Workplace harassment, stress, and drinking behavior over time: Gender differences in a national sample

Research suggests that workplace harassment (WH) significantly predicts alcohol use and problem drinking behavior, but has generally failed to consider concurrent effects of other sources of stress. This two-wave study (n = 1418) is the first to explore whether sexual harassment (SH) and generalized workplace harassment (GWH) predict increased drinking independently of the effects of job and life stress, and whether effects differ by gender, in a nationally representative sample. SH and GWH predicted increases in problem drinking one year later for men but not women, while life stress was associated with increased problem drinking for women but not men. This study confirms the importance of examining the associations between different types of stressors and drinking-related outcomes in gendered contexts.