What if it’s not the booze — but the belief system?
In this episode of the Sobriety Bestie Podcast, we dive into Alan Marlatt’s 1973 expectancy experiment, featured in Resisting 12-Step Coercion by Stanton Peele.
This study throws a major wrench in AA’s core claim: the “physical allergy” to alcohol.
🔬 Study findings?
👉 People who thought they were drinking alcohol behaved more "drunk" — even when they weren’t.
👉 Those who were drinking but didn’t know it? No typical "alcoholic" behavior.
So… is it the alcohol or the expectation? Does AA’s ideology create a self-fulfilling prophecy that makes drinking worse?
📍 We’ll break down the study, bust the allergy myth, and explore how belief — not booze — might be the real trigger.
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