Year & Link To Paper

Citation

Abstract

Acknowledgements

2017

Devilly, G.J., Allen, C., & Brown, K. (2017). SmartStart: Results of a large point of entry study into preloading alcohol and associated behaviours. International Journal of Drug Policy, 43, 130-139.

Background: There is a growing trend of preloading with alcohol before entering entertainment districts. It is claimed that this occurs to save money and that preloading may be a good indicator of harmful drinking and risk taking behaviours more generally. No study has collected data from a large sample as the participants entered entertainment districts and measured blood alcohol concentration (BAC) levels and self-reported drinking and risk taking behaviours in a systematic way.
Methods: In this research, police and academics worked together to gauge the breadth and depth of preloading behaviours. In all, 3039 people completed a questionnaire and were breathalysed as they entered entertainment districts in Queensland, Australia. Of those, 2751 represented people from Brisbane and this data, collected every Thursday night to Sunday morning during the warm months, was analysed.
Results: More than 79% of people reported to preload and 71% returned a BAC greater than zero, both with little difference between the genders. Of preloaders, the mean BAC was 0.071, with ‘to socialise with friends’ being the primary reason given for preloading. Increasing preloading BAC was related to increasing risk taking and antisocial behaviours, as well as alcohol abuse and dependence. Older people entering entertainment districts had more accurate estimates of their BAC, yet 20% of our sample did not understand how the BAC system worked. Conducting the research was associated with a higher access rate to police and a lower arrest rate in the areas of data collection in comparison to the same nights 1 year earlier.
Conclusion: Preloading is widespread and involves moderate to heavy drinking in the Australian population visiting entertainment districts. Any interventions to curb drinking behaviours and reduce violence in night time entertainment districts need to involve approaches aimed at cultural phenomena, such as preloading behaviours.

Funding & support declaration $39,800 National Drug Strategy Law Enforcement Funding Committee (Project No 1314004). Alcolizer Technology provided consumables for testing and calibrated the breathalysers.

2018

Sorbello, J.G., Devilly, G.J., Allen, C., Hughes, L.R.J., & Brown, K. (2018). Fuel-cell breathalyser use for field research on alcohol intoxication: an independent psychometric evaluation. PeerJ 6:e4418; DOI 10.7717/peerj.4418.

Background. Several field studies have used fuel-cell breathalysers (FCB) to investigate the prevalence of alcohol intoxication. However, there is a lack of evidence evaluating the psychometric properties of these breathalysers outside of the forensic disciplines.
Methods. The current research describes four studies designed that assess the reliability and validity of portable platinum FCBs for research on alcohol intoxication. Utilising the Alcolizer LE5 breathalyser and, to a lesser degree, the Lifeloc FC-20 and the Lion Intoxilyzer 8000, each study sampled patrons frequenting popular night-time entertainment districts with varying levels of alcohol intoxication.
Results. Study one and two found excellent test-retest reliability and inter-instrument reliability for FCBs. Study three and four provided evidence to support the convergent validity of the two FCBs (the LE5 with the FC20), and with an evidential breathalyser (i.e., the Lion Intoxilyzer 8000; EB).
Discussion. A 93 97% agreement rate between breathalyser readings was found across the four studies. Portable FCB are recommended as a reliable and valid instrument for research designs requiring quick alcohol intoxication estimations in large populations.
Strategies to enhance reliable and valid readings are provided for field researchers.

This work was supported by the National Drug Strategy Law Enforcement Funding Committee (SmartStart Project No 1314004) and the National Drug Strategy Law Enforcement Funding Committee (Last Drinks Project). Alcolizer Technology provided consumables for testing and calibrated the breathalysers in the research. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.

Alcolizer provided the Alcolizer LE5 breathalysers and consumables for testing and recalibrated these breathalysers. The FC20 and consumables was purchased by one of the authors (GD) and recalibrated by CQ Breathalysers Pty Ltd (paid for by GD). The Queensland Police Service provided the Lion Intoxilyzer 8000 and consumables for testing.

2018

Devilly, G.J. (2018). “All the King’s horses and all the King’s men . . . ”: What is broken should not always be put back together again. International Journal of Drug Policy, 51, 105-110.

A response to Miller et al., 2018.

$39,800 National Drug Strategy Law Enforcement Funding Committee (SmartStart Project No 1314004) in original research and this manuscript. $38,900 National Drug Strategy Law Enforcement Funding Committee (Last Drinks Project) data used in current manuscript. Alcolizer Technology provided consumables for testing and calibrated the breathalysers in the original research.

2018

Devilly, G.J. (2018). Publish and still perish? Addiction, 113, 174.

Letter to the editor.

2019

Devilly, G.J., Hides, L., Kavanagh, D.J. (2019). A Big Night Out Getting Bigger: Alcohol Consumption, Arrests and Crowd Numbers, Before and After Legislative Change. PLoS ONE. http://dx.plos.org/10.1371/
journal.pone.0218161

Background: Restrictive practices on alcohol sales in entertainment districts have been introduced to reduce alcohol-related violence in youth. On 1^st July 2016, the Queensland State Government (Australia) imposed a 2-hour reduction in trading hours for alcohol sales in venues within specific night-time entertainment districts (NEDS; from 5am to 3am), a reduction in maximum trading hours for venues outside NEDs (with a maximum 2am closing time), the banning of ‘rapid intoxication drinks’ (e.g. shots) after 12am, and no new approvals for trading hours beyond 10pm for the sale of takeaway alcohol. No independent study has evaluated general levels of intoxication, crowd numbers, fear of violence, and illicit substance use as people enter and exit NEDS, both before and after the introduction of restrictive legislation. Further, no study has assessed the impact using matched times of the year in a controlled study and also assessed actual assault rates as recorded by the police.

Method: We conducted 3 studies – randomly breath-testing patrons for alcohol, as they entered and exited NEDs. Study 1 assessed patrons’ (n=807) breath approximated blood alcohol concentration (BrAC) and predictions of how the legislation would change their drinking habits before the legislation was enacted. Study 2 assessed crime statistics and patrons’ BrAC levels and drug taking reports on an equivalent night, one year apart – before (n=497) and after (n=406) the new legislation. Study 3 was a test of the generalisation of Study 2 with two months of survey and BrAC data collected as people entered and exited the NEDs over two consecutive years before (n=652 and n=155) and one year after (n=460) the new legislation. In Study 3 we also collected crime statistics and data on people leaving the entertainment district one year before (n=502) and one year after (n=514) the legislative change.

Findings: People predicted that the legislation would lead to them drinking more alcohol before they entered town or make little change to their drinking habits. Baseline data over the 2 years before the legislation (Study 3) demonstrated stable preloading rates and BrAC at entry to the NEDs. However, after the introduction of the legislation patrons entered the NEDs systematically later and increased their alcohol preloading. People were substantially more inebriated as they entered the NEDs after the legislative change, with approximately 50% fewer people not preloading after the new laws. Exit BrAC was less consistent but showed some evidence of an increase. Crime statistics and patrons’ self-reported experiences of violence did not change.

Interpretation:  Legislation that does not specifically adapt to the cultural shift of preloading and take local conditions into account will be unsuccessful in reducing alcohol consumption. Such legislation is unlikely to meaningfully change assault rates in youth.

Funding sources: $38,900, $39,800 & $28,000 National Drug Strategy Law Enforcement Funding Committee (SmartStart Project, Last Drinks Project & What’s On-Board Project). Leanne Hides is funded by an Australian National Health and Medical Research Council Senior Research Fellowship. Alcolizer Technology provided consumables for testing and calibrated the breathalysers. Mark Monaghan and Rapiscan Systems loaned an Itemiser 3 Ion Scanner and donated consumables and servicing.

In particular, we have not received any funding during this research from local or state governments, political organisations, lobby groups, registered health charities that promote temperance, or companies involved in the supply or sale of alcohol.

2019

Scholey, A., Benson, S., Kaufman, J., Terpstra, C., Ayre, E., Verster, J., Allen, C., Devilly, G.J. (2019). Effects of alcohol hangover on cognitive performance: findings from a field/internet mixed methodology study. Journal of Clinical Medicine, 8(4), 440; https://doi.org/
10.3390/jcm8040440.

Results from studies into the cognitive effects of alcohol hangover have been mixed. They also present methodological challenges, often relying on self-reports of alcohol consumption leading to hangover. The current study measured Breath Alcohol Concentration (BAC, which was obtained via breathalyzer) and self-reported drinking behavior during a night out. These were then related to hangover severity and cognitive function, measured over the internet in the same subjects, the following morning. Volunteers were breathalyzed and interviewed as they left the central entertainment district of an Australian state capital. They were provided with a unique identifier and, the following morning, logged on to a website. They completed a number of measures including an online version of the Alcohol Hangover Severity Scale (AHSS), questions regarding number and type of drinks consumed the previous night, and the eTMT-B-a validated, online analogue of the Trail Making Test B (TMT-B) of executive function and working memory. Hangover severity was significantly correlated with one measure only, namely the previous night's Breath Alcohol Concentration (r = 0.228, p = 0.019). Completion time on the eTMT-B was significantly correlated with hangover severity (r = 0.245, p = 0.012), previous night's BAC (r = 0.197, p = 0.041), and time spent dinking (r = 0.376, p < 0.001). These findings confirm that alcohol hangover negatively affects cognitive functioning and that poorer working memory and executive performance correlate with hangover severity. The results also support the utility and certain advantages of using online measures in hangover research.

These data were drawn from a sample of a larger study funded by a grant to G.D. from the National Drug Strategy Law Enforcement Funding Committee (# 1314004). The funders had no role in the design of the study (in the collection, analyses, or interpretation of data), in the writing of the manuscript, or in the decision to publish the results.

2019

Devilly, G.J., & Srbinovski, A. (2019). Crisis support services in night-time entertainment districts: Changes in demand following changes in alcohol legislation. International Journal of Drug Policy, 65, 56-64.

Background
Night time entertainment districts (NEDs) are predominantly frequented by youth who drink alcohol before and after entry. Centres where people binge drink alcohol make use of emergency services at a greater rate than those places where alcohol is not present. Previous UK government research suggests that lengthening the hours for alcohol sales has led to a spreading of emergency service use across the night, with services required later in the night. In Queensland, the State Government has introduced more restrictive opening hours for alcohol sales in NEDs and we predicted earlier use of crisis services and, with a large preloading culture, similar or more service use.

Methods
Volunteer organisations, such as the NightWatch in Brisbane, Australia, provide crisis interventions as required in these NEDs and so we used the data from their records. Every Intervention made by the NightWatch organisation is recorded in an electronic database. We analysed data, matched for time of year, by looking at a 6 month period before the new legislation and a matching 6 month period following legislation.

Findings
Following restrictive alcohol sales, the NightWatch provided similar numbers of interventions but those that required a more involved intervention (e.g., Rest and Recovery in a shelter) were significantly more prevalent, while less involved interventions (e.g., Intoxication First Aid provided in situ on the street) were fewer. Consistent with both preloading research and research into hours of alcohol availability, it was found that the NightWatch provided their services to the same number of people as before the legislative change, but provided them earlier in the evening.

Interpretation
Where there is a preloading culture, restricting alcohol sales at the end of the night appears to lead to an increased use of crisis interventions earlier in the evening. A compressed need for aid runs the risk of overloading crisis service availability unless these services are proportionately resourced.

Conflicts of Interest / Competing Interest: None. In particular, we have not received any funding during this research from local or state governments, political organisations, lobby groups, temperance societies and health based registered charities, or companies involved in the promotion, supply or sale of alcohol.

We would like to thank the NightWatch for allowing us access to their raw data for use in this manuscript.

2019

Devilly, G.J., Greber, M., Brown, K., & Allen., C., (2019). Drinking to Go Out or Going Out to Drink? A Longitudinal Study of Alcohol in Night-Time Entertainment Districts. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 205, 107603.

Background. Recent research has highlighted the growing trend of alcohol preloading before a night out. We wished to look at people’s motivations for preloading, their estimation for drinking during the night, and assess the impact that preloading has on how inebriated people become across the night, as measured by Breath Approximated blood Alcohol Content (BrAC).

Method. We randomly surveyed and breath-tested patrons as they entered and exited Night Time Entertainment Districts (NEDs) in Brisbane, Queensland. We obtained 360 participants who were encouraged to contact us at the end of their night, compensating them for their time with a taxi voucher. Of these, 143 people returned and completed an exit questionnaire.

Findings. We found that people: were motivated to preload in order to save money and socialise; were likely to drink more than they predicted over the course of the night; were more surprised by their alcohol reading the higher their BrAC; and this trajectory displayed little difference between men and women.  It was further found that, for men, personality contributed 19% of the variance to exit BrAC, but entry BrAC accounted for nearly 38% of unique variance. For women, body mass index significantly predicted exit BrAC (9% unique variance), but entry BrAC accounted for nearly 30% unique variance.

Interpretation. To reduce general levels of intoxication in city NEDs, interventions should focus on having people come in earlier, less drunk and be taught to have more realistic appraisals of their drinking.

Conflicts of Interest / Competing Interest: None. In particular, the authors have not received any funding during this research from local or state governments, political organizations, lobby groups, temperance societies and health based registered charities, or companies involved in the supply or sale of alcohol.

Role of funding source: $39,800 National Drug Strategy Law Enforcement Funding Committee (Last Drinks Project). Alcolizer Technology provided consumables for testing and calibrated the breathalysers.

2020

Hortz, O., Lehmann, T., Devilly, G.J. (2020). First Drinks: First Impressions. Police Chief, July, 40-41.

2020

Hughes, L.R.J., & Devilly, G.J. (2021) A Proposal for a Taxonomy of Pre-Loading. Substance Use & Misuse, 56:3, 416-423, DOI: 10.1080/
10826084.2020.1869261

Background: Pre-loading of alcohol and other drugs has become a prevalent start to nights out in many countries. Studies into pre-loading have been using different operational definitions and descriptions, leading to confusion and debate in the research literature.

Purpose/Objective: We wish to propose a full taxonomy so that research into preloading, of any substances, can be specific and standardized.

Methods: We address this problem by analyzing (1) terminology used throughout the literature, (2) the evolving nature of this phenomenon, and (3) the operational components comprising this substance use practice. Additionally, we provide a context and rationale for how we view pre-loading in relation to the broader event-level session.

Results: Our results propose a full operational definition and taxonomy of pre-loading to be used, and built upon, by researchers. We also provide a visual representation of pre-loading within an event-level session and provide a method to facilitate consistency across cultures.

Conclusions: We propose that this system will lead to greater specificity and higher reliability in the interpretation of research results.

Conflicts of interest/competing interest None. In particular, the authors have not received any funding during this research from local or state governments, political organizations, lobby groups, temperance societies or 'health based registered charities', or companies involved in the supply or sale of alcohol.

2021

Devilly, G.J. (2021). The Impact of Last Drinks Legislation: Exit Intoxication and Perceptions of Risk within Nighttime Entertainment Districts in Brisbane, Australia. Substance Use & Misuse, https://doi.org/10.1080/
10826084.2021.2019772

Background: There is a growing emphasis on reducing alcohol fuelled violence. We do not know whether legislation to close night-time entertainment districts (NEDs) earlier leads to decreased intoxication and fear of violence within the NED.

Methods: We collected data before restrictive alcohol legislation (n = 2,670 participants) and again after legislation was introduced (n = 1,926 participants). Patrons were systematically assessed with surveys and breathalysers as they exited Brisbane NEDs.

Results: Consistent with a 2-hour reduction in closing times, people left the NED substantially earlier. The exit intoxication levels of people did not change between pre- and post-legislation. After the legislation was introduced perceived risk of violence increased.

Conclusions: Perceived alcohol scarcity leads to increased preloading. With only restrictive legislation on alcohol sales, people do not drink to lower levels of inebriation.

Conflicts of Interest / Competing Interest: None. In particular, the authors have not received any funding during this research from local or state governments, political organizations, lobby groups, temperance societies and health based registered charities, or companies involved in the supply or sale of alcohol.

Funding & Support Declaration:
$38,900, $39,800 & $28,000 National Drug Strategy Law Enforcement Funding Committee (SmartStart Project, Last Drinks Project & What’s On-Board Project). Alcolizer Technology provided consumables for testing and calibrated the breathalysers.

2021

Ayre, E., Scholey, A., White, D., Devilly, G.J., Kaufman, J., Verster, J.C., Allen, C., Benson, S. (2021). The Relationship between Alcohol Hangover Severity, Sleep and Cognitive Performance; a Naturalistic Study. Journal of Clinical Medicine, 10, 5691. https://doi.org/
10.3390/jcm10235691

Alcohol hangover (AH) has been associated with poor sleep due to the negative effects of alcohol intoxication on sleep quantity and sleep quality. The aim of the current study was to further explore the relationship between AH severity and sleep using a naturalistic study design.
A further aim was to determine whether quantitative aspects of sleep were a mediating influence on the relationship between AH severity and cognitive performance. As part of the naturalistic study design, 99 drinkers were recruited following a night of drinking in an Australian state capital, with breath alcohol concentration (BrAC) measured as participants were leaving the entertainment district. The following morning at home, participants answered online questions regarding their drinking behaviour on the previous evening, current AH symptoms and sleep quality. Participants also completed an online version of the Trail-Making Test B (TMT-B) to assess cognitive performance.
The findings reveal the duration of nightly awakenings to be negatively related to six individual AH symptoms as well as overall AH severity. The number of nightly awakenings, sleep quality and total sleep time correlated with four AH symptoms including overall AH severity. Total AH severity accounted for a moderate amount of variance (11%) in the time to complete the TMT-B. These findings confirm that alcohol consumption negatively affects sleep, which is related to higher next-day hangover severity ratings and poorer cognitive performance.

Funding: These data were drawn from a sample of a larger study funded by a grant to G.J.D. and C.A. from the National Drug Strategy Law Enforcement Funding Committee (#1314004). The funders had no role in the design of the study (in the collection, analyses or interpretation of data), in the writing of the manuscript or in the decision to publish the results.

Conflicts of Interest: S.B. has received funding from Red Bull GmbH, Kemin Foods, Sanofi Aventis, Phoenix Pharmaceutical, GlaxoSmithKline and BioRevive. A.S. has held research grants from Abbott Nutrition, Arla Foods, Bayer, BioRevive, DuPont, Fonterra, Kemin Foods, Nestlé, Nutricia-Danone and Verdure Sciences. He has acted as a consultant/expert advisor to Bayer, Danone, Naturex, Nestlé, Pfizer, Sanofi and Sen-Jam Pharmaceutical, and has received travel/hospitality/speaker fees from Bayer, Sanofi and Verdure Sciences. He is on the Scientific Advisory Board of Sen-Jam Pharmaceutical.
Over the past 36 months, J.C.V. has acted as a consultant/expert advisor to KNMP, More Labs, Red Bull, Sen-Jam Pharmaceutical, Toast!, Tomo and ZBiotics. D.W. has received research funding from Abbott Nutrition, Arla Foods, Bayer Healthcare and Fonterra, and consultancy/speaker honoraria from Neurobrands, Naturex and Bayer Healthcare. G.J.D. and C.A. have received no funding from local or state governments, political organisations, lobby groups, registered health charities that promote temperance or companies involved in the supply or sale of alcohol.

2022

Devilly, G.J., Walters, A., Allen, C (2022). A Day At The Races: Youth Alcohol Use Before and during a Large Public Event. Drugs: Education, Prevention and Policy, https://doi.org/10.1080/
09687637.2021.2023469

Introduction: The phenomenon of youth preloading with alcohol is related to increased rates of assault, injury and arrest. We have no empirical, field-based, research on the impact of preloading and alcohol use at a large-scale public event.

Method: Random samples of patrons were breathalysed (BrAC) on entry and exit of a horse racing / music event (n=286), and questioned regarding their preloading, spending, and group characteristics.

Results: 79% of participants sampled at entry and 85% at exit reported preloading prior to the event. Of those who preloaded, 87% were observed to have BrAC readings over zero (with a mean BrAC of .071 at a median time of day of 12.29pm). No differences were found between genders on preloading or BrAC at entry. Group size was found to explain 9% of the unique variance in entry BrAC. Those patrons who preloaded had significantly higher BrAC at exit, with preloading accounting for almost identical variance to the number of reported drinks consumed within the venue.

Implications: Preloading at large-scale public events is highly endorsed by both male and female youth and is associated with a pattern of continued drinking throughout the course of the event. Interventions to manage risk are suggested.
 

Conflicts of Interest / Competing Interest: None. In particular, we have not received any funding during this research from local or state governments, political organisations, lobby groups, temperance societies and health based registered charities, or companies involved in the supply or sale of alcohol.

Role of funding source: $39,800 National Drug Strategy Law Enforcement Funding Committee (Last Drinks Project). Alcolizer Technology provided consumables for testing and calibrated the breathalysers.

 2022

 Piron, K.M., & Devilly, G.J. (2022). Déjà Q in the Australian nightlife: ID scanners and violent crime in night-time entertainment districts. Journal of Criminology. DOI: 10.1177/26338076221094874

On July 1st, 2017, the mandatory use of ID scanners as a prerequisite to licenced venue entry came into effect in all 15 major night-time entertainment districts (NEDs) across Queensland (Australia). This relatively contemporary Situational Crime Prevention technique functions to: 1) supplement traditional door-staff enforced control access; and 2) increase personal accountability by reducing perceived anonymity inside licenced venues. The current study examined the association between the ID scanner legislation and violent crime rates in the Fortitude Valley NED (Brisbane, Queensland), a leading hotspot for street violence. Police crime data was examined one year before ID scanner enforcement, and one year after, with each year matched quarterly to test Pearson's chi-square contingencies by time of year. Violent summary offences (less serious violent offences) increased substantially in the first three months following the ID scanner legislative change, while general summary offences (i.e., public nuisance) and indictable offences (e.g., assaults) remained statistically unchanged. The introduction of ID scanners was the only legislative change that occurred in the Fortitude Valley NED during data collection, suggesting a highly probable link to the observed spike in violent offences. Potential determinants of this upsurge in violence are discussed, including inefficient queue management and increased provocations for violence in queues to nightclubs resulting from the prolonged ID scanning process. 

 Conflicts of Interest: The authors declare no conflicts of interest. In particular, the authors of this study did not receive funding from any State or Federal Government bodies or any manufacturers of scanning equipment or products sold in pubs or nightclubs.