Cognitive ability and risk for alcoholism: Short-term memory capacity and intelligence moderate personality risk for alcohol problems

This study tested the hypothesis that short-term memory (STM) capacity moderates the effect of social deviance on alcohol problems. Personality, cognitive ability, and alcohol use and abuse were assessed in the adult offspring of alcoholics (FHPs; n = 153) and the adult offspring of nonalcoholics (FHNs; n = 150). The results revealed that STM capacity moderated the effect of social deviance on alcohol problems, independent of intelligence. High social deviance and high-STM participants had fewer alcohol problems than did high social deviance and low-STM participants. Intelligence also moderated the effect of social deviance on alcohol problems in the same way, independent of STM capacity. FHPs had lower IQs, lower verbal ability, and more response perseveration than FHNs. The results suggest that working memory capacity moderates the risk for alcoholism associated with disinhibited traits.