Further Findings on the Intergenerational Transmission of Alcohol Consumption

Using 43,817 parent-child pairs from 23 waves of the HILDA Survey, I study the intergenerational transmission of alcohol use within a rational model of trait transmission. Transmission is predominantly same-sex: the mother-daughter elasticity is 0.10 and the father-son elasticity is 0.09; there is no father-daughter effect. Influence peaks at ages 15-17 and re-emerges at 28-37 when offspring become parents; mothers also affect sons at both junctures. Comparisons with non-birth (adoptee-style) dyads show similar mother-daughter transmission, indicating norm-based rather than biological channels. Identification concerns are addressed with placebo reshuffling and copula-based corrections; estimates are robust across specifications. Men who remain childless are more likely to mirror maternal drinking, which-together with declining fertility and earlier alcohol-control policies-helps explain cohort declines in male drinking. The interpretation is that parental norms anchor behavior at identity-forming and role-transition ages, with strong persistence thereafter. Policy should target these windows with gender-specific, couple-level interventions alongside population levers on price, availability and marketing.