We investigated the association between specific trauma exposures and PTSD for multiple stages of alcohol involvement – alcohol initiation, transition from first use to first AUD symptom and transition from first use to AUD diagnosis – in female European American and African American young adults. Consistent with previous research (Grant et al., 2012), EAs were more likely to use alcohol, experience an AUD symptom, develop AUD and reach these milestones at an earlier age, on average, than their AA counterparts. Trauma variables were revealed as risk factors for each stage of alcohol involvement but only in EA women. Specifically, only SA predicted alcohol initiation, PA predicted transition to first AUD symptom, and SA, PA, and witnessing injury or death increased the risk for transitioning to AUD. Our findings build on previous research (Keyes et al., 2011, Sartor et al., 2010) by examining the effects of specific trauma and considering the transitions to first AUD problem and AUD diagnosis from alcohol initiation. By considering transitions from initiation to later stages, we were able to parse out the effects of trauma exposures
