Demographic, lifestyle, and psychosocial predictors of frequency of intoxication and other indicators as estimates of alcohol-related problems in AirForce basic military recruits

This study examined demographic, lifestyle, and psychosocial variables to d etermine predictors of Air Force recruits who are likely to have alcohol-re lated problems. Subjects were all Air Force recruits (N = 32,144) entering basic training from August 1995 to September 1996. The dependent measures w ere self-reported frequency of eight or more drinks per occasion, frequency of fighting while drinking, and typical frequency of alcohol consumption. Demographic analysis revealed that individuals high on any dependent variab le were more likely to be male, older, non-Hispanic whites with some colleg e. Lifestyle predictors included positive attitudes toward drug use and smo king status,with risk greater for females than males and for non-whites tha n non-Hispanic whites at the same smoking level. Psychosocial predictors in cluded positive rebellious attitudes, decreased seatbelt use, and positive risk-taking attitudes, with risk greater for females than males; at the sam e risk attitude level. These findings suggest that problem drinking falls i nto a broader category of risky problem behaviors.