Does Drinking Risk Vary by 'Work Style'?

Key Points

A large-scale survey of 7,500 corporate employees nationwide was conducted to analyze the relationship between work styles and drinking risk.

Drinking risk was found to be associated with age, gender, income, occupation, and job position, with higher tendencies observed among managerial, logistics, and sales/marketing staff.

The findings suggest that drinking risk is not only influenced by individual factors but also potentially affected by workplace environment and job characteristics, indicating the importance of occupation-specific health support.

Overview

Alcohol use is a significant issue affecting workers' health, productivity, and occupational safety. However, the relationship between drinking risk and occupational factors such as job type has not been fully clarified.

Junsei Managi, Director of the Urban Research Center at Kyushu University, Mituki Takeda, Project Assistant Professor, and Tingmi Cui, Researcher, collaborated with Sanwa Shurui Co., Ltd. to conduct a survey targeting 7,500 employees aged 20 and over working at companies across Japan. They analyzed the relationship between AUDIT (Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test) scores—a metric for assessing drinking risk—and occupational factors.

The results showed that AUDIT scores (10 items, maximum 40 points) were associated with age, gender, income, and occupation, with higher tendencies observed among males, younger age groups, and higher-income individuals. By occupation, managerial, logistics, and sales/marketing staff showed higher drinking risk tendencies. Furthermore, when comparing job positions, higher positions were associated with higher AUDIT scores. Notably, managerial and executive staff had a higher proportion of AUDIT scores between 8 and 14 points—a level at which review of drinking habits and health guidance are recommended. These results suggest that managers and executives may be a key target group for workplace alcohol countermeasures and health support. Overall, drinking behavior may be influenced not only by personal attributes but also by job-related factors such as job content, workplace culture, frequency of interpersonal interactions, and work arrangements.

This study is significant in demonstrating that drinking risk may be associated not only with personal attributes but also with job type and work style. It is expected to contribute to the development of support strategies tailored to job characteristics in corporate health management and workplace alcohol prevention initiatives.

The research findings were presented by Project Assistant Professor Mituki Takeda at the 99th Annual Meeting of the Japanese Society for Occupational Health, held on May 29, 2026.

Background and Rationale

Workplace alcohol prevention is considered a crucial issue from the standpoint of employee health management and occupational safety. Excessive drinking is known to increase the risk of lifestyle diseases and mental health issues, as well as being linked to absenteeism, reduced productivity, and workplace accidents. Therefore, companies are expected to understand workplace factors related to drinking risk and implement appropriate measures, beyond just individual drinking habits.

Previous studies have reported associations between problematic drinking and factors such as gender, age, and stress. Additionally, differences in job content, frequency of interpersonal interactions, work arrangements, and level of responsibility across occupations and positions may influence drinking behavior. However, large-scale studies examining the relationship between occupational factors—such as job type, position, and income—and drinking risk among Japanese corporate workers remain limited.

Therefore, this study conducted an online questionnaire survey of 7,500 corporate workers nationwide to analyze the relationship between AUDIT scores—a metric for drinking risk—and occupational factors such as job type, position, and income. The aim was to clarify whether drinking risk differs by job type and position and to obtain insights useful for corporate health management and workplace alcohol prevention.

Study Content and Results

AUDIT is a screening tool developed by the World Health Organization (WHO) to identify problem drinking, consisting of 10 items related to alcohol consumption and alcohol-related problems.

The analysis revealed that AUDIT scores were primarily associated with age, gender, income, and occupation. Men had significantly higher AUDIT scores than women, and younger age groups showed slightly higher tendencies. Additionally, higher-income individuals tended to have higher AUDIT scores. By occupation, managerial, logistics, and sales/marketing staff showed higher AUDIT scores (Figure 1). These occupations may involve job characteristics—such as job responsibilities, frequency of interpersonal interactions, work arrangements, and workplace culture—that influence drinking behavior.

When comparing job positions, higher positions were associated with higher AUDIT scores. In particular, managerial and executive staff had a higher proportion of AUDIT scores between 8 and 14 points compared to other positions, suggesting they may be a relatively high-risk group for drinking (Figure 2). However, when factors such as age and income were simultaneously considered in the analysis, the independent effect of job position itself was not confirmed.

This study suggests that drinking risk may be influenced not only by personal attributes but also by job type and work style. Health support and alcohol prevention measures tailored to the characteristics of specific occupations—particularly managerial, logistics, and sales/marketing roles—are indicated as important. However, drinking behavior is likely influenced by diverse factors such as personal values, lifestyle habits, workplace culture, and psychological factors, warranting further investigation.

Figure 1: AUDIT Scores by Occupation

Figure 2: Distribution of AUDIT Scores by Job Position

Future Outlook: Toward Drinking Risk Countermeasures Based on Job and Position Characteristics

This study indicates that drinking risk may be associated not only with personal attributes such as age, gender, and income but also with occupational factors such as job type and position. Going forward, it will be necessary to include factors such as working hours, workplace stress, frequency of work-related interpersonal interactions, drinking opportunities inside and outside the company, and workplace culture in further analyses to more precisely clarify the background of drinking behavior.

In particular, for occupations showing higher drinking risk tendencies—such as managerial, logistics, and sales/marketing roles—support that considers job characteristics and workplace environment, in addition to individual drinking habits, is considered essential. The required countermeasures may differ by job type and position, necessitating approaches tailored to specific circumstances rather than uniform health education.

In the future, based on these research findings, we will examine ways to provide health support tailored to the characteristics of different job types and positions, and also advance research on strategies that simultaneously reduce drinking risk while maintaining and enhancing workplace communication.