Citation

Sexton H, Lipton RI, Nilssen O. J. Stud. Alcohol 1999; 60(1): 111-119.

Affiliation

Psychiatric Research Center for Troms and Finnmark, Asgård Mental Hospital, Tromsø, Norway.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1999, Rutgers Center of Alcohol Studies)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

10096316

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: The interrelationships between alcohol consumption and depressed mood were studied in a population to determine if the relationships differed by sex and consumption. METHOD: Alcohol consumption and mood were surveyed at a 7-year interval by self-report (N = 8,260; 4,407 women). Frequency of intoxication was used to divide the sample into moderate and immoderate drinkers. Structural equations modeling was then applied to describe the interrelationships of drinking and mood both cross-sectionally and over time. RESULTS: Overall, self-reported drinking was stable over a 7-year period, although drinking patterns were less stable for immoderate drinkers. Drinking predicted higher levels of depressed mood among the immoderate drinkers of both sexes at follow-up. Drinking also weakly predicted depressed mood among moderately consuming men. However, among moderately consuming women dysphoric mood predicted less drinking. Depressed mood was related to higher levels of concurrent drinking among the immoderately drinking men. Among immoderately drinking women, however, concurrent depressed mood predicted more drinking. CONCLUSIONS: Generally, drinking predicted subsequent depressed mood although this pattern was reversed among moderately drinking women. Furthermore, a synchronous effects model indicated that some immoderately drinking women used alcohol as a response to emotional distress. It appears that gender and the level of consumption need to be taken into account in studies relating mood and drinking.

Language: en