The anthropologist as alcohologist: qualitative perspectives and methods in alcohol research

Hazards faced by young designated drivers: in-car risks of driving drunken passengers

This qualitative study explored the risk in the practice of young designated drivers transporting drunken peers. Young drivers 18–29 years old in Alberta, Canada participated in 12 focus groups (N = 146). Interviews were semi-structured. A key finding is that when highly intoxicated youth are driven by a designated driver who is a peer, they are likely to behave in ways that are unsafe. Unsafe actions of drunken passengers in the vehicle include physical “rough-housing” with the driver, creating stress for the driver that leads to high risk driving situations and disrupting safe driving through nausea and in-car vomiting.

Cultural context and impact of alcohol use in the Sundarban Delta, West Bengal, India

Hazardous alcohol consumption is a worldwide problem with many locally distinctive features across cultures, but studies to guide policy in developing countries are notably lacking. This community study aimed to clarify local patterns of alcohol use in six villages of West Bengal, India. It considered the variety of local alcoholic preparations, who consumed them, when, and where. It sought to determine how social changes in the region influence changing patterns of acceptable and problem use of alcohol. Ethnographic methods included participant observation and focus group discussions. The qualitative data analysis of field notes and transcripts included a review of full texts and a computer-assisted analysis of thematically coded segments with reference to a structured agenda. We found that drinking is an integral feature of the cultural landscape. Locally brewed rice beer (handia), palm wine (tadi), distilled country liquor (chullu), and so-called Indian-made foreign liquor (IMFL) are consumed in these villages. Each is identified with particular segments of society and settings in these communities. Reported effects of problem drinking included social disturbances, family discord, and domestic violence. Increasing problem alcohol use was attributed by villagers to social changes resulting from development, which were otherwise valued, such as improved transportation and communications. In a field dominated by Western and urban studies, this research clarifies features of alcohol availability, use, and acceptance in a neglected rural area of India. It illustrates the limitations of western clinical models of dependence and the importance of clarifying sociocultural conditions that define locally acceptable and problem use.

The lived experiences of alcohol addiction: men of alcoholics anonymous

Alcohol addiction is one of the most prevalent and debilitating psychiatric disorders among the general population. Yet, little has been published on what it is like for men to actually experience this disorder. The purpose of this study was to identify commonalities in the experience of alcohol addiction among seven male members of Alcoholics Anonymous. Using a phenomenological approach, the participants completed an audio taped, unstructured, nondirective interview in which they were asked to describe their experience of alcohol addiction. The interviews were then transcribed and read by a phenomenological research team. Four themes were discovered: Emotions, Control, Awareness of Others, and The Turning Point, as well as a temporal ground. The authors conclude that mental health professionals should encourage alcohol addicted persons to talk about their experiences and to help them identify feelings and develop new coping skills.

[Potential application of the qualitative technique focus group in substance abuse research]

The focus group, a qualitative research method useful for Public Health investigation, is described and discussed. The potential application of the focus group method in drug abuse research in Brazil is emphasized.

Integration and exchange in multidisciplinary alcohol research

How do anthropologists effectively enter into cross-disciplinary discourse and influence research direction in a multi-disciplinary field like alcohol studies? We answer: by aiming for an improved qualitative product, and by establishing and participating in exchange structures that cross over disciplinary lines. Using examples from our current study of work environment and alcohol practices, we explain how such an exchange structure was developed around the three areas of: (1) ethnography and local theory, (2) numerical archival data, and (3) survey research. We describe the nature of the exchange and the interplay among the three research segments. In contrast to single-method analysis, whether quantitative or qualitative, we maintain that team efforts can produce knowledge products that are conceptually dense and have higher validity and generalizability.