Late-life problem drinking: personal and environmental risk factors for 4-year functioning outcomes and treatment seeking.

Recent research emphasizes the importance of identifying older problem drinkers. However, very little is known about the longitudinal course and predictors of late-life problem drinking. This prospective study of late-life problem drinkers (N = 581) focused on predictors of alcohol consumption, drinking problems, depression, and treatment seeking over a 4-year interval. Heavier baseline alcohol use and being male independently predicted more alcohol consumption 4 years later; more baseline drinking problems and early-onset status independently predicted more drinking problems at follow-up. Independent of other factors, more initial depressive symptoms and chronic health stressors portended more depressive symptoms at follow-up. Individuals who initially sought more treatment, and who had more chronic health and spouse stressors at baseline, were more likely to seek help 4 years later. Heavier reliance on avoidance coping strategies heightened the risk that stressors and friends' approval of drinking would lead to more drinking problems at follow-up. However, for individuals who had more drinking problems at baseline, such environmental risk factors as negative health events and friend stressors predicted fewer subsequent drinking problems.