Greenslade L, Pearson M, Madden M
Institute of Irish Studies, University of Liverpool, UK.
Alcohol Alcohol. 1995 Jul;30(4):407-17.
Long-standing stereotypes portray Irish people as prone to use alcohol to excess. This review traces the historical origins of those stereotypes, and examines evidence drawn from a range of secondary sources in Ireland and Britain about alcohol consumption, attributed hospital admissions and mortality. The available data indicate that the 'problem' of Irish drinking and Irish attitudes to alcohol are not as straightforward as traditionally supposed. Far from the stereotypical image of the Irish embodied in the ubiquitous drunk male labourer, rates of abstinence from alcohol are higher in Ireland than in Britain. Amongst migrants, the Irish are no more likely to consume alcohol than the indigenous population. However, those Irish people who do drink alcohol do so at generally higher levels than their British born counterparts. Analysis of combined years' data from the General Household Survey indicates first that people of Irish birth or parentage are no more likely than the British born to use alcohol at all. However, if they make use of alcohol at all, members of the Irish groups were more likely than the British born to consume alcohol at levels greater than 14 or 21 units per week. Both the review and the data presented suggest that a more complex understanding of the dynamics and nature of Irish drinking needs to be developed.
长期以来的刻板印象认为爱尔兰人容易酗酒。这篇综述追溯了这些刻板印象的历史根源，并审视了来自爱尔兰和英国一系列二手资料中有关酒精消费、归因于酒精的住院人数和死亡率的证据。现有数据表明，爱尔兰人饮酒问题以及爱尔兰人对酒精的态度并不像传统认为的那么简单。与无处不在的醉酒男性劳工所体现的爱尔兰人刻板形象截然不同的是，爱尔兰的戒酒率高于英国。在移民中，爱尔兰人饮酒的可能性并不比本土居民高。然而，那些饮酒的爱尔兰人通常比在英国出生的同龄人饮酒量更大。对综合住户调查多年数据的分析首先表明，有爱尔兰血统或父母是爱尔兰人的人饮酒的可能性并不比在英国出生的人高。然而，如果他们饮酒，爱尔兰群体中的成员比在英国出生的人更有可能每周饮酒超过14或21个单位。这篇综述以及所呈现的数据都表明，需要对爱尔兰人饮酒的动态和本质形成更复杂的理解。
