S Callinan1, G Rankin1, R Room1,2, O Stanesby1, G Rao3, O Waleewong1,4,5, T K Greenfield6, A Hope7, A-M Laslett1,4,8. 1. a Centre for Alcohol Policy Research , La Trobe University , Bundoora , Australia. 2. b Centre for Social Research on Alcohol & Drugs , Stockholm University , Stockholm , Sweden. 3. c Centre for Public Health , National Institute of Mental Health and NeuroSciences , Bangalore , India. 4. d School of Population and Global Health , University of Melbourne , Melbourne , Australia. 5. e International Health Policy Program (IHPP) , Ministry of Public Health , Nonthaburi , Thailand. 6. f Alcohol Research Group , Public Health Institute , Emeryville , CA , USA. 7. g Department of Public Health and Primary Care , Trinity College , Dublin , Ireland. 8. h National Drug Research Institute , Curtin University , Perth , Australia.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Partners of heavy drinking individuals can be detrimentally affected as a result of their partner's drinking. OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to identify the proportion of heterosexual intimate partner relationships with a heavy drinking male that resulted in reported alcohol-related harm and to investigate the impact of this on well-being in 9 countries. METHODS: This study used survey data from the Gender and Alcohol's Harm to Others (GENAHTO) Project on Alcohol's Harm to Others in 9 countries (10,613 female respondents, 7,091 with intimate live-in partners). Respondents were asked if their partners drinking had negatively affected them as well as questions on depression, anxiety, and satisfaction with life. RESULTS: The proportion of partnered respondents that reported having a harmful heavy drinking partner varied across countries, from 4% in Nigeria and the US to 33% in Vietnam. The most consistent correlate of experiencing harm was being oneself a heavy episodic drinker, most likely as a proxy measure for the acceptability of alcohol consumption in social circles. Women with a harmful heavy drinking partner reported significantly lower mean satisfaction with life than those with a partner that did not drink heavily. CONCLUSIONS: Harms to women from heavy drinking intimate partners appear across a range of subgroups and impact on a wide range of women, at least demographically speaking. Women living with a heavy drinking spouse experience higher levels of anxiety and depression symptoms and lower satisfaction with life.
BACKGROUND: Partners of heavy drinking individuals can be detrimentally affected as a result of their partner's drinking. OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to identify the proportion of heterosexual intimate partner relationships with a heavy drinking male that resulted in reported alcohol-related harm and to investigate the impact of this on well-being in 9 countries. METHODS: This study used survey data from the Gender and Alcohol's Harm to Others (GENAHTO) Project on Alcohol's Harm to Others in 9 countries (10,613 female respondents, 7,091 with intimate live-in partners). Respondents were asked if their partners drinking had negatively affected them as well as questions on depression, anxiety, and satisfaction with life. RESULTS: The proportion of partnered respondents that reported having a harmful heavy drinking partner varied across countries, from 4% in Nigeria and the US to 33% in Vietnam. The most consistent correlate of experiencing harm was being oneself a heavy episodic drinker, most likely as a proxy measure for the acceptability of alcohol consumption in social circles. Women with a harmful heavy drinking partner reported significantly lower mean satisfaction with life than those with a partner that did not drink heavily. CONCLUSIONS: Harms to women from heavy drinking intimate partners appear across a range of subgroups and impact on a wide range of women, at least demographically speaking. Women living with a heavy drinking spouse experience higher levels of anxiety and depression symptoms and lower satisfaction with life.
Entities:
Keywords:
Alcohol-related harm; cultural context; intimate partner; spouse
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