Subgroup differences in drinking patterns among black and white men: results from a national survey

Despite major increases in alcohol-related health problems and indications of shifts in the cultural role of alcoholic beverages among U.S. blacks, few studies have examined drinking patterns in this population. To address gaps in the literature, data from a 1984 national survey were used to compare drinking patterns and their sociocultural correlates among male, black (n = 723) and male, white (n = 743) Americans. Findings from the survey indicate that, at the aggregate level, black and white men exhibit very similar drinking patterns. The proportion of abstainers, infrequent, frequent and heavier drinkers is very similar for the two groups of men. However, major black-white differences occur when the relationship between drinking rates and major social characteristics is considered. Bivariate tables suggest that frequent heavier drinking among whites is associated with youthfulness, high-income status and residing in "wetter" areas, whereas among blacks these patterns are reversed or absent. Log-linear analysis confirmed some of these findings. When drinking behavior was modeled with respect to race, age, income and region, race emerged as an independent predictor and the effects of age and income varied by race. When the two groups of men were analyzed separately, age and region were the only significant determinants of heavier drinking among whites. Among blacks, income and age emerged as significant variables and the influence of age differed from the findings for whites. The results suggest that there may be important differences in the cultural environments of drinking in black and white men.