Accepted Risk and Alcohol Use during Pregnancy

Risk perceptions have been employed to understand consumers' use of hazardous products. However, there has been little research linking risk perceptions to actual product use (i.e., risk acceptance). This study examined risk perceptions and alcoholic beverage consumption of 409 women during pregnancy. The survey included a variety of demographic, information search, risk perception, and attitudinal measures. Compared to abstainers, women who continued to drink during pregnancy were less likely to view consuming alcohol in moderation as risky and were less likely to believe that consuming alcohol during pregnancy would harm the unborn child. Drinkers were also older and had less difficulty getting pregnant than abstainers. Copyright 1994 by the University of Chicago.