Sex-role orientation and self-esteem in alcoholic and nonalcoholic women.

Theory and research on alcoholism suggest that psychological masculinity and femininity and self-esteem are related to drinking problems in women. In a sample of 60 alcoholic and 60 nonalcoholic women, hypotheses derived from contemporary sex-role theory were contrasted with predictions from a copying styles perspective. Support was found only for the sex-role theory hypotheses. The two groups differed in levels of masculinity, femininity and self-esteem. These differences were reflected in the clustering of the low self-esteem, alcoholic women in the undifferentiated sex-role orientation category. The high self-esteem, nonalcoholic women were predominantly androgynous and masculine sex-typed. Psychological masculinity was the major factor distinguishing alcoholic from non-alcoholic women, as well as a better predictor of self-esteem than alcoholism.