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A statistical approach to an alcoholic drinking history
1Technical Research Centre of Finland, Espoo.
British Journal of Addiction
|May 1, 1992
Summary
This study found a stable drinking rhythm in an alcoholic individual, with drinking days clustered into sprees despite increasing consumption. This pattern can lead to inaccurate alcohol intake recall over short periods.
Area of Science:
- Addiction research
- Statistical analysis of behavior
Background:
- Analyzed an individual's 8.5-year drinking history using daily consumption notes.
- Compared drinking patterns to published data on alcoholics.
Observation:
- Average drinks per drinking day increased from 7 to 16 between 1974 and 1980.
- Abstinent days varied between 23% and 54% without a clear trend.
- Drinking days occurred in sprees (avg. 7 days) separated by abstinence (avg. 4 days).
Findings:
- Drinking rhythm remained stable, with no trends in drinking or abstinence interval lengths.
- The stable rhythm was independent of increasing consumption amounts.
- Drinking patterns deviated significantly from the Poisson hypothesis, indicating non-random event occurrence.
Implications:
- Alcohol intake recall can be inaccurate over periods shorter than one month due to drinking patterns.
- Suggests avoiding short recall periods in research on alcoholism treatment or health effects.
- Highlights the importance of considering drinking patterns in self-reported alcohol consumption studies.