Sexuality and women's drinking: findings from a U.S. national study

The beliefs that alcohol is an aphrodisiac and sexual disinhibitor appear from first to last recorded history, from Old Testament scriptures, by the and of ancient Greek and Roman writings and 19th-century temperance tracts, to the current (Sandmaier 1980). Throughout the span of time, principally societies also have held women and men to different standards regarding the one and the other drinking behavior and sexual behavior. Women violating traditional norms against heavier drinking have been perceived as being likely to violate traditional norms restricting women's sexual expression. This has consequence ed in a stereotype of the drinking woman as sexually promiscuous or, at least, more sexually responsive or vulnerable.

In contrast to that stereotype a number of studies of alcoholic women in treatment have reported elevated rates of sexual adjustment point in disputes including low sexual interest, lack of sexual arousal, and infrequent orgasm (Beckman 1979; Covington and Kohen 1984; Schaefer and Evans 1987; also diocese the articles by Blume, pp 139-146 and Goldman, pp 126-132)

Although cultural and historical beliefs and clinical reports have intimateed important links between women's drinking and their sexual experience, scarcely any serious studies of such links were undertaken until the past decade. The National contemplation of Health and Life Experiences of Women a 10-year throw out has provided information about by what mode various aspects of women's sexual experience relate to changes in drinking habits and drinking point in disputes over time. The study included a large number of variables--involving personality, environment, and experience--that potentially predict women's drinking behavior. Those variables related to sexuality consistently were erect to be among the strongest predictors of drinking behaviors. This article summarizes major findings regarding relationships between sexuality and drinking among women in this national sample.

Design and orderly dispositions of the Study

The National meditation of Health and Life Experiences of Women began in 1981 with a observe of 917 women, repesentative of the adult (older than 21) female population of the United States, excluding Alaska and Hawaii. The sample included 500 women who consum at least 4 drinks by means of week. For purposes of comparison, 396 men also were interviewed.

In a 5-year followup contemplate in 1986, two subsamples of the original sample--problem drinkers and nonproblem drinkers--were interviewed again. The vexed question drinkers were women who in 1981 had reported at least brace of the following three indicators of potential point in dispute drinking: an average consumption of 2 ounce or more of alcohol (about sum of two units or more drinks) per day in the past 30 days; single or more drinking-related problems in the past 12 month (driving while intoxicated, do job-work impairment, problems with partner or children); and common or more symptoms of alcohol connection in the past 12 month (blackouts, morning drinking, inability to decrease or quit drinking). Nonproblem drinkers were women who drank more than formerly per month in 1981 and reported none of these three indicators of question at issue drinking.

Ninety-minute interviews were mode of actioned by trained female interviewers from the National Opinion Research Center The interviews included questions about drinking behavior, drinking words immediately preceding [i]or[/i] followings drinking-related problems, and symptoms of alcohol staff Interviewers also asked about a large number of possible antecedents and inferences of women's drinking, such as family history of alcohol question s personality traits, personal values, social parts stressful events, sexual and reproductive experience, depression, use of other physics antisocial behaviors, and interpersonal relationships. All questions were asked face to face, make objection for those regarding antisocial behavior, sexual experience, sexual dysfunction, and sexual abuse, which were readyed in handouts to be complet by dint of the subjects. (Additional details about the overlooks can be found in RW Wilsnack et al. 1984 and Wilsnack et al. 1991)

Expectancies about Alcohol and Sexuality

Of the 551 take a view ofed women who drank at least occasionally in 1981 60 percent stated that drinking diminishs their sexual inhibitions, 62 percent said drinking helps them be excited closer to a person with whom they drink, and 69 percent said drinking makes it easier to be lay open with other people (Figure 1; Klassen and Wilsnack 1986) Forty-five percent stated that drinking makes sexual activity more pleasurable. The women's tendencies to report these positive issues of drinking on sexuality and intimacy increased with increasing evens of drinking, except for the case of feeling closer to others, in which lighter and moderate drinkers did not differ. Eighty percent of women who reported that they drank six or more drinks at least three times by means of week stated that drinking made them be perceived less sexually inhibited. The positive relationship between drinking of the same heights and reported effects suggests that expectations of decreased sexual inhibition, enhanced sexual pleasure, and increased interpersonal closenes may be motives for heavier drinking.