"Getting by (or getting high) with a little help from my friends": an examination of adult alcoholics' friendships.

Objective: Researchers have devoted much attention to the influence of social support on positive health outcomes, including efficacy of alcoholism treatment. Yet relatively little research has examined the structure (e.g., quantity or frequency of interactions) and quality (e.g., subjective appraisals of value or adequacy) of alcoholics' relationships. In addition, few studies have explored adult alcoholics' friendships, despite research suggesting that friendships influence treatment outcomes. The current study examined friendship characteristics of Project MATCH participants.

Method: Participants (1,183 men, 380 women) described the structure and quality of their friendships at baseline and posttreatment. Friendships with drinkers and nondrinkers were examined in relation to baseline and follow-up drinking levels, as well as participant gender, age and parental history of alcohol problems.

Results: Significant changes were found in all aspects of friendships with both drinkers and nondrinkers from baseline to the 6-month posttreatment interview. For example, although approximately half of alcoholics friendships were with drinkers at baseline, that proportion decreased following treatment, whereas the proportion of friendships with nondrinkers increased. There was support for the hypothesis that changes in both friendship quality and structure would predict follow-up drinking levels.

Conclusions: This study offers persuasive evidence for the importance of quality and, especially, structure of friendships to adult alcoholics' drinking behavior. Results also suggest differences in friendships depending on gender and across the lifespan. Such individual differences may have implications for prevention and treatment.