On the Verge of EU Membership: Alcohol Cultures in the Baltic Sea Region in a European Perspective

Abstract

As several former East Bloc countries now become EU members, we will be witnessing the merger between quite diverse social, economic, and political cultures—including the encounter between divergent drinking patterns and alcohol policies. In 2000, a survey was carried out in six EU countries as part of the European Comparative Alcohol Study in which respondents were asked about drinking habits and other alcohol-related issues. Several of these questions were also used in a survey in the Baltic republics and Poland in 2001, thereby providing an opening for comparisons across the traditional east–west divide in Europe. This article provides a broad outline of the main findings in the comparison between the two groups of countries as European integration enters its next phase. The main focus is on frequency of drinking, prevalence of alcohol-related harms, and attitudes toward alcohol policy. Although country comparisons are at the center of attention, gender differences are also highlighted.