[Need for control in the workplace and motivation for alcohol consumption: a written survey in 3 public civil service agencies].

The links between the need for control (inability to withdraw from work obligations and work commitment) at the workplace and the motivation to consume alcohol is investigated on the basis of 427 male employees in three public administrations or spatially and organizationally homogenous parts of these administrations. By analogy with the work of McClelland and with reference to the concept of the need for control it is conjectured that a link exists between the need for control and the motivation to consume alcohol as a means of coping with stress. Using a linear-additive regression model it becomes evident that the inability to withdraw from work obligations though not the work commitment have an effect on the consumption motive. This effect is not eliminated by the tendency for social desirability and the salary grouping, which are included in the regression model as predictors. In summary, the data proves a link between the inability to withdraw from work obligations on the one side and the consumption of alcohol as a means of coping with stress on the other.