Alcoholism in Ontario; A Survey of an Ontario County

Abstract

Estimates of the incidence of alcoholism in Canada have been based on American proportions whose application to Canadian populations is open to question. This has been due to the absence of adequate Canadian surveys upon which more reliable estimates might be based. The field was an Ontario county June 30, 1951 to January 1, 1952. Three types of abnormal drinkers were distinguished: the problem drinker, the alcohol addict, the chronic alcoholic. Professional field workers used a standard interviewing procedure. This information was obtained from all those individuals, groups, agencies, and institutions in the county who were likely to come into contact with the problem of abnormal drinking. In 1951, in X County there were 43,606 persons 20 yrs. of age and over. 698 abnormal drinkers:, a ratio of 16:1000. Since the population of the county was comparable to that of the Province as a whole with respect to rural-urban distribution, sex ratio, racial and religious composition, and the percentage of persons 20 yrs. of age and over it was possible to estimate a rate of alcoholism for Ontario on the basis of the X County rate. Applying the latter rate to the adult population of the Province gave 48,681 abnormal drinkers in Ontario in 1951. The survey results were found to be in close agreement with estimates for the same areas based on the Jellinek estimation formula. This is the third instance in which estimates based on the Jellinek formula have compared favorably with independent estimates.