Genetic and Environmental Risks Predicting Patterns of Alcohol Use and Abuse from Adolescence through Early Adulthood

Rebekah Levine Coley, Boston College
Jennifer Carrano, Princeton University
Jacqueline Sims, Boston College
Alicia Doyle Lynch, Boston College
Caitlin McPherran Lombardi, Boston College
James Mahalik, Boston College

Early and heavy initiation of alcohol use is a risk for later abuse and health problems, making identifying contributors to youth alcohol use a central goal. This paper examines environmental and genetic risk factors contributing to problematic patterns of alcohol use from adolescence to adulthood using data drawn from Add Health (N=13,427). We compare four leading explanations for problematic alcohol use: social norms, social controls, stress, and genetic predispositions, focused on dopaminergic genes. Multilevel negative binomial growth models found no associations between genetic risks and trajectories of drinking or intoxication for males. For females, results indicated that higher genetic risk was associated with marginally greater growth over time in frequency of intoxication. In relation to environmental risks, results found that social norms promoting alcohol use as well as stressful life events were predictive of heightened drinking and intoxication for both males and females. No significant geneXenvironment interactions emerged.