High rates of depression and anxiety have been found in alcoholic samples (Gratzer et al., 2004; Hasin & Nunes, 1997; Weitzman, 2004), and self-report measures of neuroticism tend to be higher in individuals with AUDs (Jackson & Sher, 2003; McCormick, Dowd, Quirk, & Zegarra, 1998; Prescott, Neale, Corey, & Kendler, 1997). However, the relationship between neuroticism/negative emotionality and the later development of alcohol-related problems remains unclear, with some studies indicating that neuroticism/negative emotionality predicts subsequent onset and course of AUDs (Zimmerman et al., 2003) and other studies suggesting that neuroticism/negative emotionality is a consequence of extended problematic alcohol involvement (Sutherland, 1997).
