This study indicated that maternal and paternal alcohol problems, after controlling for the effects of parental divorce and parental histories of drug, depression, and antisocial behavior problems, increased the likelihood of offspring lifetime alcohol dependence. Thus, the relationship between maternal and paternal alcohol problems and offspring alcohol dependence was confirmed in the general population, regardless of parental divorce status. Moreover, although maternal and paternal alcohol problems varied considerably in their prevalence in this sample, maternal-only and paternal-only alcohol problems predicted very similar levels of risk for offspring alcohol dependence. In contrast, having both parents with alcohol problems substantially increased the level of risk for alcohol dependence over maternal or paternal alcoholism alone.
