Among individuals in recovery from alcohol problems in the What Is Recovery? sample, the strongest factors related to non-abstinent recovery were fewer DSM alcohol dependence symptoms and younger age. The negative relationship between DSM severity and probability of non-abstinent (vs. abstinent) recovery supports past findings from large general population (Dawson et al. 2005) and treatment (Weisner, Matzger, and Kaskutas 2003) samples. Consistent with past studies, we also found in the WIR sample that help-seeking (e.g., treatment, AA) for AUD was negatively related to the odds of non-abstinent recovery (Cunningham et al. 2000; Dawson et al. 2005; Sobell et al. 1996). Similarly, in a large outpatient treatment sample, longer lengths of stay in treatment was associated with 5% higher odds of abstinence (vs. low-risk or heavy drinking; (Kline-Simon et al. 2013). Although the relationship between help-seeking and abstinence could reflect differences in dependence severity, results were robust to controlling for the number of DSM symptoms.
