TY - JOUR
AU - Engels, Rutger C.M.E.
AB - Research suggests that people adapt their own drinking behavior to that of other people. According to a genetic-differences approach, some individuals may be more inclined than others to adapt their alcohol consumption level to that of other people. Using a 3 (drinking condition) × 2 (genotype) experimental design (N = 113), we tested whether susceptibility to alcohol-related cues (i.e., seeing someone drink) was related to the variable number of tandem repeats in exon 3 of the D4 dopamine receptor gene. A strong gene-environment interaction showed that participants carrying at least one copy of the 7-repeat allele consumed substantially more alcohol in the presence of a heavy-drinking individual than did participants without this allele. This study highlights that individual variability in sensitivity to other people’s drinking behavior may be attributable to genetic differences. Carrying the 7-repeat allele may increase the risk for heavy alcohol use or abuse in the company of heavy-drinking peers.
TI - A Variable-Number-of-Tandem-Repeats Polymorphism in the Dopamine D4 Receptor Gene Affects Social Adaptation of Alcohol Use
JF - Psychological Science
DO - 10.1177/0956797610376654
DA - 2010-08-01
UR - https://www.deepdyve.com/lp/sage/a-variable-number-of-tandem-repeats-polymorphism-in-the-dopamine-d4-i93I0skX0C
SP - 1064
EP - 1068
VL - 21
IS - 8
DP - DeepDyve
ER -