Nordic Studies on Alcohol and Drugs

We analyse the association between public opinions and political decisions on alcohol policy in Sweden during the last decades.

Reviews of existing Swedish surveys on public opinion and recent data on the opinion of decision-makers.

Restrictive alcohol policy measures have much support in Sweden and this support has increased in the last decade. The opinions of the public and their elected representatives correspond fairly well but the relation between these opinions and policy decisions are not always straightforward.

There is little support for the idea that public opinion has been a major influence on alcohol policy formation in the period of 1990–2012.

During the last two decades there has been a substantial liberalisation of Norwegian alcohol policy in terms of increased availability of alcohol. We have studied what happens with public support for alcohol control policies in a country where the policy is liberalised. First, we summarise the findings from previous Norwegian studies on changes in attitudes toward alcohol control policies. Second, we present new empirical analyses on changes in attitudes toward a broad spectre of policies in 2005–2012, and whether the pattern of change varied according to gender, age, education and alcohol use.

The empirical analyses were based on self-reported attitudes toward Norwegian alcohol policies from nine web surveys conducted among 20–69-year-old Norwegians (N = 12 304).

The analyses showed increased support for a wide range of restrictive alcohol policy measures from 2005 to 2012 – both for measures that had been liberalised and those that had been stable. We found no substantial moderation by gender, age, educational level and drinking frequency, which indicates that the pattern of change was similar for various sub-groups based on such variables.

Previous research has observed a shift toward increasing support for a restrictive alcohol policy around the millennium. Current data shows that this trend has continued until 2012. We discuss the relationship between alcohol policy and public opinion, and propose that the trend may be connected to changes in value orientations, increased experience with alcohol-related harm and changes in beliefs about the harm-limiting effect of restrictive measures.

This article studies trends and patterns of public opinion on alcohol policy in relation to changes in alcohol policy and total alcohol consumption in Finland during the last twenty years.

We first study changes in alcohol policy and total alcohol consumption, and then review and analyse data from public opinions surveys. General trends in the alcohol-policy opinion climate are studied, as well as specific questions such as opinions regarding age limits, pricing of alcoholic beverages and sales place of different alcoholic beverages.

The Finnish alcohol policy arena has undergone large changes during the last two decades which can also be noted as a growth in the total consumption of alcoholic beverages and related harms. In congruence with higher consumption levels of alcohol, also the share of the population in favour of more restrictive alcohol policies has risen.

To describe and explain changes in public opinions regarding alcohol consumption and policy in Denmark in recent decades. Since the late 1990s Danish alcohol policy has become more restrictive, and alcohol consumption has decreased.

Five national surveys and one Nordic survey (1985, 1989, 1994, 1997/98, 2002 and 2011) were reviewed, and the data regarding attitudes towards alcohol consumption and alcohol political questions were identified and compared.

Although Danes perceive the total alcohol consumption to be rather high, there is no support for a more restrictive alcohol policy.

There is no clear direction regarding the development of attitudes toward different alcohol political questions over time. There is no support for the regulation of alcohol price or availability. Danes seem to view alcohol consumption as a private issue that requires self-control and self-discipline more than political intervention.

The objective of this article is to provide an overview of the changes in public opinions and alcohol policy over the last 20 years in Iceland. Furthermore, to give an overview of changes in the key areas that may have influenced alcohol consumption amongst the population.

Data was gathered from different sources, including public surveys and sale figures from the Statistical Office in Iceland and the State Monopoly.

Per capita consumption of alcohol amongst those 15 years and older and the overall availability of alcohol in Iceland increased during the time in question, from 4.5 liters of pure alcohol in 1988 to estimated 6.9 liters in 2012. The total consumption was the highest in 2007, at 7.5 liters of pure alcohol. After the onset of the economic crisis, the consumption decreased to 6.7 liters of pure alcohol at its lowest point, but has been slowly increasing again. During this period, people's attitude towards the arrangement of the state monopoly has remained positive and relatively stable.

It appears to be a consensus in Iceland regarding the current status of the state monopoly, the limited availability and the 20 years age limit to purchase alcohol. Older people and people living in rural areas are more in favor of the state alcohol monopoly. The majority of the people are in favor of banning alcohol advertising. The total alcohol consumption in Iceland appears to be associated with availability and price. The lack of data for cross-analysis makes it problematic to make clear conclusions.