Alcohol in the Movies: Characteristics of Drinkers and Nondrinkers in Films From 1940 to 1989

  1. William D. McIntosh1,*,
  2. Stephen M. Smith2,
  3. Doris G. Bazzini3,
  4. Penny S. Mills4

Article first published online: 31 JUL 2006

DOI: 10.1111/j.1559-1816.1999.tb02035.x

Issue

Journal of Applied Social Psychology

Journal of Applied Social Psychology

Volume 29, Issue 6, pages 1191–1199, June 1999

Additional Information

How to Cite

McIntosh, W. D., Smith, S. M., Bazzini, D. G. and Mills, P. S. (1999), Alcohol in the Movies: Characteristics of Drinkers and Nondrinkers in Films From 1940 to 1989. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 29: 1191–1199. doi: 10.1111/j.1559-1816.1999.tb02035.x

Author Information

  1. 1

    Georgia Southern University

  2. 2

    North Georgia College

  3. 3

    Appalachian State University

  4. 4

    Georgia Southern University

* Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to William D. McIntosh, Department of Psychology, Georgia Southern University, P.O. Box 8041, Statesboro, GA 30460. e-mail: wmcintosh@gsvms2.cc.gasou.edu.

Publication History

  1. Issue published online: 31 JUL 2006
  2. Article first published online: 31 JUL 2006

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We examined depictions of alcohol use in 100 popular films spanning 5 decades. Drinkers were depicted as more attractive, more romantically/sexually active, more aggressive, and having a higher socioeconomic status than nondrinkers. No systematic changes were found across decades that might reflect the growing knowledge base regarding the adverse effects of alcohol use. We compared the depiction of alcohol use in movies to real-world demographics and found that alcohol use in movies is somewhat glamorized.

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