Alcohol consumption behavior has many determinants. Past work has suggested that biological factors appear to have a significant impact on the progression from experimentation to regular use while social and cultural factors appear to play a critical role in experimentation with alcohol and development of drinking patterns over time (3,4). Given the social nature of this behavior, it is not surprising that previous work has identified interactions with friends and family members as key factors (4,5,6,7,8). While this prior literature has primarily focused on cross-sectional panels, some studies have attempted to test whether social influences act over time (6,7,8). This work, primarily focused on peer influence among college students, has shown inconsistent results, and has tended to focus just on dyads of connected individuals.
