Motivation and life events: a prospective natural history pilot study of problem drinkers in the community.

A prospective natural history study was conducted of problem drinkers who were thinking about quitting or reducing their alcohol consumption. Two primary constructs, cognitive appraisals and life events, were measured in a mailed-out baseline survey. A one-year follow-up survey identified those who had made reductions in drinking. Partial correlations controlling for baseline drinking severity revealed some support for both cognitive appraisal and life events explanations of change.