DRINKING PATTERNS AND ALCOHOL EXPECTANCIES FOR SELF AND OTHERS IN PUERTO RICO

Carlos J. Vélez-Blasini, Ph.D. (Middlebury College)

Presented at the Annual Meeting of the New England Psychological Association. New London, Connecticut, October 25-26, 1996.

Alcohol expectancies (self/other) of a native Puerto Rican sample were assessed using an alcohol expectancy questionnaire. Examination of drinking patterns revealed that females were significantly more likely to be abstainers or to drink more lightly than men. Factor analysis of expectancy data yielded a four-factor (two positive, two negative) solution which significantly predicted drinking behavior for males and females. Respondents expected others to be more susceptible to the effects of alcohol than themselves.