Respondent were consistently asked across waves: 1) ever had more than a taste or sip of alcohol (since last interview for Waves 2 through 4); 2) average frequency of drinking in the past year; 3) average number of drinks per drinking occasion; 4) number of occasions had 5+ drinks in a row in the past year; and 5) number of occasions gotten drunk or very high on alcohol, past 12 months. For questions on frequency of drinking, graded response options were allowed ranging from once a year to every day. At-risk drinking was defined as any instance of 5+ drinks per drinking occasion or 14+ drinks per week on average for men, and any instance of 4+ drinks per drinking occasion or 7+ drinks per week on average for women (National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, 2005, 2013).
