Social Interaction and the Distribution of Alcohol Consumption

Abstract

Both survey data and liver cirrhosis mortality data demonstrate the existence of a relationship between per capita consumption of alcohol and the prevalence of heavy alcohol use. The present paper reviews some of the explanations given for this relationship, and the so-called “contagion between persons” explanation is further developed. The empirical evidence for the basic assumptions of this theory is reviewed, and some predictions are derived and related to empirical facts.