Coping with a partner who drinks too much: does anything work?

This paper reports on a multiple regression study in which the efficacy of positive and negative coping responses adopted by the partners of "heavy drinkers" were compared under conditions of drinker intoxication and sobriety. Results indicated that only one combination of response type and drinker state was associated with higher levels of partner well-being: positive responses when the drinker is sober. Moreover, even this coping pattern accounted for relatively little variance in partner well-being scores. It is concluded that programs which aim to improve the quality of partner's lives should not generalize about desirable coping behaviours but should take account of situational and individual difference variables.