What Will You Think of Me If I Drink with You? Situational Influences on Metaperceptions

Abstract

One hundred eighteen individuals interacted for approximately 15 minutes with an individual (either same or opposite sex) with whom they were previously unacquainted. After four minutes of this interaction, each participant provided ratings of their perception of their partner, and their belief about their partner's perception of them (metaperception). Following this rating, they were given the opportunity to select an alcoholic or non-alcoholic beverage, to consume for the remainder of the interaction. After the interaction, participants once again provided perception and metaperception ratings. Results, involving difference scores on “friendliness” and “relaxation” ratings, showed generally that women believed that their partner judged them negatively when they consumed alcohol and men expected harsh judgments when they did not. Results involving perceptions revealed no significant difference involving beverage selection, providing stark contrast to the metaperception results. Interventions might benefit from the inclusion of these social misperceptions in attempting to decrease drinking among young people.