Environmental Research on Alcohol: Public Health Perspectives

Dear Colleagues,

Environments affect alcohol consumption patterns and the development of alcoholism (or alcohol dependence) and these human characteristics and conditions in turn impact the environment in both social and physical ways, including producing drinking externalities. Public health alcohol issues inherently involve agents (e.g., contaminated beverages), the host’s bio-psycho-social makeup and typical intake patterns, embedded or acting in environments—physical, social and drinking contexts. Environments can be hazardous, harmful, restraining of choices or rehabilitative, for example effects of dysfunctional or positive family rules; organizational, governmental or social regulations; drinking venues affecting pour sizes, drinking rates, and risks of assault or injury; taxation and price regimes; and social networks. Because humans move between and may select or be trapped by surroundings, complex interactions occur. Furthermore, environmental impacts depend upon life-course stage, time structured risk opportunities, from early rearing, adolescent and young adult groups though lifetime exposures. We are interested too in environmental controls, wet or dry environments, policy and community interventions, and mutual help and living groups supporting sobriety. We seek papers for the special edition of IJERPH dealing with such issues and methodologies like geographic and other techniques and measurement approaches for improving environmental studies of alcohol and alcoholism.

Dr. Thomas K. Greenfield
Guest Editor