Premium
Gender effects in diagnosing alcohol abuse and dependence
Author(s) -
Dawson Deborah A.,
Grant Bridget F.
Publication year - 1993
Publication title -
journal of clinical psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.124
H-Index - 119
eISSN - 1097-4679
pISSN - 0021-9762
DOI - 10.1002/1097-4679(199303)49:2<298::aid-jclp2270490225>3.0.co;2-z
Subject(s) - psychology , alcohol abuse , clinical psychology , population , construct (python library) , psychiatry , demography , sociology , computer science , programming language
Using a national population sample of 43,809 adults, male and female responses were compared for 41 indicators of alcohol abuse and dependence. While men reported all indicators more often than did women, the male to female ratio of positive responses varied according to both the construct represented by the item and its underlying prevalence. Items that might be construed as signs of weakness — physical effects, psychological effects, and loss of control or powerlessness — had lower male/female ratios than other items. Excess male prevalence was greatest for the least prevalent indicators. The paper presents alternative interpretations of these findings and discusses their implications for diagnostic classification.