The epidemiology of alcohol abuse among employed men and women

This chapter examines the relationships between the workplace and the use and abuse of alcohol and discusses some methodological problems in studies that assess these relationships. In an analysis of data from a representative sample of employed men and women in metropolitan Detroit, we find that pressures of the job (job competition and time pressures) are related to the use of alcohol and that job pressures, less complex work with data, people, and things, and feelings of job stress are related to the abuse of alcohol. As we interpret the findings, alcohol is consumed as a means of coping with a stressful work environment whether that consumption is for tension reduction or for self-stimulation. Several alternative interpretations of the findings are addressed with other data from the Detroit study, and we suggest directions for further research on the working and drinking experiences of employed men and women.