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Some people can be nice drunks, though they are rare. Studies have determined that the one consistent behavioral change from being drunk, across continents and

Some people can be nice drunks, though they are rare. Studies have determined that the one consistent behavioral change from being drunk, across continents and cultures, is an increase in aggression.

ZenoArrow 11y ago
> "Some people can be nice drunks, though they are rare." If you think that you've been drinking in the wrong places, seriously. I'm from Bath, I started drinking in parks and pubs when I was about 15/16, and I drank a fair bit in my 20s (I'm in my 30s now). I can count on one hand the amount of alcohol-fueled fights I saw in all that time, and any other minor acts of aggression were also fairly infrequent. The vast majority of people I was with and met were nice drunks. That said, I have seen cities where police riot vans are out every Saturday night, so as I said, it varies a lot, the baggage that comes with drinking culture is not the same everywhere you go in the UK. Sometimes people are dedicated to getting smashed, others are on the pull, others just want to get lary, others are just using it to loosen themselves up, and what is common in one city is not necessarily common in another, it varies from drinking place to drinking place.
MLR 11y ago
This is just ridiculous, yeah you get some people who get a bit lairy and go out looking for a fight, but if anything most people are much more friendly and sociable when they've been drinking.
wfo 11y ago
This thread is full of people saying "every study in human history has shown drinking is associated with an increase in aggression" and normally thoughtful level-headed hackers saying "my limited non-representative experience doesn't sync with that, what you're saying is ridiculous and absurd and I refuse to believe it because it doesn't support my habits" I'd be interested to see what kind of violence it's associated with; I would guess certainly domestic violence is a big part.
deelowe 11y ago
I guess I'm an outlier. Except for 2 family members, everyone I associate with does not get aggressive at all when they drink. Some get chatty, some get tired, and I turn into the biggest goof in the world. I realize there are people who get aggressive when they drink, but it always seems to me like it's "that guy/girl" out of a crowd of people in the bar/club.
InclinedPlane 11y ago
It seems a lot of people are missing the point here so I'll try to clarify. First, an increase in aggression does not mean that everyone suddenly turns into a raging asshole, it just means an increase, even a slight one, in aggressive tendencies. Which does not necessarily mean physical aggression. People tend to become more demanding, or more snarky, or bold, and so on. Examples include: egging others on to drink heavily or do silly things even if they don't want to. Even things like ragging on your friends is representative of an increase in aggression. Such things can still be "friendly", but they are indicative of increased aggression. And a small subset of people do get more physically aggressive, confrontational, oppositional, etc. A lot of this stuff is so ingrained in our culture that we don't even notice it. We just accept that being drunk translates to being more aggressive in a zillion subtle ways and don't even consider such things to be true aggression. Additionally, I'm disappointed that so many people have jumped immediately to the "my limited anecdotal experience contradicts countless scientific studies" response. No, anecdotes are not data. Moreover, if you think about the way your friends behave when drunk you might notice signs of increased aggression as well, if you pay attention. I don't have any friends who get violent when drunk, and I have many friends who are adorable drunks, but I do notice a consistent pattern in becoming slightly more aggressive across the board. More demanding, less charitable, etc.
- ZenoArrow 11y ago
  I'm not saying those studies you're referring to are wrong, but I do wonder if the way they framed their hypothesis led them to a false positive. I agree with the 'mood amplifier' description that MLR gave before. It gives you some temporary courage to live more boldly. With this study, did they try and provoke a reaction from the drunk people? I also think it misses the larger picture. For example, you mentioned about your friends who are adorable drunks, where are the studies that measure adorableness when drunk, or any other traits of inebriated individuals? Why does it always have to be about the negatives? Don't get me wrong, I totally accept that our drinking culture has some hugely negative aspects, and I'll be glad if the upcoming generations enjoy socialising without it, but I also believe we shouldn't rush to see it without its merits too. Alcohol can make people do horrible things (hurting others being the main one), but it can make people do great things too (including being more compassionate), is this contradictory? At a stretch you could say courage/confidence is at the centre of both.

Some people can be nice drunks, though they are rare. Studies have determined that the one consistent behavioral change from being drunk, across continents and cultures, is an increase in aggression.

ZenoArrow 11y ago

> "Some people can be nice drunks, though they are rare." If you think that you've been drinking in the wrong places, seriously. I'm from Bath, I started drinking in parks and pubs when I was about 15/16, and I drank a fair bit in my 20s (I'm in my 30s now). I can count on one hand the amount of alcohol-fueled fights I saw in all that time, and any other minor acts of aggression were also fairly infrequent. The vast majority of people I was with and met were nice drunks. That said, I have seen cities where police riot vans are out every Saturday night, so as I said, it varies a lot, the baggage that comes with drinking culture is not the same everywhere you go in the UK. Sometimes people are dedicated to getting smashed, others are on the pull, others just want to get lary, others are just using it to loosen themselves up, and what is common in one city is not necessarily common in another, it varies from drinking place to drinking place.

MLR 11y ago

This is just ridiculous, yeah you get some people who get a bit lairy and go out looking for a fight, but if anything most people are much more friendly and sociable when they've been drinking.

wfo 11y ago

This thread is full of people saying "every study in human history has shown drinking is associated with an increase in aggression" and normally thoughtful level-headed hackers saying "my limited non-representative experience doesn't sync with that, what you're saying is ridiculous and absurd and I refuse to believe it because it doesn't support my habits" I'd be interested to see what kind of violence it's associated with; I would guess certainly domestic violence is a big part.

deelowe 11y ago

I guess I'm an outlier. Except for 2 family members, everyone I associate with does not get aggressive at all when they drink. Some get chatty, some get tired, and I turn into the biggest goof in the world. I realize there are people who get aggressive when they drink, but it always seems to me like it's "that guy/girl" out of a crowd of people in the bar/club.

InclinedPlane 11y ago

It seems a lot of people are missing the point here so I'll try to clarify. First, an increase in aggression does not mean that everyone suddenly turns into a raging asshole, it just means an increase, even a slight one, in aggressive tendencies. Which does not necessarily mean physical aggression. People tend to become more demanding, or more snarky, or bold, and so on. Examples include: egging others on to drink heavily or do silly things even if they don't want to. Even things like ragging on your friends is representative of an increase in aggression. Such things can still be "friendly", but they are indicative of increased aggression. And a small subset of people do get more physically aggressive, confrontational, oppositional, etc. A lot of this stuff is so ingrained in our culture that we don't even notice it. We just accept that being drunk translates to being more aggressive in a zillion subtle ways and don't even consider such things to be true aggression. Additionally, I'm disappointed that so many people have jumped immediately to the "my limited anecdotal experience contradicts countless scientific studies" response. No, anecdotes are not data. Moreover, if you think about the way your friends behave when drunk you might notice signs of increased aggression as well, if you pay attention. I don't have any friends who get violent when drunk, and I have many friends who are adorable drunks, but I do notice a consistent pattern in becoming slightly more aggressive across the board. More demanding, less charitable, etc.

ZenoArrow 11y ago
I'm not saying those studies you're referring to are wrong, but I do wonder if the way they framed their hypothesis led them to a false positive. I agree with the 'mood amplifier' description that MLR gave before. It gives you some temporary courage to live more boldly. With this study, did they try and provoke a reaction from the drunk people? I also think it misses the larger picture. For example, you mentioned about your friends who are adorable drunks, where are the studies that measure adorableness when drunk, or any other traits of inebriated individuals? Why does it always have to be about the negatives? Don't get me wrong, I totally accept that our drinking culture has some hugely negative aspects, and I'll be glad if the upcoming generations enjoy socialising without it, but I also believe we shouldn't rush to see it without its merits too. Alcohol can make people do horrible things (hurting others being the main one), but it can make people do great things too (including being more compassionate), is this contradictory? At a stretch you could say courage/confidence is at the centre of both.