous research on factors associated with alcohol-involved sexual assault, with research on how intoxication alters attention and social perceptions in ways that increase the risk of sexual aggression and victimization. Specifically, this project examines whether alcohol intoxication on the part of a male perpetrator impairs attentional capacity and leads to a narrowing of the perceptual field causing a dehumanizing perspective of women as sexual objects for men's pleasure rather than individuals with thoughts and feelings, thereby increasing the propensity for sexual aggression. The present research also examines whether women's responses to this sexual objectification from men interfere with risk perception in sexual situations, particularly when women are drinking, increasing the likelihood of sexual victimization.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Alcoholic Intoxication
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: Alcohol intoxication; Behavioral: Objectification

Detailed Description

These studies will provide a comprehensive test of our proposed model of alcohol-involved sexual assault that includes situation-specific mechanisms and key moderators of sexual violence. Specifically, hypotheses will be tested in the context of two carefully controlled laboratory studies. In Study 1, laboratory alcohol administration procedures will be used to manipulate intoxication (vs. placebo control) in men. Impaired attention and objectification will then be measured multi-modally including behavioral, self-report, and implicit measures. Finally, sexual aggression will be measured with a laboratory-based analogue of sexual assault. Study 2 will include women and follow the same alcohol administration procedures as Study 1. Additionally, mirroring men's objectification, objectifying gazes (vs. eye gazes) will also be manipulated. Impaired attention, self-objectification, and decreased sexual risk perceptions will then be assessed. Prior the laboratory visit, all participants will complete a battery of questionnaires to assess key moderators including a history of sexual assault perpetration and victimization, prior sexual objectification and self-objectification, as well as alcohol-related sex expectances and rape myth acceptance. The overall model will be analyzed within a conditional process model framework.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 359
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

• Study Contact: Name: Sarah Gervais, PhD; Phone Number: 402-472-3721; Email: sgervais2@unl.edu
• Study Contact Backup: Name: David DiLillo, PhD; Phone Number: 402-472-3297; Email: ddilillo2@unl.edu

Study Locations

• United States
  • Nebraska
    • Lincoln, Nebraska, United States, 68588
      • University of Nebraska-Lincoln

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 19 years to 28 years (Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• 21-30 years of age
• at least social drinkers
• single
• men attracted to women, women attracted to men

Exclusion Criteria:

• current/past alcohol dependence (as assessed by a score of 8 or higher on the Alcohol Dependence Scale), alcohol-related treatment, or hospitalization due to alcohol use
• any past serious head injuries (as indicated by HELPS Brain Injury Screening Tool)
• serious psychological symptoms (defined as past psychotic, paranoid, or bipolar disorders, or current major depression)
• abstinence from alcohol use
• a condition or medication use in which alcohol consumption is medically contraindicated
• any legal restriction against drinking (e.g., as condition of probation or parole)
• presence of a positive breath alcohol concentration (BAC) upon arrival to the laboratory
• if the participant is less than six feet tall and weighs over 250 pounds or is over six feet tall and weighs over 300 pounds
• if a female participant is pregnant

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Basic Science
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: Single

Number of Arms

6

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Males and Alcohol Intoxication; Men assigned to alcohol intoxication arm (target BAC .08%)	Behavioral: Alcohol intoxication; Men and women assigned to moderate alcohol dose condition (target BAC .08%) or placebo control condition with NIAAA approved alcohol administration procedures
Placebo Comparator: Males and Placebo Control; Men assigned to placebo control arm	Behavioral: Alcohol intoxication; Men and women assigned to moderate alcohol dose condition (target BAC .08%) or placebo control condition with NIAAA approved alcohol administration procedures
Experimental: Females and Alcohol Intoxication and Objectifying Gazes; Women assigned to alcohol intoxication arm (target BAC .08%) and objectifying gazes arm	Behavioral: Alcohol intoxication; Men and women assigned to moderate alcohol dose condition (target BAC .08%) or placebo control condition with NIAAA approved alcohol administration procedures; Behavioral: Objectification; Women assigned to objectifying gazes condition or eye contact control condition
Experimental: Females and Alcohol Intoxication and Eye Gazes; Women assigned to alcohol intoxication arm (target BAC .08%) and eye gazes arm	Behavioral: Alcohol intoxication; Men and women assigned to moderate alcohol dose condition (target BAC .08%) or placebo control condition with NIAAA approved alcohol administration procedures; Behavioral: Objectification; Women assigned to objectifying gazes condition or eye contact control condition
Experimental: Females and Placebo Control and Objectifying Gazes; Women assigned to placebo control arm and objectifying gazes arm	Behavioral: Alcohol intoxication; Men and women assigned to moderate alcohol dose condition (target BAC .08%) or placebo control condition with NIAAA approved alcohol administration procedures; Behavioral: Objectification; Women assigned to objectifying gazes condition or eye contact control condition
Placebo Comparator: Females and Placebo Control and Eye Gazes; Women assigned to placebo control arm and eye gazes arm	Behavioral: Alcohol intoxication; Men and women assigned to moderate alcohol dose condition (target BAC .08%) or placebo control condition with NIAAA approved alcohol administration procedures; Behavioral: Objectification; Women assigned to objectifying gazes condition or eye contact control condition

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Laboratory analogue of sexual aggression	After learning that a woman does not like sexual media, male participants choose to show her a sexually explicit video or control video (selection of the sexually explicit video indicates more sexual aggression)	20 minutes post alcohol or placebo dosing
Sexual assault vignette measure of risk perception	Female participants read 18 vignettes describing a sexual interaction between a man and a woman that gets progressively riskier for sexual assault and indicate when they would leave the interaction (scores range from 1-18 and higher scores indicate worse risk perception)	20 minutes post alcohol or placebo dosing

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Eye-tracking measure of sexual objectification	Male participants wear a portable eye tracker and discuss media preferences with a female confederate while dwell time on the female confederate's face and body is monitored (longer dwell times on the woman's body and shorter dwell times on the woman's face indicate more sexual objectification)	2 minutes post alcohol or placebo dosing
Eye-tracking measure of self-objectification	Female participants wear a portable eye tracker and interact with a male confederate in front of a mirror while dwell time on the participant's body is monitored (longer dwell times on the participant's body indicates more self-objectification)	2 minutes post alcohol or placebo dosing
Object brief-implicit association task	On a computer, male participants sort stimuli words representing the categories object (e.g., tool), human (e.g., person), women (e.g., female), and men (male). Participants must respond as quickly and accurately as possible to categorize the words on a computer screen to object, human, women, and men categories via a computer key press. Responding faster to object and woman words and slower to woman and human words indicates implicit objectification of women	25 minutes post alcohol or placebo dosing
Self-object brief-implicit association task	On a computer, female participants sort stimuli words representing the categories object (e.g., tool), human (e.g., person), me (e.g., self), and others (them). Participants must respond as quickly and accurately as possible to categorize the words on a computer screen to object, human, me, and others categories via a computer key press. Responding faster to object and me words and slower to human and me words indicates implicit self-objectification.	25 minutes post alcohol or placebo dosing
Self-report state mindful attention awareness scale	Male and female participants self-report how attentive they feel on a 0 to 6 point scale (averaged lower scores indicate more mindful attention awareness)	30 minutes post alcohol or placebo dosing
Self-report other-objectification questionnaire	Male participants self-report how frequently they objectified the female confederate on a 1 to 6 point scale (averaged higher scores indicate more other-objectification)	35 minutes post alcohol or placebo dosing
Self-report self-objectification questionnaire	Female participants self-report how important appearance related attributes (e.g., sex appeal) are important to their self-concept relative to non-appearance attributes (e.g., hobbies) on a 0 to 9 point scale. Appearance attributes and non-appearance attributes are separately summed and non-appearance attribute scores are subtracted from appearance attribute scores (higher scores indicate more self-objectification)	35 minutes post alcohol or placebo dosing
Saliva collection	Female participants provide saliva samples to assess cortisol associated with stress responses	5 minutes pre alcohol or placebo dosing, 5 minutes post alcohol dosing, and 20 minutes post alcohol or placebo dosing

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: University of Nebraska Lincoln
• Collaborators: National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA)
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Sarah Gervais, PhD, University of Nebraska Lincoln

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): April 22, 2019
• Primary Completion (Actual): December 31, 2022
• Study Completion (Actual): December 31, 2022

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: May 2, 2019
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: May 17, 2019
• First Posted (Actual): May 20, 2019

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): July 10, 2023
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: July 6, 2023
• Last Verified: July 1, 2023

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Attention; Aggression; Alcohol use; Victimization; Drinking; Public health; Alcohol intoxication; Sexual assault; Sexual violence
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Mental Disorders; Chemically-Induced Disorders; Alcohol-Related Disorders; Substance-Related Disorders; Alcoholic Intoxication
• Other Study ID Numbers: 18599 (UKCLRN); R01AA025090 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: YES
• IPD Plan Description: De-identified individual participant data may be shared with other researchers (e.g., posted to the Open Science Framework) to aid with reproducibility and replicability of science.
• IPD Sharing Time Frame: De-identified data may be made available to interested researchers when papers based on that data are published in scientific journals.
• IPD Sharing Access Criteria: Interested researchers will be required to have an Open Science Framework account.
• IPD Sharing Supporting Information Type: STUDY_PROTOCOL; SAP; ANALYTIC_CODE

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No