How are social capital and sense of coherence associated with hazardous alcohol use? Findings from a large population-based Swedish sample of adults

Abstract

Aims: This study examined whether social capital and a sense of coherence are associated with hazardous alcohol use in a large population-based Swedish sample. In particular, the objectives were (a) to examine which of five subdimensions of social capital is associated with hazardous alcohol use, (b) to investigate the moderating role of sense of coherence and (c) to examine possible sex differences. Methods: A postal survey was distributed to a sample of respondents (aged 18–84 years) from five Swedish counties that was stratified by sex, age and city; 40,674 (59.2%) participants responded, of which 45.5% were men and 54.5% were women with a mean±SD age of 53.8±17.9 years. Results: Structural dimensions of social capital were associated with an increased probability of hazardous alcohol use among both men and women, whereas the increased probability associated with cognitive dimensions occurred mostly among women. Sense of coherence was robustly associated with a decreased probability of hazardous alcohol use among both men and women. There were few moderating effects of sense of coherence and sex differences emerged mainly for the cognitive dimension of social capital. Conclusions: Associations between social capital dimensions and hazardous alcohol use were partly sex-specific, whereas the benefits of a sense of coherence accrued to both sexes. Social capital dimensions and sense of coherence were generally unrelated to each other. Only associations between the cognitive dimensions of social capital and hazardous alcohol use differed by sex.