Review of \u3cem\u3eDrug War Heresies: Learning from Other Vices, Times & Places.\u3c/em\u3e Robert J. MacCoun and Peter Reuter. Reviewed by Lorraine T. Midanik.

Book review of Robert J. MacCoun and Peter Reuter, Drug War Heresies: Learning from Other Vices, Times & Places. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2002. $75.00 hardcover,$25.00 papercover

Alcohol problems and sense of coherence among older adults

The relation between alcohol problems and sense of coherence (SOC), a salutogenic model developed by Antonovsky, was assessed on a sample of 952 older members of a health maintenance organization. Data on alcohol problems (5-item index) and SOC (9-item scale) were obtained from mailed questionnaires. Multiple regression analyses indicated that SOC was a significant negative predictor of alcohol problems while controlling for alcohol consumption level, frequency of drunkeness and demographic characteristics. In addition, SOC scores were significantly higher for a subsample of lighter drinkers who reported no alcohol problems in the last year and had not been drunk in the last year (n=419) as compared to heavier drinkers who reported at least one alcohol problem in the last year, and reported being drunk at least once in the last year (n=107). These findings emphasize the importance of assessing factors which contribute to healthier behaviors as opposed to focusing exclusively on predictors of pathogenic outcomes.alcohol problems alcohol use sense of coherence older adults salutogenic

Alcohol policy and the public good.

Written by seventeen of the world's leading researchers on alcohol problems, and produced in collaboration with WHO, this book presents a critical and highly informed perspective on alcoholism and its management. It provides an appraisal of the nature and extent of society's alcohol problems and then explores how scientific findings assist in the design of more effective policy responses. Topics covered include international trends in alcohol consumption, understanding the relationships between alcohol consumption and multiple types of harm, both as regards individual drinking and population consumption. With the epidemiological evidence established, the text turns to a view of the efficacy of different types of prevention strategy, including pricing, licensing and control of access, drunk driving counter-measures, public education, and the treatment contribution. A final chapter succinctly outlines how these analyses are to assist in the making of informed policy choices