Gender Differences in Alcohol Choice among Russians: Evidence from a Quantitative Study

Abstract

Aims: Qualitative studies find that men and women in Russia have different preferences for alcoholic beverages, but quantitative evidence for gender differences in beverage type choice remains scarce. The purpose of this article is to test numerically whether and to what extent men and women in Russia differ in terms of preferences for type of drink, such as vodka, wine and beer. Methods: Results are based on multinomial logistic regression and ordinary least squares regression analyses of the Russian Longitudinal Monitoring Survey-Higher School of Economics 2008 data. Results: We observed significant gender differences in preferences for alcoholic beverages. Men have strong preferences for vodka, and they drink it in much larger amounts in comparison with women. Women are more likely to either refrain from drinking or drink mild types of alcoholic beverages, such as wine and beer. Gender differences remain statistically significant even when sociodemographic factors are well accounted for. Conclusions: The present study confirms the previous research findings about gender differences in drinking practices among Russians. Our results provide quantitative evidence of the pronounced differences in beverage types consumed by men and women.

History of Childhood Abuse, Drinking Motives, Alcohol Use, and Sexual Risk Behavior Among STD Clinic Patients in St. Petersburg, Russia: A Cross-Sectional Study

“…That the associations between sexual risk and childhood abuse might be moderated by gender is consistent with evidence in the literature that sexual risk behavior [29,30], IPV [45], and drinking patterns and motivations [46,47] may vary by gender. For example, a study investigating the association between depression symptoms and alcohol use found that this relationship observed a non-linear U-shaped relationship among men and a linear trend among women [48].…”

Alcohol and gender gaps in life expectancy in eight Central and Eastern European countries

“…Sex differences in excessive alcohol consumption thus seem to play a substantial role in explaining the LE gender gap. The evidence showing that alcohol consumption levels are higher and alcohol consumption patterns are risker among men than among women of young and working ages has generally been explained by differences in gender roles (6,9), as well as by differences in strategies for coping with stress (10,30).…”

“…Men have likely been affected by these developments more than women for the simple reason that men tend to drink more than women. However, in line with the general convergence in the lifestyle behaviours of men and women as a result of changes in the position of women in society (34), women in Russia and worldwide have recently started adopting the alcohol consumption behaviours of men (9,39,40).…”

“…It has been argued that the gender gap in alcohol consumption (5,6) is an important contributor to gender differences in health and mortality (4). Especially among middleaged men in CEE countries, alcohol consumption is highly prevalent, binge drinking is common, and men are more likely than women to prefer vodka and other beverages with very high levels of ethanol (6)(7)(8)(9). These patterns have resulted in large gender differences in mortality from causes of death strongly linked to excessive alcohol consumption and binge drinking; i.e., cardiovascular and external causes, especially at working ages (10,11).…”

A Dose–Response Relationship of Alcohol Consumption with Risk of Visual Impairment in Korean Adults: The Kangbuk Samsung Health Study

“…Another notable finding is that while the frequency of drinking had a significant positive relationship with VI in a dose-response manner in men, the risk of VI in women was not associated with drinking frequency. According to previous literature, men tend to prefer strong alcoholic beverages such as vodka or liquor [40] and are more likely to be involved in heavy or binge drinking [41], whereas women typically prefer mild alcoholic beverages such as beer or wine and are likely to be mild drinkers. This tendency is also reflected in our data wherein 91% of those who consumed ≥40 g/day of alcohol were men.…”