Although many individuals use alcohol to cope with stress (their behavior being based on the belief that alcohol can produce a relaxation effect), research has reported conflicting results on the effects of alcohol on tension reduction. A study was conducted to examine the psychophysiological effects of moderate levels of alcohol consumption under a resting state. College students (N=18) were randomly assigned to either an alcohol group or a control group. Baseline measurements of muscle tension, blood pressure, heart rate, respiratory rate, and state anxiety were taken on all subjects before treatment. Subjects in the alcohol group consumed sufficient quantities of beer or wine to achieve a blood alcohol level of .05%. The control subjects received no specific treatment but had the opportunity to read health-related magazines while waiting to be tested again. Following their respective treatments, all subjects were retested. An analysis of covariance was used to examine the differences of criterion measures between groups (pretest measures were used as covariates). The results of the analyses indicated that there were no significant differences in criterion measures between groups. These findings fail to support the belief that alcohol is effective in producing a relaxation effect. (Author/NB)