Intersection of familial risk and environmental social control on high-risk drinking and alcohol dependence in a US national sample of adults

• Published in: Addictive behaviors Vol. 113; p. 106668
• Main Authors: Karriker-Jaffe, Katherine J., Chartier, Karen G., Bares, Cristina B., Kendler, Kenneth S., Greenfield, Thomas K.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Elsevier Ltd 01-02-2021
• Subjects: Adult; Alcohol Drinking - epidemiology; Alcohol use disorder; Alcoholism - epidemiology; Alcoholism - genetics; Family history; Female; Gender differences; Genetic Predisposition to Disease; Humans; Male; Neighborhood environment; Racial/ethnic differences; Risk Factors; Social control; Social Control, Formal; Neighborhood environment; Racial/ethnic differences; Social control; Gender differences; Alcohol use disorder; Family history
• ISSN: 0306-4603; 1873-6327
• DOI: 10.1016/j.addbeh.2020.106668

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•Family history effects on drinking were stronger with more alcohol availability.•For some subgroups, this moderation effect appeared for alcohol dependence as well.•For Whites, family history effects were weaker with more religious social control.
Effects of a family history of alcoholism may be moderated by area-level social control factors. We examine whether increased neighborhood alcohol availability (low social control environment) or increased presence of religious adherents in the county (high social control environment) interact with family history in relation to alcohol outcomes.
Weighted data from 12,686 adult drinkers (51% male; mean age 44; 80% White, 9% Black, 11% Hispanic) in three US National Alcohol Surveys were linked with data on area-level off-premise alcohol availability and adherence to religions with strong prohibitions against drinking. Family history density had four levels (family history negative, extended family only, first-degree relative(s) only, high family density). Dichotomous outcomes were past-year high-risk drinking and alcohol dependence. Logistic regression models with interaction terms assessed whether associations of family history with alcohol outcomes differed significantly by area-level social control. Stratified models assessed differences by sex and by race/ethnicity.
In the full sample, effects of first-degree relatives and high family density on high-risk drinking strengthened as alcohol availability increased. This was replicated in the subsample of women and suggested in relation to dependence among men and Black drinkers. For White drinkers, higher religious social control reduced effects of first-degree relatives on high-risk drinking.
Low social control—in particular, greater density of off-premise alcohol outlets—appears to exacerbate effects of a family history of alcoholism on high-risk drinking. Policy makers should consider differential benefits of decreasing alcohol availability for people from high-risk families to reduce high-risk drinking and alcohol problems.