Drinking locations and frequency of drunkenness among Mississippi DUI offenders

Using data collected from convicted drunken drivers, relationships between self-reported frequency of drunkenness, frequency of drinking in seven types of drinking places, and sociodemographic characteristics are examined. Drunk drivers who are young, White, and who infrequently attend worship services are more likely than others to report a high frequency of drunkenness. Self-reported frequency of drunkenness is found to be more strongly related to drinking locations than to sociodemographic characteristics, however. The best predictors of the frequency of drunkenness are the frequency of drinking in automobiles and the frequency of drinking in bars or lounges. These relationships remain strong after the effects of sociodemographic characteristics have been controlled. The findings suggest that drunk drivers who drink in automobiles may represent an especially dangerous subgroup, and that policy makers need to give careful consideration to countermeasures designed to curtail drinking in automobiles.