“Wet” or “Dry” County Status and its Correlates With Suicide, Homicide, and Illegitimacy

Based on data gathered from Alabama’s Vital Records for the period 1978-1988, the mean suicide & homicide rates per 100,000 & the mean illegitimacy rate per 1,000 was calculated for 67 counties. 41 counties were listed as “wet” & 25 as “dry”. Dry counties had lower mean homicide & illegitimacy rates but higher mean suicide rates. Results indicate only mixed support for the hypothesis that restricting the legal sale of alcohol results in lower rates of social pathologies. (2 refs.)