Alcohol misuse in young adulthood: effects of race, educational attainment, and social context.

We analyzed survey data collected from 1,582 African-American and White young adults to determine 1) whether the relationship between educational attainment and alcohol misuse would vary by race, and 2) what social and psychological factors might explain the differential effects of educational attainment on alcohol misuse. Low educational attainment was positively associated with alcohol misuse among African-American young adults, while high educational attainment was positively associated with alcohol misuse among Whites. Selected social and psychological factors (e.g., unemployment, emotional distress) did not explain the differential effect of low educational attainment of alcohol misuse, but college status and attitudes favorable toward alcohol use accounted for racial differences in the effect of high educational attainment on alcohol misuse. This study may help to explain why disproportionately higher rates of alcohol-related health and social problems have been observed in the African-American adult population, but additional research is needed to better understand the long-term and differential effects of educational attainment on alcohol misuse.