Jeffrey P Ebert, Henry R Kranzler, Ian J Barnett, Jessica E Hemmons, Ruiqi Yan, Evan Spencer, M Kit Delgado
{"title":"Effect of smartphone breathalyzer feedback on willingness to drive in moderately intoxicated individuals: A randomized trial.","authors":"Jeffrey P Ebert, Henry R Kranzler, Ian J Barnett, Jessica E Hemmons, Ruiqi Yan, Evan Spencer, M Kit Delgado","doi":"10.1037/adb0001088","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objective: </strong>The present study examined the impact of smartphone breathalyzer feedback on individuals' decisions to drive when they are moderately intoxicated. Although the legal driving limit for blood alcohol concentration (BAC) in the United States is < 0.08%, crash risk begins to increase at moderate BACs ≥ 0.04%.</p><p><strong>Method: </strong>We conducted a laboratory-based, randomized controlled trial in 20 adult drivers aged 21-39 with a history of binge drinking. Participants were given sex- and weight-based doses of alcohol over 90 min with a target peak BAC of 0.10%. Smartphone breathalyzer measurements were taken every 15 min until the participant's BAC declined to 0.03%. Ten participants received feedback on their BAC readings, while the other 10 were blinded to BAC readings. After each measurement, participants were asked to rate on 10-point scales how much they were intoxicated, able to drive, and willing to drive.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>At BACs ≥ 0.04% and < 0.08%, learning about BAC was associated with lower perceived intoxication (-2.0, confidence interval [-3.1, -0.8]), greater perceived ability to drive (2.4, confidence interval [1.0, 3.9]), and greater willingness to drive (3.9, confidence interval [2.5, 5.3]), all <i>p</i>s < .001.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Being aware of their BAC may make drinkers more willing to drive up to the legal BAC limit of 0.08%, despite being in a range associated with increased crash risk. We recommend that breathalyzer apps provide salient feedback about the risks of driving with a BAC in the moderately intoxicated range. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved).</p>","PeriodicalId":48325,"journal":{"name":"Psychology of Addictive Behaviors","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.7000,"publicationDate":"2025-08-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12356493/pdf/","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Psychology of Addictive Behaviors","FirstCategoryId":"102","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1037/adb0001088","RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"心理学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"PSYCHOLOGY, MULTIDISCIPLINARY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Objective: The present study examined the impact of smartphone breathalyzer feedback on individuals' decisions to drive when they are moderately intoxicated. Although the legal driving limit for blood alcohol concentration (BAC) in the United States is < 0.08%, crash risk begins to increase at moderate BACs ≥ 0.04%.
Method: We conducted a laboratory-based, randomized controlled trial in 20 adult drivers aged 21-39 with a history of binge drinking. Participants were given sex- and weight-based doses of alcohol over 90 min with a target peak BAC of 0.10%. Smartphone breathalyzer measurements were taken every 15 min until the participant's BAC declined to 0.03%. Ten participants received feedback on their BAC readings, while the other 10 were blinded to BAC readings. After each measurement, participants were asked to rate on 10-point scales how much they were intoxicated, able to drive, and willing to drive.
Results: At BACs ≥ 0.04% and < 0.08%, learning about BAC was associated with lower perceived intoxication (-2.0, confidence interval [-3.1, -0.8]), greater perceived ability to drive (2.4, confidence interval [1.0, 3.9]), and greater willingness to drive (3.9, confidence interval [2.5, 5.3]), all ps < .001.
Conclusions: Being aware of their BAC may make drinkers more willing to drive up to the legal BAC limit of 0.08%, despite being in a range associated with increased crash risk. We recommend that breathalyzer apps provide salient feedback about the risks of driving with a BAC in the moderately intoxicated range. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved).
期刊介绍:
Psychology of Addictive Behaviors publishes peer-reviewed original articles related to the psychological aspects of addictive behaviors. The journal includes articles on the following topics: - alcohol and alcoholism - drug use and abuse - eating disorders - smoking and nicotine addiction, and other excessive behaviors (e.g., gambling) Full-length research reports, literature reviews, brief reports, and comments are published.