Associations of Alcohol Outcome Expectancies with Alcohol Use in Adolescence and Emerging Adulthood: A Meta-Analysis

The meta-analysis integrated research on associations of contents of alcohol outcome expectancies (AOE) with alcohol use in adolescents and emerging adults. A systematic search in the electronic databases PsycInfo, Medline, Psyndex, and Web of Science identified 558 studies with 494,116 individuals (mean age 17.92, SD = 3.04) that were included in multi-level meta-analysis. AOE about pleasure and social enhancement showed the strongest concurrent associations with alcohol use (r = .33 and r = .29, respectively). Among negative AOE, only expectancies about negative alcohol effects on self-perception were related to lower consumption. Longitudinal analyses indicated reciprocal determinism of AOE and alcohol use. Associations of AOE and drinking were moderated by age, gender, and heavy/binge drinking status. We conclude that social and pleasure-related expectancies are especially relevant targets of prevention and intervention and that expectancies of adolescents and of heavy/binge drinkers should be, in particular, addressed in expectancy-challenging interventions.