Social Disadvantage, Stress, and Alcohol Use Among Black, Hispanic, and White Americans: Findings From the 2005 U.S. National Alcohol Survey

Mulia, Nina; Ye, Yinjiao; Zemore, Sarah E.; Greenfield, Thomas K.

doi:10.15288/jsad.2008.69.824

Cited by 213 publications

(191 citation statements)

References 72 publications

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“…Lloyd and Turner (2008) found no racial/ethnic differences in the effects of cumulative lifetime adversity on alcohol dependence, and that the effects of adversity on drug dependence were strong among Whites and weakest among African Americans. Additionally, our prior work suggests that the relationship between cumulative stressors and problem drinking may be stronger among Whites compared with Blacks and Hispanics (Mulia et al, 2008b), similar to a recent report by Keyes and colleagues (2011).…”

Section: The Question Of Differential Vulnerabilitysupporting

confidence: 87%

“…In our own multiethnic study, we found that Whites who experienced racial stigma and unfair treatment had elevated levels of psychological stress. Further, the positive relationship between unfair treatment and problem drinking in Whites was highly similar to that observed in Blacks and Hispanics (Mulia et al, 2008b). This suggests that racial/ ethnic minorities' greater prevalence of exposure to chronic social stressors plays a role in racial disparities in alcohol problems.…”

Section: Social Adversity and Alcohol Problemssupporting

confidence: 56%

“…A number of studies have found that chronic exposure to racial bias and unfair treatment is associated with exces-sive alcohol use and problems (Chae et al, 2008b;Gee et al, 2007;Martin et al, 2003;Mulia et al, 2008b;Yen et al, 1999;Zemore et al, 2011). Research on these social adversities has been largely directed at understanding minority health and racial disparities in health rather than socioeconomic disparities per se.…”

Section: Social Adversity and Alcohol Problemsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…C HRONIC EXPOSURE TO SOCIAL ADVERSITY in the forms of racial/ethnic bias and unfair treatment is associated with a variety of health conditions and risk behaviors, including subclinical cardiovascular disease (Cardarelli et al, 2010;Lewis et al, 2006;Troxel et al, 2003), poor mental health (Williams et al, 2003), tobacco use (Bennett et al, 2005;Chae et al, 2008a), and excessive alcohol use and problems (Gee et al, 2007;Martin et al, 2003;Mulia et al, 2008b). Given the greater exposure of racial/ethnic minorities and low socioeconomic status (SES) groups to chronic stressors (Hatch, 2005;Kessler et al, 1999;Williams et al, 1997), differential stress exposure is increasingly recognized as an important mechanism in health disparities (Egerter et al, 2011).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Moreover, both groups are disadvantaged in ways that could, theoretically, affect how they cope with stressors and stress. In particular, a lack of economic resources and lower social standing can limit access to opportunities, privileges, and healthenhancing resources (Mulia et al, 2008b;Williams et al, 1994). Thus, there is an important unanswered question as to whether racial/ethnic and socioeconomic disparities in alcohol problems refl ect differential exposure and/or differential vulnerability to chronic stressors.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Social Adversity, Stress, and Alcohol Problems: Are Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Poor More Vulnerable?

Mulia

Zemore

2012

J. Stud. Alcohol Drugs

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ABSTRACT. Objective: Experiences of racial/ethnic bias and unfair treatment are risk factors for alcohol problems, and population differences in exposure to these social adversities (i.e., differential exposure) may contribute to alcohol-related disparities. Differential vulnerability is another plausible mechanism underlying health disparities, yet few studies have examined whether populations differ in their vulnerability to the effects of social adversity on psychological stress and the effects of psychological stress on alcohol problems. Method: Data from the 2005 U.S. National Alcohol Survey (N = 4,080 adult drinkers) were analyzed using structural equation modeling to assess an overall model of pathways linking social adversity, depressive symptoms, heavy drinking, and alcohol dependence. Multiple group analyses were conducted to assess differences in the model's relationships among Blacks versus Whites, Hispanics versus Whites, and the poor (income below the federal poverty line) versus non-poor (income above the poverty line). Results:The overall model explained 48% of the variance in alcohol dependence and revealed signifi cant pathways between social adversity and alcohol dependence involving depressive symptoms and heavy drinking. The effects of social adversity and depressive symptoms were no different among Blacks and Hispanics compared with Whites. However, the poor (vs. non-poor) showed stronger associations between unfair treatment and depressive symptoms and between depressive symptoms and heavy drinking. Conclusions: Contrary to some prior studies, these fi ndings suggest that racial disparities in alcohol problems may be more a function of racial/ethnic minorities' greater exposure, rather than vulnerability, to chronic stressors such as social adversity. However, observed differences between the poor and non-poor imply that differential vulnerability contributes to socioeconomic disparities in alcohol problems. Efforts to reduce both differential exposure and vulnerability might help to mitigate these disparities. (J. Stud. Alcohol Drugs, 73, 570-580, 2012)

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Section: The Question Of Differential Vulnerabilitysupporting

confidence: 87%

Section: Social Adversity and Alcohol Problemssupporting

confidence: 56%