Data from the LSS and CFS studies also allow us to examine the association between alcohol problems in the adoptive family and the occurrence of alcoholism in the adoptee. In each case, a significantly elevated alcoholism risk was found for male adoptees (i.e., risk ratios of 2.7 in the LSS study and 2.1 in the CFS study) raised in adoptive families in which at least one member experienced alcohol problems, compared with male adoptees raised in adoptive families in which no one else experienced alcohol problems. It should be noted, however, that because alcohol problems in the adoptive families could include problems experienced by siblings, analysis could overestimate the influence of the adoptive parents on the adoptees’ outcomes.
