ArticleSocial science & medicine (1982)2022
Alcohol use and the COVID-19 pandemic: Historical trends in drinking, contexts, and reasons for use among U.S. adults.
Article in Social science & medicine (1982), 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 44 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
44 citing papers in PubMed, 70 citations in OpenAlex.
- Associations between adherence to public health measures and changes in alcohol consumption among middle-aged and older adults during the COVID-19 pandemic: the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging (CLSA).Health promotion and chronic disease prevention in Canada : research, policy and practice · 2026Article
- Past-month alcohol use in relation to the COVID-19 lockdown in 13 Indian states and union territories: gender, socioeconomic status, and state alcohol policy differences.Frontiers in public health · 2026Article
- COVID-19 Pandemic Experiences and Hazardous Alcohol Use: Findings of Higher and Lower Risk in a Heavy-Drinking Midwestern State.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2025Article
- Historical trends in young adult solitary alcohol use by age and sex from 1977 to 2022.Alcohol, clinical & experimental research · 2025Article
- Young Adult Cannabis, Alcohol, Nicotine, and Nonprescribed Pain Reliever Use in Washington State Before and During COVID-19 Pandemic.AJPM focus · 2025Article
- Rural-Urban Disparities in Mortality Related to Alcohol-Associated Liver Disease by Race/Ethnicity in the United States From 1999 to 2022.Digestive diseases and sciences · 2025Article
- Changing Developmental Patterns of Cannabis and Alcohol Use in Washington State: an Analysis of Young Adult Birth Cohorts Born in 1990-2004.Prevention science : the official journal of the Society for Prevention Research · 2025Article
- Social Influence and Problematic Drinking: Insights from the COVID-19 Pandemic.Clinical psychological science : a journal of the Association for Psychological Science · 2025Article
- Restrictive and permissive alcohol policies during the COVID-19 pandemic and their association with alcohol consumption in the United States.The International journal on drug policy · 2025Article
- Alcohol use and COVID-19: three-year impact for the Czech Republic.Central European journal of public health · 2025Article
- Effects of Expanding Direct-to-Consumer Alcohol Home Delivery Policies: Evidence From 18 States of Increases in Alcohol Use and Consequences.Journal of studies on alcohol and drugs · 2025Article
- A qualitative exploration of triggers for alcohol use and access to support during the COVID-19 pandemic among people identifying as problem drinkers in the United Kingdom.Drug and alcohol review · 2025Article
- Beyond Confinement: A Systematic Review on Factors Influencing Binge Drinking Among Adolescents and Young Adults During the Pandemic.Journal of clinical medicine · 2025Review
- The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on medical student mental health.PLOS mental health · 2025Article
- Article
- The Impact of COVID-19 on Alcohol-related Morbidity and Mortality: A Multicenter Study.Journal of community hospital internal medicine perspectives · 2025Article
- Changes in US drinking and alcohol use disorders associated with social, health, and economic impacts of COVID-19.Alcohol and alcoholism (Oxford, Oxfordshire) · 2024Article
- Decreasing alcohol use among young adults presenting for service in the U.S. Air Force: An epidemiological surveillance study.Military psychology : the official journal of the Division of Military Psychology, American Psychological Association · 2024Article
- The underrepresentation of racial/ethnic minorities in research on co-use of nicotine, alcohol, and/or cannabis via ecological momentary assessment methods: A narrative review.Drug and alcohol dependence · 2024Review
- Simultaneous use of alcohol and cannabis and attenuated age-related declines in alcohol and cannabis use disorder symptoms across young adulthood.Drug and alcohol dependence reports · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
objectiveThe current study used U.S. national data to examine drinking trends prior to and during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, focusing on changes in U.S. young- and middle-adult alcohol prevalence, frequency, and drinking contexts and reasons, and whether they differed by age and college status.
methodsData from 2015 to 2020 from 16,987 young adults (ages 19-30) and 23,584 middle adults (ages 35-55) in the national Monitoring the Future study were used to model historical trends and potential 2020 shifts (data collection April 1 to November 30, 2020) in prevalence (30-day, daily, binge drinking) and frequency (30-day, binge drinking). For young adults, data on drinking contexts and negative affect reasons for drinking were examined. Moderation by age and college status was also tested.
results2020 was associated with (1) downward deviation in 30-day (young and middle adults) and binge drinking (young adults) prevalence; (2) upward deviation in daily drinking prevalence (middle adults); (3) among drinkers, upward deviation in frequency of 30-day (young and middle adults) and binge drinking (young adults); and (4) changes in drinking contexts and reasons among drinkers. Among college students, in particular, 2020 was associated with a downward deviation from expected historical trends in drinking prevalence. Upward deviations in daily prevalence and both binge and 30-day drinking frequency were stronger at ages 25-30 (vs. 19-24) and 35-45 (vs. 50-55).
conclusionsAmong U.S. young and middle adults, deviations from expected historical trends in population alcohol use that occurred during the pandemic included decreases in alcohol use prevalence, increases in alcohol use frequency, and increases in the use of alcohol to relax/relieve tension and because of boredom. These shifts were likely due, in part, to drinking while alone and at home-which increased during the pandemic.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.