Occupational risk factors associated with alcohol and drug problems

Are workplace factors associated with employee alcohol use? The WIRUS cross-sectional study

OBJECTIVES

Sociodemographic predictors of employee alcohol use are well established in the literature, but knowledge about associations between workplace factors and alcohol use is less explored. The aim of this study was to explore whether workplace factors were associated with employee alcohol use (consumption and alcohol-related problems).

DESIGN

Cross-sectional study. Linear and binary logistic regression analyses.

SETTING

Heterogeneous sample of employees (workers and supervisors) from 22 companies across geographical locations and work divisions in Norway.

PARTICIPANTS

Employees (N=5388) responded on survey items measuring workplace factors and alcohol use.

OUTCOMES

Data on alcohol use were collected with the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT). Consumption was measured with the AUDIT-C (the first three items), and alcohol-related problems were operationalised as a sum score of 8 or higher on the full 10-item AUDIT.

RESULTS

Higher levels of alcohol consumption were associated with more liberal workplace drinking social norms (b=1.37, p<0.001), working full-time (b=0.18, p<0.001), working from holiday home (b=0.40, p<0.01), being a supervisor (b=0.25, p<0.001), having supervisors with less desired leadership qualities (b=-0.10, p<0.01), shorter working hours (b=-0.03, p<0.05), higher workplace social support (b=0.13, p<0.05) and higher income (b=0.02, p<0.001). Alcohol-related problems were associated with more liberal workplace drinking social norms (OR=3.52, p<0.001) and shorter working hours (OR=0.94, p<0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

Workplace drinking social norms were the supremely most dominant predictor of both consumption and alcohol-related problems. Results suggest that some workplace factors may play a role in explaining employee alcohol consumption, although the predictive ability of these factors was limited. This study points to the importance of drinking social norms, workplace drinking culture and leadership for understanding employee alcohol use.

Thinking about Social Determinants of Health through the Relationality of Work and Drug Use

Public health often frames drug use and addiction as destructive and antithetical to productive citizenship, particularly formal employment. Anthropologists show how drug use emerges in specific institutional, social, and political economic contexts. This attention to context suggests that the relationship between drug use and work may not be as stable as epidemiology models it. There is a multiplicity to the relationality of work and drug use. These results are based on in-depth interviews conducted in 2018 and 2019 with 16 individuals undergoing addiction treatment at a residential facility in northern Arizona. In some cases, drug and alcohol use led to losing work. In other cases, drug and alcohol use made work more possible. The entanglements between work and drug use fluctuated through time. Social determinants of health are relationally brought into being, part of larger assemblages, and dynamic.

The health of restaurant work: A historical and social context to the occupational health of food service

The United States currently has over one million restaurants, making food service one of the largest workforces and industry sectors in the nation's economy. Historically, concern for the health of early restaurant workers was tied largely to the hygiene of the food and thus the wellbeing of the customer rather than the individuals preparing the food. The landscape of occupational illness and injury that resulted is fraught with some of the starkest health disparities in wages, discrimination, benefits, injuries, and illness seen among US laborers. These disparities have consistently been associated with social class and economic position. Conditions identified during the early years of restaurant work, before the introduction of occupational safety and health protections, persist today largely due to tipped wages, dependence on customer discretion, and the management structure. Research and intervention efforts to control occupational health hazards should be directed toward the socioeconomic and structural roots of health problems among food service workers in the United States. Such efforts have important implications for enhancing worker protections, improving wages, and restructuring working conditions for restaurant and food service workers. They also suggest opportunities for occupational health practitioners and researchers to contribute to system-level change analysis to address centuries-old occupational health challenges still facing one of the largest sectors of workers in the country.

Six shades of grey: Identifying drinking culture and potentially risky drinking behaviour in the grey zone between work and leisure. The WIRUS culture study

Objectives: The aim of this study was to explore drinking culture and drinking situations that employers and employees encounter in the grey zone between work and leisure, and identify what might affect employees’ risky drinking behaviour.

Methods: We used eight focus groups to interview 61 core company informants from eight Norwegian companies (private and public sector) participating in the WIRUS – Workplace-based interventions preventing risky alcohol use and sick leave – project. The informants represented employers and employees with a diversity of roles at multiple organisational levels. The transcribed interviews were analysed by applying a phenomenological hermeneutical approach.

Results: The analysis revealed six dimensions of drinking culture representing potentially risky drinking behaviour in situations that fall in the grey zone between work and leisure: (1) “Who invited me?” (Degree of obligation towards inviter), (2) “Do I have to participate?” (Degree of participation volunteerism), (3) “To drink or not to drink?” (Degree of drinking volunteerism), (4) “Work talk or small talk?” (Degree of work-related conversation), (5) “Are there any drinking rules to follow?” (Degree of regulation), and (6) “The influence of being away from home” (degree of distance to home).

Conclusions: The findings reveal that employers and employees’ experience of drinking culture can be categorised as six different “shades of grey”. The grey zone is shaded from light to dark grey, indicating how risky the informants perceive the grey zone to be. The findings may be useful when designing workplace health promotion programmes and alcohol regulations in the workplace.

Assessing the Role of Gambling on Problematic Alcohol Consumption by Police Officers

While a number of studies have attributed critical incident stressors to alcohol abuse among police officers, no study has examined the role gambling, if any, plays on problematic alcohol consumption. Therefore, data from the Police Stress and Domestic Violence in Police Families in Baltimore, Maryland, 1997-1999 are analyzed to test the influence of gambling on problematic alcohol consumption engaged by police officers. Results indicated that gambling is significant in predicting problematic alcohol consumption. Burnout, peer drinking, and self-control also predicted the dependent variable. The study's results, as well as the study's limitations and directions for future research, are also discussed.

Using Gottfredson and Hirschi’s A General Theory of Crime to Explain Problematic Alcohol Consumption by Police Officers: A Test of Self-Control as Self-Regulation

Problematic alcohol consumption by police officers is well documented in the literature. However, no study has utilized Gottfredson and Hirschi’s A General Theory of Crime to determine what role, if any, self-control (i.e., self-regulation) plays in predicting this behavior. Therefore, data from the Police Stress and Domestic Violence in Police Families in Baltimore, Maryland, 1997-1999 are analyzed to test the influence of work-related stress on officers’ self-control and problem drinking. Results indicated that self-control is significant in predicting problematic alcohol consumption by police officers. Two control variables (burnout and peer drinking) also predicted the dependent variable. The current study provides further evidence that self-control continues to be one of the most consistent factors most likely to lead to criminal behavior, including those committed by police officers.

Alcohol & drug use among employees in the private business sector in Norway

Aims

The aims of this study were to map the amounts and patterns of alcohol & drug (a&d) use among employees, to analyze the relationships between a&d use and the experienced negative and positive effects of such use, and to analyze how conditions of work and structural and cultural factors in the workplace affect the a&d use of employees.

Method

A total of 1 245 employees from 74 companies took part in the survey, giving a response rate of 34%. Given this low response rate, the sample was still considered representative, controlling for sex, age, industry, company size and geography.

Results

2.6% of the employees had used illegal drugs and 18% had used prescribed drugs the last year. 3% had used prescribed drugs each week. There were strong connections between illegal drug use and negative consequences for the workplace (absenteeism, accidents and intoxication at work), but it seemed that none of the workplace factors affected the use of illegal drugs. Extensive use of prescribed drugs was strongly connected to experiencing bad working conditions and high absenteeism. 95% of the employees had used alcohol the last year. Based on the answers about the amounts of alcohol consumed the last two weeks, 4% of the women and 5% of the men in the sample could be characterized as heavy drinkers (according to WHO gender-specific limit values). High alcohol consumption is shown to be correlated to negative effects such as absenteeism (only short-term), accidents and intoxication at work. Demographic factors such as sex, age, marital status and caring responsibilities played a lesser role in explaining the variation in drinking among employees in this sample, and especially the variation in work-related drinking. Neither did the conditions of work explain the variation in drinking. Instead, such factors as number of work journeys abroad, hours working outside the permanent worksite, norms and beliefs (especially beliefs about alcohol as a strategy for coping with work strain), offer explanations for the variation in drinking among employees.

Conclusions

Alcohol and drugs use among employees is a twofold challenge to the working life. First, it is a challenge to prevent the negative effects of a&d use on the workplaces and the employees. Second, it is a challenge to prevent the many occasions for drinking in relation to work, and the structural and cultural factors in the workplace, from having a major negative impact on the alcohol and drug use of employees.

Social Risks for At-Risk Drinking in Young Workers: Application of Work-Life Border Theory

The current study evaluated work-life risks uniquely associated with at-risk drinking for younger (aged 18 to 30) versus two samples of older workers (31 to 40, and 41 or older). Measures were selected according to theories of alcohol culture (e.g., drinking norms at work) and work-life conflict. Following “work-life border” theory (Clark, 2000), an exploratory model examined relationships of these measures with at-risk drinking (ARD) and job-related hangovers (JRH) across the three age groups within a large municipality (n=587) and a sample of small businesses (n=736). Survey results showed life-to-work conflict uniquely predicted ARD for younger workers. In small businesses, younger workers reporting JRH perceived the most permissive drinking norms. Findings suggest risks differ between the small business and municipal samples, and the importance of distinguishing ARD and JRH when assessing outcomes. Results are interpreted with border theory, and discussion focuses on suggestions for prevention programming for young workers.

Overcoming Resistance to Surveillance: A Genealogy of the EAP Discourse

Through an examination of employee assistance programs we address Foucault’s contention that the pervasive surveillance characteristic of disciplinary control is facilitated by a discourse claiming therapeutic rather than punitive aims. By characterizing poor job performance as evidence of substance abuse or other ‘behavioral-medical’ illness, the EAP discourse endeavors to overcome the reluctance of supervisors to identify poor performers, for whom job loss is the frequent consequence of failure to improve. Following Foucault’s view that power effects occur without express intention to exercise power, we analyze the web of institutional and professional disciplinary mechanisms that effect heightened supervisory surveillance.

Driven to the Bottle

This study examines the role of workplace risk factors associated with stress, social availability, and policy enforcement in explaining the severity of alcohol misuse among truck and bus drivers. Using a sample of 227 commercial (i.e., bus and truck) drivers drawn randomly from the employees of eight Israeli transportation enterprises, findings indicate that less than 6% of drivers engage in hazardous drinking, with a far smaller proportion engaging in more risky forms of misuse (i.e., harmful or dependent drinking). Key work-related factors associated with the severity of drivers’ alcohol misuse include the perception of permissive coworker drinking norms, role conflict, and supervisory abuse. Consistent with tension relief models of alcohol misuse, felt strain mediated the association between driver stressors and the severity of alcohol misuse. Perceptions of coworker drinking norms moderated the associations between stressors and supervisory monitoring (on one hand) and alcohol misuse (on the other). Implications for theory and practice are discussed.

Stigma, sex work, and substance use: a comparative analysis

Stigma is a widely used concept in social science research and an extensive literature claims that stigmatisation contributes to numerous negative health outcomes. However, few studies compare groups that vary in the extent to which they are stigmatised and even fewer studies examine stigma's independent and mediating effects. This article addresses these gaps in a comparative study of perceived stigma and drug use among three low-income feminised service occupations: sex work, food and alcoholic beverage serving, and barbering and hairstyling. An analysis of longitudinal data shows positive associations between sex work, perceived stigma, and socially less acceptable drug use (for example, heroin and cocaine), and that stigma mediates part of the link between sex work and the use of these drugs. Our overall findings suggest that perceived stigma is pronounced among those who work in the sex industry and negatively affects health independently of sex work involvement.

Divergent Drinking Patterns of Restaurant Workers: The Influence of Social Networks and Job Position

Restaurant workers have higher rates of problem drinking than most occupational groups. However, little is known about the environmental risks and work characteristics that may lead to these behaviors. An exploration of restaurant workers' drinking networks may provide important insights into their alcohol consumption patterns, thus guiding workplace prevention efforts. Drawing from social capital theory, this paper examines the unique characteristics of drinking networks within and between various job categories. Our research suggests that these multiple, complex networks have unique risk characteristics, and that self-selection is based on factors such as job position and college attendance, among other factors.

Employees’ perceptions of the impact of work on health behaviours

Research examining the impact of work on health behaviours has rarely provided a complete picture of the impact across health behaviours. Twenty-four employees were interviewed about their smoking, drinking, exercise and eating. Themes included the impact of the work environment, including policy, convenience and workplace cultural norms; business events effecting one’s routine and again convenience and workplace cultural norms; being busy at work effecting time and energy for healthy behaviour; and work stress leading to health behaviours being used as coping responses on bad and good days. The impact of work is similar across health behaviours and is primarily detrimental.

Alcohol dependence, consumption of alcoholic energy drinks and associated work characteristics in the Taiwan working population

AIMS

To examine the association between work characteristics and the risk of alcohol dependence across different employment types and occupations, including the pattern of alcohol consumption in the form of energy drinks and its association with alcohol dependence.

METHODS

A total of 13,501 men and 8584 women participated in a national survey in Taiwan. Alcohol dependence was defined as ≥2 points in the CAGE questionnaire. A self-administered questionnaire recorded drinking behaviors, consumption of alcoholic energy drinks, employment type, occupation and a number of psychosocial work stressors, namely job demands, job control, employment security and workplace justice.

RESULTS

Of the total, 9.4% of men and 0.8% of women were CAGE-positive, and 6.0% of men and 0.7% of women regularly consumed alcoholic energy drinks. In male and female regular consumers of alcoholic energy drinks, 38.7 and 23.3%, respectively, were alcohol-dependent. Multivariate regression analyses showed that male employees in manual skilled occupations, with lower workplace justice, having weekly working hours <40 h and on piece-rated or time-based pay systems were at higher risks of alcohol dependence.

CONCLUSION

Certain occupational groups and workers with adverse psychosocial work characteristics should be targets for prevention of alcohol dependence. Alcoholic energy drink consumption should be taken into consideration while studying alcohol dependence in the work population in Taiwan.

Relation of supervisor social control to employee substance use: considering the dimensionality of social control, temporal context of substance use, and substance legality

OBJECTIVE

Research on supervisor social control provided little evidence for a relation to employee alcohol use, and only one study explored illicit drug use. Based on past research, several hypotheses were developed that the relation between supervisor social control and substance use depends on (a) the dimension social control (contact vs. enforcement), (b) the temporal context of substance use (on the job vs. off the job), and (c) substance legality (alcohol vs. illicit drugs).

METHOD

Data came from a national probability sample of U.S. workers. Supervisor social control represented both supervisor contact and supervisor enforcement. Measures of alcohol and illicit drug use each assessed several dimensions of off-the-job use (overall use, overall impairment, and use after work) and on-the-job use (use before work, use during the workday, and impairment during the workday).

RESULTS

As hypothesized, the results did not support a relation of supervisor contact to off-the-job or on-the-job alcohol use and illicit drug use. Supervisor enforcement was unrelated to off-the-job alcohol use but was negatively related to on-the-job alcohol use. Supervisor enforcement was negatively related to both off-the-job and on-the-job illicit drug use.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings help clarify the generally unsupportive findings from past research for a relation between supervisor social control and employee alcohol use, as well as extend this line of research to include illicit drug use. The results suggest that to fully understand the relation of supervisor social control to employee substance use, one must consider the dimension of supervisor social control, temporal context of substance use, and substance legality.

Workplace Substance Use Climate: Prevalence and Distribution in the U.S. Workforce

This study explored the prevalence and distribution of employee exposure to three dimensions of workplace substance use climate-availability, descriptive norms, and injunctive norms. Data were collected from a national probability sample of 2148 U.S. wage and salary workers (957 men; 1191 women) using a random digit dialed telephone survey. Aproximately 63.09% of the workforce reported that they could easily bring alcohol into work, use alcohol while working, use alcohol during lunch and other breaks, or obtain alcohol at work. Similarly, 59.05% of the workforce reported that they could easily engage in the same behaviors regarding illicit drugs. During the preceding 12 months, 23.00% of the workforce reported exposure to a coworker who used or was impaired by alcohol during the workday and 12.65% of the workforce reported exposure to a coworker who used or was impaired by an illicit drug during the workday. Approximately, 7.03% of the workforce reported exposure to a coworker who approved of alcohol use or impairment during the workday and 3.55% of the workforce reported exposure to a coworker who approved of using or being impaired by illicit drugs during the workday. The distribution of exposure to a permissive workplace substance use climate differed by gender, age, occupation, and work shift.

Food Service Employee Alcohol Use, Hangovers and Norms During and After Work Hours

AIMS: This paper presents analyses of norms and behavior concerning drinking before, during, and after work hours among U.S. bar-restaurant chain employees, with a focus on hangovers at work and their correlates. METHODS: A mixed method approach combined qualitative analysis of 64 face-to-face interviews held with randomly chosen service, managerial and kitchen staff and quantitative analyses (including multivariable linear regression and bivariate analyses) of data drawn from 1,286 completed telephone surveys (response rate 68%) with 18-29 year old employees. RESULTS: Relatively few survey respondents reported past-year drinking in the hour prior to work (5%) or during work hours (2.7%), but extensive drinking in non- work hours (85.5%), and 36.5% of respondents reported coming to work with a hangover at least once. Correlates of hangover at work were past year intoxication and holding positive norms for hangovers. These findings were elaborated by interview data describing heavy drinking after work at nearby bars, restaurants and employee homes. CONCLUSIONS: The findings illustrated that employee drinking during work hours was not normative. However, study results portrayed widely-shared norms for heavy drinking outside of work, with hangovers and related harms appearing as the primary work time repercussions of after-work alcohol consumption.

Patterns and predictors of alcohol use in male and female urban police officers

In a large sample of urban police officers, 18.1% of males and 15.9% of females reported experiencing adverse consequences from alcohol use and 7.8% of the sample met criteria for lifetime alcohol abuse or dependence. Female officers had patterns of alcohol use similar to male officers and substantially more than females in the general population. Critical incident exposure and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms were not associated with level of alcohol use. Greater psychiatric symptoms were related to adverse consequences from alcohol use. There was a noteworthy gender by work stress interaction: greater routine work stress related to lower current alcohol use in female officers. 

Dimensions of problem drinking among young adult restaurant workers

BACKGROUND

Nationwide surveys identify food service workers as heavy alcohol users.

OBJECTIVES

This article analyzes dimensions and correlates of problem drinking among young adult food service workers.

METHODS

A telephone survey of national restaurant chain employees yielded 1,294 completed surveys.

RESULTS

Hazardous alcohol consumption patterns were seen in 80% of men and 64% of women. Multivariate analysis showed that different dimensions of problem drinking measured by the AUDIT were associated with workers' demographic characteristics, smoking behaviour, and job category.

CONCLUSIONS AND SCIENTIFIC SIGNIFICANCE

These findings offer evidence of extremely high rates of alcohol misuse among young adult restaurant workers.

Workplace responsibility, stress, alcohol availability and norms as predictors of alcohol consumption-related problems among employed workers

The objectives of this study were to determine the prevalence of alcohol use and problems among employed individuals in Alberta, Canada (N = 1,890), and to conduct a multivariate examination of predictors of alcohol consumption-related problems. General alcohol problems were identified by 10%, although very few workers described any specific work-related alcohol problems (1%). Structural equation modeling revealed that, as hypothesized, workplace alcohol availability predicted general alcohol problems. Job responsibility and workplace norms also predicted alcohol problems but only for men. Perceived work stress did not predict alcohol problems. Results support the development of interventions that focus on re-shaping alcohol use norms.

Drinking social norms and drinking behaviours: a multilevel analysis of 137 workgroups in 16 worksites

BACKGROUND

Previous studies on worksite drinking norms showed individually perceived norms were associated with drinking behaviours.

OBJECTIVE

To examine whether restrictive drinking social norms shared by workgroup membership are associated with decreased heavy drinking, frequent drinking and drinking at work at the worker level.

METHODS

The sample included 5338 workers with complete data nested in 137 supervisory workgroups from 16 American worksites. Multilevel models were fitted to examine the association between workgroup drinking norms and heavy drinking, frequent drinking and drinking at work.

RESULTS

Multivariate adjusted models showed participants working in workgroups in the most discouraging drinking norms quartile were 45% less likely to be heavy drinkers, 54% less likely to be frequent drinkers and 69% less likely to drink at work than their counterparts in the most encouraging quartile.

CONCLUSIONS

Strong associations between workgroup level restrictive drinking social norms and drinking outcomes suggest public health efforts at reducing drinking and alcohol-related injuries, illnesses and diseases should target social interventions at worksites.

Prevalence and distribution of illicit drug use in the workforce and in the workplace: findings and implications from a U.S. national survey

This U.S. national study explored the overall prevalence, frequency, and distribution of illicit drug use in the workforce and in the workplace during the preceding 12 months. Illicit drug use in the workforce involved an estimated 14.1% of employed adults (17.7 million workers). Illicit drug use in the workplace involved an estimated 3.1% of employed adults (3.9 million workers). Illicit drug use in the workforce and in the workplace is not distributed uniformly in the employed population. At-risk, though circumscribed, segments of the U.S. workforce were identified with prevalence rates up to 55.8% for any use of illicit drugs and up to 28.0% for illicit drug use in the workplace. The implications of these data for future theoretical research and for management policy and practice are discussed.

At-risk drinking in employed men and women

BACKGROUND

"At-risk" drinking is associated with a variety of negative health and social consequences. However, little is known about the characteristics of at-risk drinkers or of changes in at-risk status over time.

PURPOSE

The objective was to examine the correlates of at-risk drinking and the prospective predictors of maintenance or change in at-risk status.

METHOD

Participants were 4,322 employed individuals assessed at baseline and 4 years later. At-risk drinking was defined as 2 or more drinks per day for men and 1 or more drinks per day for women.

RESULTS

The baseline prevalence of at-risk drinking was 11%. Four percent of baseline not-at-risk individuals transitioned to at-risk drinking at follow-up, and 54% of the baseline at-risk individuals remained at-risk at follow-up. Several demographic-, work-, and tobacco-related variables differentiated at-risk groups and were prospective predictors of change in at-risk drinking status among those individuals who were not at risk at baseline. However, none of the constructs predicted change among at-risk drinkers.

CONCLUSION

The data suggest that at-risk drinking is of public health concern. Eleven percent of the participants met criteria for at-risk drinking. Further, at-risk and not-at-risk drinkers differed on numerous characteristics, and their drinking may be influenced by different factors.

Work and mental health

BACKGROUND

Studies investigating the psychological correlates of types of occupation have focused on such disorders as stress, depression, suicide and substance abuse. There have also been some models proposed to allow understanding of factors common to different types of occupations. We sought to provide an overview of research related to work and mental health and consider future research directions.

METHODS

A literature search was conducted using the Medline, PsycInfo, Embase and PubMed databases. The key words "occupation" or "work" were searched in combination with the key words "mental health", "risk factors", "disorders", "depression", "suicide", "trauma", "stress" or "substance use".

RESULTS

Studies of "stress" tend to be more applicable to specific workplace issues. While some of the studies relating to onset of depression, suicide, substance abuse and trauma pertain to specific occupational issues and results are often not generalizable, they have progressed our understanding of risk factors to those disorders. There are workplace factors involving exposure to danger and crisis that lead to posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), substance abuse (including stimulants) and depersonalization. Workplace risk factors for depression involve situations promoting lack of autonomy, and involving "caring" for others as part of the work role, particularly where there is dependence on others for their livelihood. Risk factors for alcohol abuse include workplaces with access to alcohol and where use of alcohol is sanctioned. There appears to be a bi-directional relationship between personality and work, so that people are drawn to particular occupations, but the occupations then have an effect on them. An interactional model is proposed to consider this.

CONCLUSION

The research questions pertaining to mental health are varied and will determine what mental health issues are of interest and the models of work applicable. There need to be more longitudinal studies and consideration of factors which the worker brings to the workplace (psychosocial issues, personality traits), as well as interpersonal issues and consideration of systemic, organizational, political and economic factors, including leadership styles.

Predictors of overall and on-the-job substance use among young workers

Predictors of overall and on-the-job substance (alcohol and marijuana) use were studied in a sample of young workers. The 18 predictors represent 6 general domains of risk factors: demographic, personality, substance use outcome expectancies, workplace substance availability, workplace social control, and work stressors. Data were obtained from a sample of 319 individuals ages 16 to 19. Hierarchical tobit regression analyses revealed that 5 of the 6 domains of risk factors were related to employee substance use. Similarities and differences were found in the predictors of overall and on-the-job substance use and in the predictors of alcohol and marijuana use.

Job risk and employee substance use: the influence of personal background and work environment factors

Previous studies have noted that employees who work in jobs with physical risk report more substance use than employees working in nonrisky jobs. This study examined the extent to which this relationship could be explained by personal background, specifically general deviance or psychosocial functioning, or work characteristics, including job stressors, organizational bonding, or work group drinking climate. Results from two worksites (ns = 943, 923) indicated that the relationship of job risk and alcohol problems could be fully explained by personal characteristics, particularly deviant behavior styles. Interaction effects were also found. Employees with more deviance indicators were particularly susceptible to recent drug use and problem drinking when they worked in drinking climates or exposed to co-worker drinking. These results suggest the joint influence of personal and job factors and support prevention programs that target the workplace social environment.

Environmental influences on alcohol consumption practices of alcoholic beverage servers

Public drinking establishments have long been associated with heavy drinking among both their patrons and servers. Whether these environments represent locations where heavy drinking is learned (learning hypothesis) or simply places where already-heavy drinkers gather in a supportive environment (selection hypothesis) remains an important question. A sample of licensed alcoholic beverage servers in the state of Indiana, USA, was surveyed to better understand the drinking behaviors of servers within the alcohol service industry. Responses (N = 938) to a mailed questionnaire were analyzed to assess the relative influence of environmental and demographic factors on the drinking behavior of servers. Stepwise regression revealed "drinking on the job" as the most influential environmental factor on heavy drinking behaviors, followed by age and gender as influential demographic factors. Support was found for the selection hypothesis, but not for the learning hypothesis. Policy implications are discussed. factors on the drinking behavior of servers. Stepwise regression revealed "drinking on the job" as the most influential environmental factor on heavy drinking behaviors, followed by age and gender as influential demographic factors. Support was found for the selection hypothesis, but not for the learning hypothesis. Policy implications are discussed.

Deaths related to the inhalation of volatile substances in Texas: 1988-1998

Analysis of death certificates in Texas from 1988 to 1998 showed that the characteristics of 144 Texans for whom inhalants were mentioned as a contributing cause of death are different from those Texans who report use of inhalants in surveys and from persons who died from inhalant abuse in Virginia. While Texas surveys show little difference in prevalence of use between white and Hispanic adolescents or between boys and girls, Texas death data indicate inhalant use is also a problem among adult white males. The mean age of decedents was 25.6 years (SD 9.8 years), and ages ranged from 8 to 62 years. There were 92% males, 81% whites, and 17% Hispanics. Of the death certificates, 35% mentioned Freon, and 25% mentioned chlorinated hydrocarbons. Of those with the mention of Freon, 42% were students (mean age 16.4 years), and 37% were mechanics, installers, and repairers (mean age 27.4 years), occupations in which Freon can be readily available. Of the chlorinated hydrocarbon deaths, 49% were students (mean age 17.5 years), and 51% were from other occupations (mean age 27.4 years). Research on drug use and the workplace is not extensive, and the effects of inhalant intoxication can be a serious problem in the workplace. Prevention campaigns need to inform the public that inhalant abuse is not just a problem among youngsters, and intervention services for adult abusers should be provided within the context of employee assistance programs.

General and job-related alcohol use and correlates in a municipal workforce

We examined the prevalence and correlates of both general and workplace-related drinking measures using data from a telephone survey of 673 workers in a large municipal bureaucracy and tested the hypothesis that observed differences across job categories can be explained by compositional difference in terms of demographic variables known to be related to drinking behavior. Results suggest such factors account for much of the variation in general drinking measures (prior-28-day quantity, CAGE score, indicating risk for dependence), but that significant variation in a workplace-related drinking measure (times ever drank before, during, or just after work) remains even after such factors are controlled. Implications of these findings for existing theories of workplace effects on drinking are discussed, along with a consideration of appropriate levels of analysis for future studies.

Team awareness for workplace substance abuse prevention: the empirical and conceptual development of a training program

This paper describes the empirical and theoretical development of a workplace training program to help reduce/prevent employee alcohol and drug abuse and enhance aspects of the work group environment that support ongoing prevention. The paper (1) examines the changing social context of the workplace (e.g., teamwork, privacy issues) as relevant for prevention, (2) reviews studies that assess risks and protective factors in employee substance abuse (work environment, group processes, and employee attitudes), (3) provides a conceptual model that focuses on work group processes (enabling, neutralization of deviance) as the locus of prevention efforts, (4) describes an enhanced team-oriented training that was derived from previous research and the conceptual model, and (5) describes potential applications of the program. It is suggested that the research and conceptual model may help prevention scientists to assess the organizational context of any workplace prevention strategy. The need for this team-oriented approach may be greater among employees who experience psychosocial risks such as workplace drinking climates, social alienation, and policies that emphasize deterrence (drug testing) over educative prevention. Limitations of the model are also discussed.