In these studies, significant predictors of Low-Risk Drinking included female sex, older age, and higher LRs (greater alcohol sensitivity), as well as lower baseline alcohol intake and problems, less smoking and illicit drug use, lower rates of seeking help for mental health problems, and lower Novelty Seeking. At the other end of the spectrum, an Abstinent outcome was predicted by older age, European American (EA) heritage, lower education, low LRs, high baseline drinking parameters, illicit drug use and smoking, along with a high likelihood of seeking mental health treatment and high Novelty Seeking. The authors speculated that it was possible that the similarity between predictors of abstinence and problem drinking outcomes might reflect the fact that predictors of adverse drinking outcomes could predispose a drinker to more problems if they continue to drink, which might then bring the person to a decision that they needed to stop drinking overall. Predictors of the two outcomes of High-Risk Drinking with and without continued alcohol problems did not differ dramatically, as both outcomes related to higher proportions of subjects with EA heritage, low LRs, and high baseline drinking parameters (Gonçalves et al., 2017).
