The central issue of this article is the extent to which, besides consumption and heavy drinking, drinking contexts and specific social conditions can explain the chronicity and incidence of alcohol-related problems. This study is the first longitudinal study of the Dutch general population on drinking behavior and alcohol-related problems (N = 1,327). The analysis of chronicity of drinking problems is concentrated on the selection of respondents with alcohol-related problems at first measurement; the analysis of incidence is concentrated on those who did not report alcohol-related problems at first measurement. In general, it can be concluded that besides level of consumption and heavy drinking, drinking contexts and social conditions add to the explanation of incidence and chronicity of alcohol-related problems.
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