Alcohol use and trait anxiety in the general population.

The relationship between alcohol consumption and trait anxiety in a large sample representative of the U.S. general population was examined. Sex, age and ethnicity were used as control variables. It was found that men consumed more alcohol than women, and that this difference was largest for Catholic ethnic groups. For most groups of respondents, there was little or no relationship between trait anxiety and alcohol consumption. Among young and middle-aged males from Catholic ethnic groups, however, those with more anxious personalities drank more.