Do as I Say, Not as I Do? An Examination of the Relationship Between Partner Behaviors and Help Seeking for Alcohol Related Issues.

Background: Although there are a number of risks associated with problematic alcohol use, the proportion of people who seek help for alcohol-related issues is alarmingly low.Objective: This study investigated the potential social influences that are associated with alcohol-related help seeking, including perceived partner support, descriptive and injunctive subjective norms, and marital satisfaction.Methods: Participants included 133 individuals (50% female, 48% male, and 2% did not report) recruited nationwide through both print and electronic methods. Data were collected in an online survey in 2013. Respondents were 77% Caucasian, 16% African-American, 2% Asian, 2% American Indian, and 1% Hawaiian/Pacific Islander, with a mean age of 38 years (SD= 11.93). Data were analyzed using hierarchical multiple regression.Results: Results suggested that when considered independently, perceived partner support, injunctive social norms, and closest friend's level of drinking were significantly associated with help seeking behavior, while marital satisfaction was not. Results further indicated that examining support and norms together accounted for increased variance in help seeking over examining the variables separately. Significant interactions were found between gender and acceptance of drinking behavior, which suggested that acceptance of drinking behavior was important for men's help seeking but not for women's, and between positive support and acceptance, which indicated that the role of support varied by level of acceptance for both genders.Conclusion: Overall, this study suggests that social influences play an important role in a person's decision to seek help for alcohol related issues. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]