Drinker's own drinking, experience of alcohol-related harms, and concern for drinking predict drinker's attitudes towards non-drinkers.

OBJECTIVE

While the stigma experienced by non-drinkers is well-documented, little is known about the factors that influence it. This study aims to test a sequential mediation model in which the amount of alcohol consumed by a drinker, predicts their experienced alcohol-related harm, which in turn predicts the concern they have for drinking and their negative attitudes towards non-drinkers.

METHODS

A sample of 787 Australian drinkers (M = 38.4 years, SD = 11.4) completed online measures of alcohol consumption, alcohol-related harms, concern for drinking and the Cheers Attitudes towards Non-drinker Scale (CANS): a scale that measures the negative attitudes toward non-drinkers three threats non-drinkers are perceived to pose to drinkers (Threat to Fun, Connection, and Self).

RESULTS

The model was shown to be a good fit and demonstrated a sequential mediation with significant indirect effects from alcohol consumption experienced alcohol-related harms and concern, to each CANS subscale: Threat to Self (β = 0.402,  < 0.001), Fun (β = 0.096,  = 0.006) and Connection (β = 0.165,  < 0.001).

CONCLUSION

The findings suggest that the stigma directed at non-drinkers may be enacted as a defence against an unwanted self-reflection from a drinker's concern for their own drinking.