An interventional study of Alcohol beverage and Control - non alcoholic beverage in Alcohol Drinking, Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD) and Alcohol Intoxication, sponsored by University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Recruiting at 2 sites in United States. Open to participants aged 21 Years to 30 Years, including healthy volunteers. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2025-08-29.
Sponsored by University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign · Not applicable, Interventional, and Basic science
The study investigates the effects of alcohol consumption on social and individual behaviors using a within-subject design. Participants, aged 21-30, will attend two laboratory sessions approximately one week apart, participating as part of a dyad (pair). During one session, they will consume an alcoholic beverage, while in the other, they will receive a control beverage, with the order of conditions randomized. This design facilitates direct within-participant comparisons of behaviors and neural activity in intoxicated versus sober states.
To achieve these aims, the study employs EEG technology to explore intra-brain and inter-brain dynamics during social interactions. Additionally, validated self-report questionnaires will capture data on mood, social bonding, and other psychological variables. The findings are expected to enhance understanding of alcohol's role in social reward processes and contribute to developing evidence-based prevention and intervention strategies for alcohol use disorder.
Objective:
Alcohol's ability to enhance social bonding and modulate mood in social contexts has been identified as a key factor contributing to its reinforcing properties and risk for Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD). While prior research has demonstrated alcohol's role in enhancing social interactions, laboratory studies often fail to replicate the real-world context in which most alcohol consumption occurs-social settings with familiar companions. This discrepancy limits our understanding of the mechanisms through which alcohol exerts its effects in social contexts.
This study is the first to employ EEG hyperscanning methods to investigate the inter- and intra-brain mechanisms underlying alcohol's social rewards within dyadic interactions. Specifically, the study aims to characterize how alcohol modulates social bonding, emotional regulation, and neural synchrony during social interactions, and to identify the cognitive and affective processes driving alcohol's reinforcing properties. The findings are expected to deepen understanding of the role of alcohol in social dynamics and inform interventions for AUD.
Study Population:
The study will recruit 200 participants, aged 21-30, who self-identify as regular social drinkers and with no reported history of severe alcohol use disorder.
Design:
This within-subject laboratory study involves two experimental sessions spaced approximately one week apart. Each session includes participants interacting in dyads with a stranger, where they will consume either a moderate dose of alcohol (target BAC \~0.08%) or a non-alcoholic control beverage, with the order randomized between sessions. Participants will engage in structured and unstructured tasks during each session, allowing for the evaluation of behavioral, emotional, and neural outcomes in both intoxicated and sober states.
Outcome Measures:
Neurophysiological Outcomes:
Intra and Inter Brain Coupling (IBC):
Event Related Potentials (ERP):
Behavioral and Psychological Outcomes:
Self-reported mood and social bonding assessed pre- and post-interaction using validated measures such as the Inclusion of Other in Self Scale and the Biphasic Alcohol Effects Scale.
Observational coding of nonverbal behaviors (e.g., facial expressions, body language) during dyadic interactions.
Longitudinal self-reports of drinking patterns and alcohol-related outcomes.
1,674 studies on the registry are indexed under Alcoholism; 331 are open to participants now.
This study's planned enrollment of 200 is above the median of 88 across 1,428 interventional studies indexed under Alcoholism.
Browse Alcoholism studies →University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is the lead sponsor of 191 studies on the registry; 29 are open to participants now.
Compared within Alcoholism, this study's primary condition as ClinicalTrials.gg classifies it; the registry's first condition term is Alcohol Drinking. The counts are of registry records indexed under each term, refreshed daily. How we classify →
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Exclusion Criteria:
Drug: Alcohol beverage
Other: Control - non alcoholic beverage
This intervention involves the administration of an alcohol beverage (vodka mixed with juice or soda) in a controlled laboratory setting, targeting a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.08%. The alcohol is consumed over a 36-minute period in three equal parts.
This intervention involves the administration of a non-alcoholic control beverage in a controlled laboratory setting. The beverage is matched in volume and palatability to the alcohol condition but co
Inter-brain entrainment
Synchronization metrics (e.g., inter-subject PLV, inter-subject correlation) between paired participants, assessed separately in sober and intoxicated conditions
Time frame: During active laboratory beverage manipulation exposure (during or immediately after beverage administration, at which time participants in the alcohol condition will register a positive BAC)
Intra-brain entrainment
The comparison of EEG signal synchronization within the same participant across the alcohol and non-alcohol conditions, reflecting intra-brain activity changes due to alcohol consumption during the hyperscanning task.
Time frame: During active laboratory beverage manipulation exposure (during or immediately after beverage administration, at which time participants in the alcohol condition will register a positive BAC)
Event-Related Potentials (ERP)
Feedback-Related Negativity (FRN), measured both for the operating ("player") and observing ("observer") participant, with comparisons across sobriety conditions
Time frame: During active laboratory beverage manipulation exposure (during or immediately after beverage administration, at which time participants in the alcohol condition will register a positive BAC)
Ambulatory Drinking
Drinking behavior assessed outside the laboratory using ambulatory assessment
Time frame: 14 days
Longitudinal Drinking Problems
Drinking assessed at longitudinal follow-up
Time frame: Up to 24 months post-baseline
Plan to share: Yes — Data is being shared on the National Institute of Mental Health Data Archive
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