[The influence of alcohol use and violent behaviour on the beliefs related to alcohol use and aggression].

The authors examined the effect of personal involvement (drinking, violent behaviour) on beliefs concerning the causal connections between drinking alcohol and aggressive behavior. The sample of the study comprised 1200 persons representative of the population over 18 years of age and was selected by a two-step, group stratified sampling method. The measuring instruments used for the study were the questionnaire on alcohol-aggression beliefs applied by Paglia and Room, the Buss and Perry Aggression Questionnaire, and the sociodemographic characteristics of gender, age and education. Analyses using multivariate regression models showed that aggressive behaviour, particularly verbal and physical aggression, and heavy drinking significantly influence the belief of a causal connection between alcohol and aggression. The more a person drinks and the more aggressive he becomes, the more likely he is not to believe the opinion that drinking leads to aggression. Women and older people have a stronger belief in the causal role played by alcohol in aggressive behaviour. These results draw attention to the importance of the cognitive effect of personal involvement. Heavy drinking and aggressivity can prevent a person from recognizing the danger that drinking can have aggressive, criminal consequences. This relationship can be used well in clinical and criminological practice of crime prevention strategy for patients treated with drinking problems and facing proceedings or condemned for criminal actions. The findings of the study also raise a theoretical consideration that the theory of social learning is not a sufficient explanatory model for the connections between drinking and aggression.