Memory accessibility and association of alcohol use and its positive outcomes.

Memory processes have been applied increasingly to the understanding of use and abuse of alcohol and other drugs (e.g., Baker, Morse, & Sherman, 1987; Goldman, Brown, Christiansen, & Smith, 1991; MacKinnon & Fenaughty, 1993; Stacy, Dent, et al., 1990; Stacy, Leigh, & Weingardt, 1993). The goal of this research was to examine some of the general predictions from a memory association framework in addiction by using measures that definitely require memory access. To provide background on this topic, we first argue for the importance of memory association and accessibility as potential mediators of alcohol use and summarize a class of theories providing the necessary theoretical support for our predictions regarding these concepts. These general predictions are then evaluated in multiple studies. Finally, we discuss how our findings constitute some of the necessary, but not sufficient, conditions for memory mediation in alcohol use.