Alcohol and Violence

The Psychoactive Effects of Alcohol

Throughout human history, alcohol has been consumed for recreational, medicinal, and spiritual purposes. Alcohol is a central nervous system depressant, that is, alcohol decreases brain activity leading to a variety of cognitive (thought), emotional, and behavioral effects. For most drinkers these effects are nonproblematic, but for some the effects lead to severe consequences. Alcohol can lead to chronic compulsive use and physical dependence. Negative consequences can also be experienced by those who do not use in this manner. Even a single moderate dose can lead to problematic effects in some individuals and contexts.

Two alcohol-related effects relevant to violence are impaired cognitive processing (thought processes) and behavioral disinhibition (impulsivity). Both effects manifest at low doses and increase as consumption increases. Impaired cognitive processing manifests as a decreased ability to attend to environmental cues. Behavioral disinhibition is thought to occur as a result of alcohol impairing brain centers that inhibit certain processes and behaviors. Although there is some controversy, researchers believe that one or both of these mechanisms contribute to the alcohol-violence link.

The Role of Alcohol in Violent Behavior

More than any other psychoactive substance, alcohol is related to aggressive and violent behavior. This link has been established through large-scale epidemiological research conducted in the United States, Canada, and Western and Eastern Europe. These studies show that alcohol is involved in approximately 60% of all violent crime. That is, in almost two thirds of all violent crime, the perpetrator was under the influence of alcohol at the time of perpetration.

Alcohol and the Continuum of Violence

The above findings refer to a range of violent crime from simple assault to murder. Estimates of the relationship between alcohol and the degree of violence are similar for different levels of violence (e.g., for assault and murder). Importantly, this relationship is more than the relationship between alcohol and crime in general. When violent crimes are compared to nonviolent crimes, alcohol is twice as likely to be involved in the violent crime. There appears to be a unique relationship between alcohol and the perpetration of violence.

Reports of alcohol consumption prior to a violent episode are not the only place in which the alcohol-violence relationship appears. As alcohol sales increase at the national level, violent crime and homicide increase as well. This relationship has been found in numerous countries with varying base rates of consumption. In addition, as the density of alcohol establishments increases, so do violent assaults. In fact, along with poverty, density of alcohol establishments is a strong predictor of the violent crime rate in a particular geographic setting (e.g., a neighborhood or town).

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