Alcohol and Aggression: A Test of the Attention-Allocation Model
Psychological Science Volume 18 Issue 7 Page 649-655, July 2007
http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1467-9280.2007.01953.x
Peter R. Giancola, Michelle D. CormanPsychological Science 18 (7), 649–655
"This article presents the first systematic test of the attention-allocation model for alcohol-related aggression. According to this model, alcohol has a "myopic" effect on attentional capacity that presumably facilitates aggression by focusing attention on more salient provocative, rather than less salient inhibitory, cues in hostile situations. Aggression was assessed using a laboratory task in which mild electric shocks were received from, and administered to, a fictitious opponent. Results indicated that the moderate-load distraction (ie. holding four elements in sequential order in working memory) suppressed aggression best. Cognitive loads of larger and smaller magnitudes were not successful in attenuating aggression."
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